Christmas Farm by Mary Lyn Ray and Barry Root

This is an awesome book about a Christmas Tree farm. I love Christmas tree farms. I drove past one everyday on the way to college and thought it was lovely. For some reason, they never cut the trees down, so now it is a farm full of balsam and spruce. Which is pretty too. 

I love this book. 

At the end of one summer, Wilma felt the gardeners urge for something different. But what?

In December, Wilma headed to her back hill to find her perfect Christmas tree.

But Wilma wondered what do people do who do not have a back hill?

Hm......

Wilma decided to order sixty-two dozen starts of balsam.  But to plant all of them, she would need some help.

 Enter Parker, stage right.

 (Or is that left? I always forget if the stage is from the audience's view or the actors....) 

Parker is Wilma's five-year old next door neighbor, the same age as the balsam starts.

Wilma's hill planted with the balsam.

Summers and winters go by. They do about a two page spread a year. Having the neighbor boy Parker there really gives kids a sense of time passing. He was five when the trees came. He helped plant them that year. The next year, when he was six, he helped weed between the trees.

When he was seven, Wilma got a tractor. Fascinating!

When he was eight, he could count high enough to count all the trees.

Every winter, trees are lost to mice, deer, and moose. But only a small amount of the 62 dozen die. 

When Parker was nine, they shaped the trees for people who like rounded trees.

Finally when Parker was 10, they make a sign "Trees for sale."

And the trees are taken away. Some singularly, others all bunched together in a big truck bound for the city. 

After the rush, Wilma and Parker go up the hill to choose their trees. 

Aren't they cozy pictures? I love them.

Parker brings his tree home

Wilma brings her's home. 

And after Christmas, they look through the seed catalogs for more balsam starts. 

I think all little boys should have a Wilma next door. With cozy houses, doughnuts, and big, consuming projects. 

At the end of the book, there is a page of information about balsams and how they grow. 

Isn't this a fun book? Or maybe that is just the botanist geek in me talking. I LOVE THIS BOOK. 

Good Hours by Robert Frost & Illus by Henri Sorenson

                               

Good Hours

I had for my winter evening walk--

No one at all with whom to talk,

But I had cottages in a row

Up to their shining eyes in snow. 

And I thought I had the folk within:

I had the sound of a violin;

I had a glimpse through curtain laces

Of youthful forms and youthful faces.

I had such company outward bound.

I went till there were no cottages found. 

I turned and repented, but coming back

I saw no window that was black.

Over the snow my creaking feet

Disturbed the slumbering village street

Like profanation, by your leave,

At ten o'clock of a winter's eve.

            

                                   --Robert Frost

Big Friends by Linda Sarah & Illus by Benji Davies

This book is the story of a friendship from the point of view of a somewhat shy boy.  

I LOVE THIS BOOK. No really, it is fabulous. Read it now!

Do you remember Storm Whale? I said I loved the art and needed to look into more books by Benji Davies. Well lo and behold, Clover brought one up. 

(Apparently I wouldn't see books if it were not for Clover bringing them to me. At this point, there is truth to this statement...)

These two friends, Birt and Etho were two perfectly happy box carriers.

 And they have good reason to be happy because their world is rather beautiful.

What they did together changed by the day,

But always, always they're Big Friends.

This picture! Seriously. I want a friend to sit on the shed of a roof to watch the sun go down with me. Okay, I am middle age-ish. I would really rather watch the sun from a comfy Adirondack chair. But still. 

 

My heart! 

Birt loved their Etho-Birtness. He loved their two-by-two rhythm.

But.... Shu is on the horizon. 

(By the way,  these names!) 

He descends upon their friendship with his cardboard box.

Birt is pretty hesitant about this interloper.  His hesitancy makes him feel left out in the cold. Or in this case, the rain.

They have fun with Shu,

But Birt feels strange.

This continues until Birt gets upset enough and finally destroys his ticket to this friendship--his cardboard box.  If he can't Etho to himself, he doesn't want him at all. 

Working with a child with autism last year, I can see so much of this inflexibility in him. This is not just a special needs situation though, because I distinctly remember feeling like this when a third wheel came into our protective twosome. Feeling poorly done by and cherishing that perceived hurt until it was intolerable. "Fine! If they don't like me!"

Etho and Shu kept knocking, but Birt pretended not to hear them.  

But he missed Etho. He missed their cardboard castles on Sudden Hill.

One morning, Birt decides to open the door. And...

 

Shu and Etho had built something they called Mr. ClimbFierce.

It's amazing!

An incredible Monster-Box-Creature thing.

 

In his excitement over the possibilities, Birt forgets to feel strange. He finds he is having a lot of fun!

Life is good again. Especially beacause a picnic involving bunting is happening.

Birt liked their Etho-Shu-Birtness. 

Isn't that fabulous? This book understands childhood friendships. 

What do you do with an IDEA? by Kobi Yamada & Illus by Mae Besom

 

Hey there! Listen, I am in the midst of finals week. The struggle is real. Which is why I am being a little slack with blogging. But! the end is in sight. As in next week. One more major (SO MAJOR) paper and I am finis! Woohoo! I already have a long list of fluffy books I am going to devour when I can stop being serious and studious. 

Anyway, this is another lovely book from Clover's Thanksgiving stacks. I have heard great things about this book and it does not disappoint!

 

The illustrations are very effective--monochromatic, with the idea in color. 

 

At first, he wasn't sure what to do with his idea that was following him around.  But then he discovered he liked having it around.

 

But then he discovered he liked having it around. 

 

So he toted it around with him everywhere. It was a happy burden. 

Notice how the color is increasing as his idea gets bigger? Color. We all need color in our life. And ideas give us that color, people!

(Terrible picture!) 

Then people poke fun at his idea. So he abandons it and goes back to monochromatic life.

 

But doggone it! It was his idea. Why couldn't he do what he liked with it? So he did. 

I couldn't imagine my life without it.

 

 And when the idea had free reign, color exploded in his life.  

 

Ideas make us kings and queens of our world!

I think it is interesting that the idea is back to a tiny little thing. What does this mean? Once we act on an idea, do we become the master of it rather than it being the master of us? Or is that another couple ideas I see hiding right behind him? Does embracing one idea lead us to meet other ideas?

This is such a great book for middle elementary kids!

Aren't the watercolor illustrations so delicate and beautiful?! I really love this book!

A Dark, Dark Cave by Eric Hoffman & Illustrated by Corey R. Tabor

This is another book from Clover's lovely stack. 

This one is chock full of imagination and sibling togetherness. 

Wintry landscape. A cave discovered. 

Of course they enter the deep dark cave. 

Where magic lives!

Right next to scary things with giant eyes....

I love this picture!

Aigh!!!

Our brave explorers are not going to take this invasion lying down. 

That's too loud, kids. Find a quiet game. The baby's sleeping.

Sorry, Dad.

This makes me exceedingly happy. 

With eight kids contained in one house for the entirety of Thanksgiving break, I can sympathize with this dad. But I love the imagination of the kids. 

Pouting and.... ideas!

Galloping horses!

In sunshine and birdsong