50 Best Books for Kids

A few weeks ago everyone on Facebook was doing these listchallenges. There are list challenges for books, movies, travel and lots of other specialty interest lists- how many  of the 100 Halloween candies I've eaten remains unknown. However many of them make a lovely diversion for an idle few minutes. Of course I love a book list and wanted to keep a more permanent record of them.

This 50 Best Books for Kids is a rather fascinating list. The first 20 or so books are internationally renown, indisputable children's classics. Then come some books and authors that aren't all that well known, and indeed many are completely unknown to me. An intriguing mix. Nice to see some nonfiction too.

As usual, the books I've read are in red.


1. Where the Wild Things Are - Maurice Sendak

2. Charlotte's Web - E.B White

3. Goodnight Moon - Margaret Wise Brown

4. Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone - J.K Rowling

5. The Very Hungry Caterpillar - Eric Carle

6. The Cat in the Hat -  Dr Seuss

7. A Wrinkle in Time - Madeleine L'Engle (see my review)

8. The Snowy Day - Ezra Jack Keats

9. The Lion, The Witch and the Wardrobe- C.S Lewis

10. Knuffle Bunny - Mo Willems

11. The Secret Garden - Frances Hodgson Burnett (see my review)

12. Harriet the Spy - Louise Fitzhugh (see my review)

13. Charlie and the Chocolate Factory - Roald Dahl

14. Madeline - Ludwig Bemelmans

15. The Hobbit - J.R.R. Tolkein (see my review)

16. The Phantom Tollbooth - Norton Juster, Jules Feiffer (ill)

17. The Complete Adventures of Curious George - Margaret and H.A. Rey

18. Holes - Louis Sachar (see my review)

19. Ramona the Pest - Beverly Cleary

20. Chicka Chicka BOOM BOOM - Bill Martin Jr and John Archambault, Lois Ehlert (ill)

21. The Arrival - Shaun Tan (see my review)

22. Matilda - Roald Dahl

23. The Tale of Peter Rabbit - Beatrix Potter

24. Bark, George - Jules Feiffer

25. The Invention of Hugo Cabret - Brian Selznick (see my review)

26. Anna Hibiscus - Atinuke, Lauren Tobia (ill)

27. Lily's Purple Plastic Purse - Kevin Henkes

28. A Light in the Attic - Shel Silverstein

29. Tales of a Fourth Grade Nothing - Judy Blume

30. George and Martha - James Marshall

31. The Watsons Go to Birmingham- 1963 - Christopher Paul Curtis

32. Caps for Sale - Esphyr Slobodkina

33. From the Mixed-Up Files of Mrs. Basil E. Frankweiler - E.L. Konigsburg (see my review)

34. The Paper Bag Princess - Robert Munsch

35. Number the Stars - Lois Lowry

36. Olivia - Ian Falconer

37. Coraline - Neil Gaiman 

38. Moonshot: the Flight of Apollo 11 - Brian Floca

39. Mufaro's Beautiful Daughters - John Steptol

40. Are You My Mother? - P.D. Eastman

41. The Bone Series - Jeff Smith

42. Little Bear - Else Holmelund Minarik

43. Mirror Mirror: A Book of Reversible Verse - Marilyn Singer, Josee Masse (ill)

44. The Golden Compass - Philip Pullman

45. Doctor de Soto - William Steig

46. Esperanza Rising - Pam Munoz Ryan

47. Go Away, Big Green Monster! - Ed Emberley

48. Dave the Potter: Artist, Poet, Slave - Laban Carrick Hill

49. My Father's Dragon - Ruth Stiles Gannett

50. Amelia Lost - Candace Fleming


28/50

A big start for me, having already read the top 11. Some of the rest are very close to the top of my TBR. Harriet the Spy and Holes appear to be rather large omissions in my reading to date, both are always near the top of these lists.

Sept 2014 I've inched my way up to 29/40

March 2016 30/40

The Snow Spider

The Snow Spider is a book that I didn't really know anything about before it came up on my 1001 schedule, and somehow the vaguely creepy 80s cover put me off. I'd borrowed it from my library once, but never got to starting to read it. What a pleasant surprise it was to start reading! I was entranced from the very first page.

A beguiling story set in a remote Welsh farmhouse. At the very start of the story Gwyn's rather eccentric grandmother gives him five unusual gifts for his ninth birthday.

They were very unusual gifts and if Gwyn had not been the sort of boy he was, he might have been disappointed.
'Happy Birthday!' said his grandmother, turning her basket upside down.
Gwyn stared at the objects on the kitchen floor, none of them wrapped in bright birthday paper: a piece of seaweed, a yellow scarf, a tin whistle, a twisted metal brooch, and a small, broken horse.

Rather odd presents indeed. But Gwyn's house is not a happy one, and his birthday isn't really celebrated. His sister Bethan disappeared in mysterious circumstances on his birthday four years earlier. So Gwyn's birthday is not so much a day of celebration, but one of mourning and remembrance, as each day seems to be. Particularly for Gwyn's father who blames him for his sister's disappearance.

Jenny Nimmo is English, but has lived for many years in Wales and she incorporates ancient tales of Welsh mythology into a modern story of friendship, family and loss. There was a very strong vibe of A Wrinkle in Time in some parts of the book for me, and even though I didn't particularly like A Wrinkle in Time the first time I read it (shocking I know!, but it does seem to be growing on me), I did really enjoy The Snow Spider, so much so that I've ordered the other two books in the series, Emlyn's Moon and The Chestnut Soldier.

221/1001

My Paris, My Sweet Challenge

Preparing for my Paris trip this year I read Amy Thomas's memoir Paris, My Sweet. Perfect fare for me of course. Although quite a bit of it is about New York too. But I'm not obsessed with New York, so I tended to glide over those bits a bit more.

At the back of the book Amy gives up a top 10 of Paris sweets (with a New York top 10 too). I soon realised that here was a Paris challenge that I could fully embrace. So in June, July 2013 I gave it a crack.

Amy's comments are before the pictures. Mine are after the pictures.

1. A good, ol' oozing Nutella street crepe.

I can't believe that it's taken me three trips to France to get to eating one of these. It was good. I'll definitely go there again.

2. La Folie at La Patisserie des Reves: the heft and texture of this squat pastry are pure magic. The doughy, whipped brioche is piped full of vanilla pastry cream that has a hint of rum raisin. Topped with praline crumble and a touch of confectioner's sugar, it's unbelievably yummy.

This was good, but there is so much astonishment in Patisserie des Reves, I would probably go for their patisseries rather than their bread products. I need to do a whole post about my passionate love for Patisserie des Reves some day- they made what was one of my very favourite delights in Paris this year- the magnificent Lemonta Granita. 

3. The insanely addictive praline from Pralus Chocolatier in the Marais. This buttery, chewy, crunchy, caramelised sweet brioche, chock-full of almonds from Valencia and crushed hazelnuts from Piedmont, is meant for at least four people. But I would eat an entire one myself.

I had high, high hopes for this one, having seen it on blogs and heard about it before for quite some time. But you know, it was ok, but really didn't do it for me. I would try it again, but wouldn't run back to Pralus as my first thing in Paris.

4. The sweet little strawberry Couer from Coquelicot in Montmartre. Relatively modest in size- just four or five bites- but this petite cake has a pitch-perfect texture that's both spongy and moist.

Sadly, this little couer didn't set my heart on fire. It was springy and moist, but just not my sort of thing.

5. A chocolate eclair from Stohrer. The crisp pastry shell envelopes an uber generous chocolatey custard filling and is slathered with a sweet chocolate glacage. It's a serious sugar rush.

Both Mr Wicker and I got a very strong coffee vibe from this one, and as neither of us like coffee it wasn't a good thing. The look was pretty, thinner than many Paris eclairs, and the pastry firm and lovely. Next time I'd try their equally famous Puits d'Amour.

6. Angelina's stick-to-your-teeth chocolate chaud. It's like sipping melted truffles. In a tea room that Coco Chanel used to frequent.

OMG, this is so, so good. Totally worth the trip to Angelinas (there are quite a few Angelinas now, but my favourite is still the original salon at 226 Rue de Rivoli, pretty much every visit to Paris will have you nearby at some time). I've had this on every trip to France. Wait for a cool day, and go. Run, do not walk to Angelinas and have a chocolate chaud L'Africain. And a pastry to go with of course- the eclairs and Mont Blanc are sensational.

7. Speaking of truffles, Jean-Paul Hevin's truffles are le mieux. And his mendiants. And his cakes. Hevin= heaven in my book.

Master Wicker pondering the delights at JPH Rue Vavin

And mine too. We love JPH here in the Wicker house. We've had his chocolates, macarons, mendicants and cakes on every trip to France too. Mr Wicker has even splurged on occasion and paid to have them shipped to Australia for mon anniversaire!

8. The rice pudding at Chez l'Ami Jean. I never would have thought I'd care a lick about rice pudding. But a dinner at Cafe Constant made me reconsider, and a later dinner at Chez l'Ami Jean changed everything. Served in a massive bowl with sides of candied granola and salted caramel cream, this is an unforgettable dessert.

9. The Plenitude Individuel from Pierre Herme. While his macaroons are, oui, divine, this little cake is transporting. Fluffy chocolate mousse under a dark chocolate shell. Kissed by salted caramel. Adorned with tiles of more chocolate. It's gorgeous, exquisite, and delicious.

Everything Pierre Herme does looks magnificent, he is certainly one of the big names of Paris patisserie, and I sampled his work quite a few times on the most recent trip. I actually found this one a bit overwhelming, so chocolatey. Too chocolatey? Mr Wicker found it a bit one dimensional. I was glad to just eat a third- it was so rich! Do check out his website- it's ever changing and always glorious to look at, totally droolworthy.

10. An almond croissant from Boulangerie Julien. When my friend Ben and I split one of these we were giggling like school kids in the middle of rue Saint-Honore. Fresh and flaky, slightly chewy and caramelised at the edges, heavy with almond paste and lightly dusted with powdered sugar and slivered almond. I mean, how can something be allowed to taste so good?

I had to go to Julien at least three times to get one of these so they must be popular, as they were always sold out. I didn't find it all that amazing actually. It was good mind you, but your palate becomes very picky very quickly in Paris. I had other almond croissants that I preferred this trip.

So overall I got to experience 90% of Amy's Top 10! I was pretty happy about that, but it's pretty clear we have different tastes. I prefer more fruity or lemony delights. Amy picks quite different things to what I would usually select in a patisserie. That's fine of course, it was still it was fun to try all these, a few times going off my beaten track and exploring new neighbourhoods. And I'd still love to get to Chez l'Ami Jean one day for the rice pudding. I do love a rice pudding ….

Dreaming of France is a wonderful Monday meme
from Paulita at An Accidental Blog

This post is linked to Weekend Cooking, 

a fabulous weekly meme at Beth Fish Reads

A Rainy Afternoon

On a recent trip to Newcastle we had some afternoon drinks on the lakefront balcony of the house where we often stay. It's a beautiful spot, and we always see quite a few birds. None of these birds are particularly rare, indeed most of these are quite common, but it was great to see such a range in quarter of an hour, without moving an inch (and all while enjoying bubbles- best birdwatching ever?).

I thought the kookaburra was close on the neighbours antenna

and then he came and sat on our gutter
(Dacelo novaeguineae)

A crested tern took refuge on the jetty
(Thalasseus bergii)

Spotted Dove
(Streptopelia chinensis- introduced)

Rainbow lorikeet
(Trichloglossus haematodus)

Mallard Duck
(Anas platyrhynchos- introduced)

An artwork on the balcony

Saturday Snapshot is a wonderful weekly meme now hosted by WestMetroMommy

Pigeon of Paris

When I saw this book on my recent foray to the Bathurst Lifeline Book Fair I nearly snapped my wrist grabbing at it. Paris. Birds (if only pigeons). Quentin Blake. And all for 50 cents? No brainer. It was mine. No matter that I hadn't heard of it before, I had to buy it, then and there, and then I had to read it rather soon.

Pigeon of Paris is the rather touching story of Evangeline, a spinster pigeon living on Notre Dame. Evangeline is lonely, and looking for a mate, but she runs foul of the pigeon-hating Chief of Police.

'There are too many pigeons in Paris,' he said to the policeman. 'They defile the statues and clutter the parks. There must be a thousand pigeons roosing on Notre Dame alone.'

Even in 1960 pigeons must have been a problem in Paris. I certainly noticed pigeons on my trip to Paris in 2010. Paris is like many cities around the world that have tried to curb their growing pigeon populations.

Franglais anyone?

The story here though was a secondary pleasure for me. I loved this book. It was quaint, by an author new to me, and I learnt so much!

One blustery spring morning, a storm blew in from the west. It blew across the city of Paris, rattling the chimney pots and swaying the Eiffel tower the five inches it may move without falling over. 

I hadn't heard that before. But it seems it's true. Amazing to learn that she grows by up to six inches in summer as the metal heats up.

Pigeons drink in a sucking way, unlike that of other birds who must lift their heads with every few drops.

Unmarried women of 25 years were called Catherinettes in France, after Saint Catherine.

I was briefly hopeful that this would be one of Quentin Blake's earliest books. It's not really. He illustrated his first children's book in 1960. Still it's fascinating to see some of his early work.

Natalie Savage Carlson was an American author who lived in Paris for many years. It seems quite a number of her stories were set in Paris. She was nominated for the Hans Christian Anderson Award, and what seems to be her most famous book, The Family Under the Bridge, was a Newbery Honor book in 1959. Yes, that sound is my TBR growing yet again.

Dreaming of France is a wonderful Monday meme
from Paulita at An Accidental Blog

Books on France, a great 2013 challenge
 from Emma at Words and Peace

Cirque du Freak

Horror is not my genre of choice. I did dabble with it in my younger years though, so have had a limited exposure. I remember a short lived passion for zombie comics as a teenager. I never did get through even one Stephen King book though. I started with The Stand, gross in the beginning, boring in the middle, never got to the end. That did Stephen King for me, and I've never been tempted again. Well, until quite recently, that JFK one sounded intriguing but is too long for me to attempt reading at the moment. 

Similarly I did dabble with vampire stories as a young adult. I remember reading some of Anne Rice's vampire series way back when, but became bored with them and over time I've become less and less inclined to read vampire lit. Or werewolves. Or any of the vast numbers of books with black and red covers. The whole Twilight phenomenon passed me by, and firmed my resolve to avoid them (sad to say that Twilight is actually one of these 1001 books, and I will have to crack the cover at some stage in the future). Although I did quite surprise myself by revelling in Pride and Prejudice and Zombies a few years ago.

So anyway, I was somewhat apprehensive approaching Cirque du Freak recently. I wasn't sure that I would like this one, and worried that I would find it actively hard to read. Even the acknowledgments worried me…

And the ghoulish pupils of Askeaton Primary School (and others) who served as willing guinea pigs and braved nightmares to make this book as tight, dark and chilling as possible. 

And then on the first page of the introduction:

Going to sleep, I used to imagine the spider creeping down, crawling into my mouth, sliding down my throat and laying loads of eggs in my belly. The baby spiders would hatch after a while and eat me alive, from the inside out.

Oh dear. But if the primary school kids can handle it, surely I can? A grown woman? Actually I didn't find the rest of the story as scary, or as gross, as that introduction. Cirque du Freak is the first book in what came to be a lengthy series of 16 books based on the adventures of the self titled Darren Shan. Andy Griffiths does that too, and I don't quite get it, and for some reason it bothers me when the main character has the authors name. I suppose it doesn't really matter, but I find it annoying somehow.

Darren is a regular boy, going to school, hanging out with his friends and playing soccer at lunchtime. 
Darren and his best friend Steve get tickets to attend the travelling Cirque du Freak, an old fashioned freak show, still travelling, but in secret now, as they are unpopular and possibly illegal. The boys are very excited to go of course. It is a night that will change their lives for ever. I really enjoyed the freak show part of the story, the later vampire bits not so much. 

Cirque du Freak turned out to be an easy, and even mostly enjoyable read for me! The chapters are short, generally only three or four pages, and the story clicks along at quite a pace. I didn't find it all that scary, mainly because as a somewhat jaded adult I don't believe in vampires or other creatures of the night. It would make a perfect read for those kids who like to be scared. 



220/1001

Musée Maillol

Paris has so many amazing museums. Some are world famous of course, like the Louvre or Musée d'Orsay. Some are less well known, but still worth a visit. I'd never heard of Musée Maillol, but found it on my wanderings around our neighbourhood in Paris this year. It seems every Paris neighbourhood offers up fascinating gems like this.

The magnificent Fountain of the Four Seasons by Edme Bouchardon
caught my eye from the corner

It certainly looked intriguing. I couldn't resist.

They were having a Murano glass exhibition
I don't think I'd ever been to a glass exhibition before
and didn't quite know what to expect

It was an amazing exhibition showcasing 700 years of Murano glass, with 200 pieces from public and private collections. Sadly photos were interdit, so my stealth photos are pretty ordinary. There was a very informative audio guide available in English (and French of course, and one or two other languages from memory). 

Glassmaking began in Venice in the 10th century, and the industry was moved to the island of Murano in the 13th century because of fears about fire spreading from the dangerous furnaces. The Venetian glassmakers drew on the heritage of both east and west, the legacy of the Roman Empire, and also enamel painting which hadn't been seen in Europe.

My favourite piece
Carrona, Javier Perez
a really cool red chandelier, smashed, with ravens

Everyone stopped to admire it

My audio guide told me that the contrast of textures represented the contrast inherent in the human condition, that crows initially had white plumage, but they were turned black by too much vanity. Interesting, but it seems some folks think about ravens way too much. The audio guide also told me the black represented mourning and the red suffering and destruction. It was a very arresting artwork and much to my surprise I had worked out the artists implications before the audio guide told me!

This one has a "sand" walkway of glass
you can just see the glass steps leading up to the video steps
the glass steps formed then disappeared over again
so that the figure in video was walking away

A collection of glass turkeys in a wire cage
I'm not sure why either

I also got to see a glass covered table made for Napoleon. I was less impressed with the rest of the museum devoted to the afore unknown (to me at least) Aristide Maillol. The paintings were impossible to try to catch a picture of, but I did prefer his sculpture work anyway. I was running short of time at this stage, I imagine these are studies for his larger works. 

The Murano exhibition is now closed, but you can take a quick video tour here.

Musée Maillol
61 Rue de Grenelle
Paris 75007
Open daily 10.30-19.00 (21.30 on Friday)
11 euros
Free for children under 11 (The French love imparting art to their children and many museums are free for kids).

February 2015- sad news today as Musée Maillol announced closure due to bankruptcy.

There is a Dallayou very close by, and I may have popped in after my artistic meanderings. Only to help Mr Wicker along on his eclair challenge mind you.

The lovely man gave me a bonus cerise/pistache macaron!

Saturday Snapshot is a wonderful weekly meme now hosted by WestMetroMommy

Dreaming of France is a wonderful Monday meme
from Paulita at An Accidental Blog