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Best re-issued children's books of 2008
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#1 The 13 Clocks by James Thurber (NYR Children’s Collection, $15) It’s not clear how long it took for this 1950 fairy tale about a wicked duke who thinks he has stopped time to be dubbed the top children’s book of all time, but it holds that distinction now in some circles. Manhattan’s top children’s bookseller, Peter Glassman, agrees.
(booksofwonder.com ). Author Neil Gaiman wrote, in the new introduction, "It's one of the great kids' books of the last century. It may be the best thing Thurber ever wrote. It's certainly the most fun that anybody can have reading anything aloud."
J. Lipton of Seattle told Amazon.com his old copy sits with Darwin's Origin of Species, Ulysses, and the complete full size edition of the Oxford English Dictionary, “and I consider The 13 Clocks to hold its own against these masterpieces… I hope that this new issue of Thurber's masterpiece … will help at least a few parents to unplug the electronics, and just sit down to read out loud to their children. This book can be read to toddlers - the poetry and rhymes are like Seuss. It can be read to older, wiser, 8-10-year-olds because it is scary and melodious. And I have read parts of it out loud to 50-year-olds, especially those with compassion fatigue …”
"There are spies, monsters, betrayals, hair's-breadth escapes, spells to be broken and all the usual accouterments,” says the LA Times, “but Thurber gives the proceedings his own particular deadpan spin...It all makes for a rousing concoction of adventure, humor and satire that defies any conventional classification."
“A small masterpiece of respectful travesty…” said the Hudson Review.
"Rich with ogres and oligarchs, riddles and wit. What distinguishes ["The 13 Clocks] "is not just quixotic imagination but Thurber's inimitable delight in language. The stories beg to be read aloud...Thurber captivates the ear and captures the heart." --Newsweek
"The 13 Clocks is one of the cleverest [fairytales] that any modern writer has been able to tell...there is no living author who moves about in fairyland with such wit and easy familiarity." --Time
"Everyone who reads to their children knows...to read the stuff that you love, or that you love to roll off your tongue...I'd put in a personal endorsement for James Thurber's The 13 Clocks here..." --Guardian
"Gothic, gruesome, and written with the wit of the master wordsmith. If you saw my copy, you'd believe me when I say I've read it more than 13 times." --Nicola Morgan, The Scotsman
#2 Free To Be You and Me, by Marlo Thomas and Friends (Running Press Kids, $20)
The groundbreaking book of empowerment that proclaimed people can choose to do whatever they desire has been selling for 35 years, but this anniversary edition, released in October, sports new illustrations and, evidently, a new generation of fans.
As young “Hannah Montana” star Miley Cyrus said, "Each and every one of us has our own special song to sing. As a musician, I get to hear this all the time—amazing voices, high and low, sweet and funky, all coming together like some great big choir. This book is just like that. Look at all the wonderful art. Read the funny poems and awesome stories. Each page is
Free to be You and Me, a collage on inspiration stories songs and poems, was the brainchild of actress Marlo Thomas and co-creator, Carole Hart. The new illustrations by Peter H. Reynolds are said to add a new sense of unity and warmth
In 1974, humorist Erma Bombeck said of the book: "Marlo Thomas has gathered together some of the most noted disciples of human dignity preaching today...Gloria Steinem, Letty Cottin Pogrebin, Shel Silverstein, Carl Reiner, and Kurt Vonnegut Jr., to name a few. They have filled the book with songs to be played on your piano or guitar, poems to be read aloud or to yourself and stories often illustrated by the crayon crowd...all with the underlying theme...you are free to be yourself."
Now, School Library Journal says the message remains valid “and it will be enthusiastically greeted by fans of the original (many of whom are now parents themselves) and those interested in anthologies about empowerment.”
(Please note, as one reviewer pointed out, the CD that comes with the book does not contain all the songs.)
Clearly, the sentiments of thirty-five years ago, celebrating individuality and challenging stereotypes, are as relevant today as when this book was published. One included story, "Atalanta,” one contemporary reader points out, is “a rare gem of a fairy tale,” in which the "happy ever after" for the princess comes not in marrying the prince, but in following her dreams.
Marlo Thomas is an award-winning actress who played independent career-woman Ann Marie in a the award-winning 1966-71 sit-com That Girl. She has numerous publications and recordings to her credit. Her website is marlo-thomas.com.
#3 The Blossom Family books by Betsy Byars (Holiday House, $7 each). Twenty-two years ago, Newbery Medalist Betsy Byars began publishing a quintet of books about the Blossom family. Under new covers, a new generation of children will be entertained by a rifle-toting grandpa named Pap, a mother who's away on the western rodeo circuit, three children who somehow always attract trouble, and dog named Mud who's always underfoot and involved. Kids who like humorous books will love the Blossom family series. In the series are: The Not-Just-Anybody Family, The Blossoms Meet the Vulture Lay, The Blossoms and the Green Phantom, A Blossom Promise, and Wanted… Mud Blossom.
#4 The Austin Family Chronicles (Square Fish/Macmillan, $7 each) Newbery Medalist Madeleine L'Engle, most known for her fantasy A Wrinkle In Time and its sequels, also penned realistic novels, like this quintet. Some say these books really deserve to be much better known, and perhaps the re-issue will see to that. Despite the span of years, teens will likely identify with Vicky Austin, a deeply nuanced character whose difficulties should seem familiar. The books in the series are: Meet the Austins, The Moon By Night, The Young Unicorns , A Ring of Endless Light (a Newbery Honor book), and Troubling a Star.
From blogger “Endless Books”: "These … are some of the best stories L'Engle penned for young people….great … for any voracious 12 and up readers… The first book actually can work for even younger readers (and I suspect would be a terrific read-aloud for even younger listeners). There are also three shorter
#5 The Evil Seed by Joanne Harris (Black Swan, about $11), Did you think vampire romance was created by Twilight? This 1989 vampire novel, set in and around
#6 Willy and May by Judy Schachner (Dutton Juvenile, $17) Booklist says: "A little girl tells of her beloved, eccentric great-aunt May, whom she visits each year during the summer and at Christmas. Together with May's pet bird, Willy, they bake pies (Willy dances on the soft dough), swim (Willy floats on May's hat), sing after supper (Willy spins on the Victrola record), and decorate the Christmas tree (Willy contributes dust bunnies and lost bobby pins). When apart, they write affectionate letters. One summer, the girl's mother falls ill, and the girl cannot visit May. The following Christmas, May promises to come, but a bad snowstorm blocks the roads and stops the trains. The child's distress and May's solution will make perfect sense to any child who has missed a loved one at Christmas." Also see our previous aticle on this title: Willy and May: Beguiling Christmas picture book re-issuedFarrell is drawn to
