Search Results for: blog mr gumpys outing john burningham

Mr. Rabbit and the Lovely Present – Charlotte Zolotow

Mr. Rabbit and the Lovely Present is a wonderful collaboration between author Charlotte Zolotow and illustrator Maurice Sendak. The book won the 1963 Caldecott Honor and is considered a well-loved classic with many teachers and families. In the story, a little girl asks Mr. Rabbit for help. She’s looking for birthday present for her mother. Mr. Rabbit agrees to help. The little girl says the mother likes red. The rabbit replies that you can’t give “red”. So the little girl says “Something red, maybe.” And the two try to think of something red. Mr. Rabbit suggests red underwear. That line … Continue reading →

Mr. Gumpy’s Outing – John Burningham

Mr. Gumpy’s Outing by John Burningham is a classic children’s picture book. My own children laughed with every reading. The book won the 1971 ALA Notable Children’s Book award, the 1972 Boston Globe-Horn Book Award, the New York Times Best Illustrated Book of 1971, and the 1970 Kate Greenaway Medal. Mr. Gumpy is an English gentleman. He owns a boat, and his house is by a river. One day he goes out in his boat. A boy and girl ask if they can come for a ride. Mr. Gumpy says they can, as long as they don’t squabble. A rabbit … Continue reading →

Danny’s Duck – June Crebbin

Danny’s Duck by June Crebbin is one of the sweetest stories for children. Every time I read it I think that we should all wish for such a perceptive and kind teacher for our young children. Clara Vulliamy’s watercolor illustrations are a perfect background for this gentle story and show a group of cute and ethnically diverse preschoolers at play. At the start of the book a duck flies over a neighborhood looking for a “good woody place”. She flies down to a pile of brushwood at the edge of a playground. Inside the preschool, the children are busy with … Continue reading →

Blueberries for Sal – Robert McCloskey

Blueberries for Sal is a wonderful classic children’s story. First published in 1948, it won the Caldecott Honor for author Robert McCloskey. Blueberries for Sal is the story of a little girl named Sal who goes blueberry picking with her mother. The mother wants to can the berries for the winter, and is very focused on getting her pail full of berries. The book has marvelous black and white illustrations showing an old-fashioned kitchen and canning jars, an old car, the mother in skirt and sweater, and little Sal in overalls. Little Sal follows her mother up a hillside. Sal … Continue reading →

Alexander and the Terrible, Horrible, No Good, Very Bad Day – Judith Viorst

Alexander and the Terrible, Horrible, No Good, Very Bad Day is another one of those classic books that I think every child should read. We all have bad days. Children and adults will laugh and empathize with Alexander’s day. Poor Alexander is a little boy who wakes up with gum in his hair, he trips on his skateboard, and drops his sweater in the sink all on the first page. At breakfast his brothers find prizes in their cereal boxes. All he finds is breakfast cereal. He announces that he thinks he’ll move to Australia. Alexander’s day keeps being terrible. … Continue reading →

The Tale of Pip and Squeak – Kate Duke

In this charming children’s picture book, we meet Pip and Squeak, two mouse brothers who share a fabulous house. Pip is a painter and has a tower where he creates the most wonderful pictures, but the fumes from his paint make Squeak feel ill. Squeak, on the other hand, is a singer, and can croon the most lovely arias, but Pip says the noise gives him a headache. So Squeak sings in his tower and Pip paints in his, and they never share the big room downstairs except for once a year, when they hold a party and invite all … Continue reading →

The Tom and Pippo Books – Helen Oxenbury

There are some books I can’t imagine raising children without. They are favorites of school teachers, parents, and librarians. I thought I would start sharing a few of these classic books here. The Tom and Pippo books by Helen Oxenbury are charming books for toddlers and preschoolers. Tom is a young boy and Pippo is his stuffed monkey friend. Tom’s parents are portrayed as caring and involved. The titles come in nice sturdy thick page books that hold up to lots of toddler mishandling. The illustrations featuring Tom and Pippo and their adventures are simple, but sweet and very appropriate … Continue reading →

Media Week in Review – January 28th-February 2nd

Did you have a busy week and miss some of the great blogs here in Media Reviews? That’s okay—this summary will get you caught up to speed. We started with the week with a review of “Beyond the Horizon,” the debut novel of LDS author Judy C. Olsen. She writes of six generations of men ranging from the era of Joseph Smith down to our present day, and the lessons each of them learned. “Mr. Gumpy’s Outing” is about a proper English gentleman who agrees to take a young boy, girl, and a whole menagerie with him on his boat. … Continue reading →