My most recently read book is The Bone Cage by Angie Abdou.
My favourite book from childhood is And To Think That I Saw it on Mulberry Street by Dr. Seuss.
What I loved about And to Think That I Saw it on Mulberry Street:
I have many favourite childhood books, but this one has followed me into adulthood.
As Marcos leaves on his way to school, his father reminds him to keep his eyes open to see what he can see.
What Marco sees is a horse and wagon (it’s an old book, first published in 1937). Not very exciting, or is it?
As we follow Marcos through the book, each page reveals something new he has added to this simple horse and wagon; it takes on a life of its own and becomes something fun and fantastical.
The pictures are bright, busy, fun, and far out.
This story really reflects the wonderful imagination and creativity we possess as children.
We create these fantasy worlds in our heads and often do not have the language to do our fantasy justice in words.
And sometimes we don’t want to share our fantasies either, especially when we see that adults just don’t get it — like Marco’s father.
Why I would recommend it:
When you revisit this book as a parent, it serves as a reminder to honour the sometimes whacky, but always wonderful, imagination of children and to enter into their fantasy with them.
I have often used this book in my adult and family literacy programs.
We use it as a format to create our own fantastical stories.
It’s also a great way to while away the hours on a long road trip.
- Carla Bullinger is the Literacy Outreach co-ordinator for Williams Lake