Book Memories

I have a book shelf next to the rocking chair in Riley's room that I pull from when it's story time. Many times I have to rock and read to calm him down for a nap. Our book collection is a mix of some of my old favorites and new ones that have been gifted to him. My dad read to me a lot (I'm sure my mom did too, but my memories predominately feature my father) and I remember the books being so funny. The new ones that Riley has are largely sentimental stories, such as Daddy's Little Boy, Keep Love in your Heart, Little One and Your First Step. We also have The Hawaiian Mother Goose, My Filipino Word Book and Counting Ovejas, for a touch of other languages.

There are about five books that I remember very clearly as my favorites. Two of them are on Riley's book shelf but the others are long gone.

Witches Four is about four witches that have lost their hats to four cats, who made them into their homes. I think what I always loved about this book was the rhythm; one witch, two witch, three witch, four. And I liked that it wasn't The Four Witches, but Witches Four - I'm not sure why, but it was different and that appealed to me, I guess. Just seeing the cover brings back memories of being all tucked into bed with my dad reading by my side. I don't remember much else of the book, unfortunately, but I would love to find a copy to read to Riley.

The Man Who Cooked For Himself is about a man who had his food delivered to his country home by a friend, until that friend took a vacation. Well, winter came and the man ate through all of his food. When spring arrived he had no food and he had to go out and collect his own. He picked nuts and berries, some kind of greens that he found by the lake, and he caught his own fish. It's funny to me that at such a young age I loved that he had to find his own food, but he made such a nice feast for himself out of what was right outside of his house. I wanted to do that too.

But No Elephants chronicles how granny bought a bird from an animal salesman to keep her company and it sang to her while she cooked. Then she bought a beaver, then a turtle and finally a woodpecker, and they all helped out around the house in their own ways. Each time she bought an animal, however, she would firmly say, But no elephants! Then when winter came the salesman had no where for the elephant to go, so she finally took him in. But then he ate everything and fell through the floor. However, he was then able to walk the house to a nice, tropical location and everyone was happy. I think I liked this book because my dad would say ephalumps instead of elephants. I also liked that granny took these animals in and that they were able to help her. This is one of the books that I still have.

When the Sun Rose is the other book that's on Riley's shelf. It is such a beautiful book about a girl who's friend comes to visit in a yellow rose carriage pulled by her golden lion. Their dolls trade dresses, they eat blueberries and cream, the lion purrs and they draw rainbows. The illustrations are so warm and full of light. This is one that my mom got me and I've always treasured it. This author also wrote Grandfather Twilight, about a man who pulls a pearl from his wood chest every night and walks it to the sea as it grows into the moon. It is equally as stunning, though not as vibrant as When the Sun Rose.

And finally, The Stupids series. I absolutely adored these books. They had things like a picture hanging on the wall of a tree but it would say boat. Or, as you can see by this cover, they would do such things as wear their animals as hats. It was just so funny to me that they would do such silly things as if it were normal. I remember going to the library and trying to find new books in the series that my dad and I hadn't read yet. I thought he would be so excited if I found a new one for us to giggle over. I think they made it into a movie, but I haven't seen it.

I also really liked The Bernstein Bears series. I liked that the bears were named Mama, Papa, Brother and Sister and they lived in a tree. Isn't that every child's fantasy, to live in a tree?

So far, Riley's favorites (or at least the ones he'll sit all the way through) are Green Eggs and Ham and Old MacDonald Had a Farm (he likes that I sing it and make the animal noises). He does pretty well with The Hawaiian Mother Goose, the rhymes calm him. The trouble is that I can't read books that aren't the thick cardboard type because he just tears the thin paper books. He likes to turn the pages back and forth, but the paper books are too thin for his hands and it usually turns into grabbing and pulling.

Raising a child brings back memories of my own childhood, especially when you have tangible objects from your past, such as these books. I am grateful that my parents read to me so much; they have given me pleasant memories. I hope to do the same for Riley.

Love,

Aislinn