The Snow Globe Family by Jane O'Conner & Illus by S D Schindler

This book is so adorable! I happen to have a thing for snow globes, so I am a bit biased, but it is super cute! The reviews on Amazon were mixed, some people saying it was difficult to keep track of which family was which. 

I say pooh-pooh to all of them. I thought it was pretty good about delineating which family was which. 

And it is cute! Did I mention how cute it is? 

The wee, tiny snow globe family.

The real family and the Snow Globe family live in this house. Because it is Victorian times, so why not? 

The big house family having tea of an evening.

The Snow Globe family having tea in the snow globe.

The snow globe family would love a big snow storm, but they haven't had a one in years. 

But the baby in the big family is intrigued by the snow globe, even if everyone else is too grown up to shake it.

The Snow Globe family reminiscing about past big 'uns.

Now they only have a slight flurry when the maid dusts.

In the big house, they are getting a huge snowstorm. Father and the older kids head out. 

Baby is untended for a little while and decides to check out the snow globe.

Woah! Babies meeting.

And the big house baby gives that Snow Globe family the storm they had been dreaming about. 

The big house baby is taken out to go sledding. Meanwhile the Snow Globe family finally has enough snow for sledding. 

Both families are out enjoying the winter!

Big house family

And then both families went to sleep, dreaming of sledding. 

If the Snow Globe family had a weather forecast, I think there would be a winter storm warning in the forecast.....you

Tell Me Three Things by Julie Buxbaum

This was a really fun read! It is a lovely teen romance.  

Jessie’s mother died a year or so ago. Her father recently went off the deep end and remarried a wealthy movie executive in California. Jessie is uprooted from her familiar Chicago life to try to make a happy family with her father’s new wife and step-son. Her new life includes Wood Valley private school, filled with amazingly wealthy and beautiful people. Jessie feels hopelessly Chicago-an. The popular queen bees take delight in bullying her, most people act like she doesn’t exist, and no one seems even vaguely normal. But then she gets an email from somebody/nobody. He offers to be her guide to Wood Valley High and help her navigate the hazardous landscape of this new school. Is it Liam, the handsome lead singer? Or Caleb who spent his summer hiking Kilamanjaro? Is it her new step-brother who pretends she doesn’t exist, but is surprisingly nice at times? Or is it someone else entirely? Through this anonymous relationship, Jessie gains confidence, friends (“Dri is cool. Befriend her.”), and intrigue that get her through the bumpy first few months of her new life. And the ending, when she finally finds out who Somebody/Nobody is, is delightful and happy making.

So typical teen romance in many ways, but I cared about the characters. They felt realistic-ish. And the anonymity of the email format for Somebody/Nobody is sort of fun. Like a persistant secret admirer--Jessie can tell him things that she might feel awkward telling other people. And how fun to go around thinking I wonder if it is HIM? Or him? Someone nice and interesting likes me! That would have been pretty fun for my teenaged self. 

If you like YA romances without a ton of angst, you will like this! 

He prayeth best, who loveth best Coleridge & Tasha Tudor

He prayeth best, who loveth best

All things both great and small;

For the dear God who loveth us, 

He made and loveth all. 

                                                                    --Samuel Taylor Coleridge

Prairie Year by Jo Bannatyne-Cugnet and Yvette Moore

This is a book I have carried around for years. I think I got it at the Loussac Library book sale in Anchorage, Alaska years ago when my sister worked there. I have never actually read it until now. It just seemed like a book I would like. But honestly, every time I opened it, the sheer quantity of words turned me off. It is like a picture book and chapter book got smushed together and neither came out the winner. 

I want to love this book. I mean a book about kids growing up in the Midwest--how could I not love it? 

Well I managed. This is written by the same team that did Prairie Alphabet, which was pretty successful.  Something got lost in this effort. The writing was too earnest and the pictures too dated. 

There is one picture per month to go along with the story of the month. For whatever reason, the author thought it best to use a different family each month. Instead of a continuous progression of character development, we have these short little snippets about characters who leave us at the end of the month. Such fleeting things, these months and characters!

I am not all that kind about this book, BUT if you view this book as a collection of short stories based on kids living on the prairies, it is probably pretty good. I just had different expectations. 

(I feel like a terrible human when I say I didn't like a book that someone invested time and effort in. So try this one out yourself before dismissing it on my say so.)

January is hockey tournaments.

February is s snowmobile derby.

New piglets in March

Despite my misgivings about the set up, the stories do reflect the Midwest pretty accurately.

April is new chicks!

May is planting time

Fair in July

August is the wheat harvest

Grandparents teaching kids things about farming--I swoon a little. 

Halloween--trucks full of the costumed.

Snowy Christmas world! 

I love prairie kids.

A Little Oven by Eleanor Estes

This is a perfectly sweet book. We love Eleanor Estes. She is vintage, but oh so quality! This is a story about two little girls named Genevieve and Helena. I don't have the book at work where I am writing this, but I am pretty sure Helena is from California. Genevieve is from France and they both have moved to Connecticut. They become fast friends.

Eleanor Estes pictures are lovely watercolors with vibrant pops of color.

Genevieve arriving. 

Playing together constantly as all best friends do.

Language is a little tricky, with Genevieve's French accent, but they make it work.

In a show of solidarity, they chew in each other's languages.

Whenever Genevieve is tired, her mother picks her up for a little 'ovin and a little 'uggin.

When she goes home, she asks her mother if she can have a little 'ovin and a little 'uggin. Her distracted mother thinks she is talking about a pretend oven. 

They go to the store to buy an oven, but none of them were what Genevieve was wanting. 

A while later, the two families got together for a playdate. 

When Helena got her little 'uggin and a little 'ovin, Genevieve's mother finally understood what she meant. So she promptly sat down and snuggled. 

And now both little girls had all the lovings and huggings they needed. 

Isn't that adorable?

Monday is Wash Day by MaryAnn Sundby & Tessa Blackham

I found this book last fall in the library. I was instantly smitten. I planned on saving it for spring, but who couldn't use a dose of early springness on a grey day in February? 

And this little family is ridiculously sweet and kind to each other. Even though the girls would rather be playing, they know their mother needs the help. So they help. 

It that ain't love... 

I despised laundry when I was a kid. 

(To be honest, I am not a huge fan of it as a grown up either.) 

The illustrations are all cut paper with 3-D elements that give the objects shadows and make them pop from the page. 

I adore the clothes line and clothes! And those itty bitty clothespins....!

Houses. I am not as crazy about these illustrations. I feel that Tessa Blackham really comes into her own in interiors and clotheslines. But they are still fun! 

 Mother announces that since today is Monday, it is washday. 

Everyone pitches in. 

Those piles of laundry look as though they might fall off the page. 

And the wallpaper and pictures!

Getting water. 

Wringer washing machine. 

Obviously this book is about a long time ago, but it feels fresh. And there is no explanation about long ago, which makes it feel like it really wasn't that long ago. If that makes sense. 

I love the depth the cut paper gives to the illustrations.  

The little brother gets to play, but for the older girls--"first we work and then we play." 

Pouring in the blueing

Rinsing

Hanging out

I love her on her tiptoes hanging out her doll clothes!

Did I mention I loves these illustrations? 

Then they have to iron, fold and put away. But they do it in a lovely shade of pink, so life is rosy.

Did you notice the rug? You need to love it. 

And the ironing board!

Mama kisses her big helpers when they are finally done. 

The girls run outside to play and wait for Daddy. 

Who carries an adorable little lunch pail.