03 | July | 2013 | Rarest Kind of Best

The Summer Sloooowdoooooown

So after the end-of-school frenzy and Canada Day hoopla things here at RarestKindofBest have slowed down quite a bit. Such is the beauty of summertime. I’ll post whenever I can but Activities of Vital Importance will continue to get in the way (ie. trips to the beach).

this is what my yesterday looked like

Another reason for my neglect here is that I am currently putting together the curriculum for a Summer Writing Camp for Kids. Information about this venture is on my other blog, my “officialish author’s blog“. If you know kids who are interested in writing, you might steer them to that site, as I’ll try to post writing tips, prompts, and examples there. I’ve also got animation related posts and links to great short films there, as well as (wait for it) information about my YA novel Eldritch Manor.

Enough self-promotion… Happy summer everyone!

Vintage Children’s Book List

The blog No Time for Flash Cards has a nice list up now, 27 Vintage Books Every Child Should Read.

The Story of Ferdinand (Wikipedia)

One book jumped out at me from the list, The Story of Ferdinand by Munro Leaf. Just reading the title conjured up in my mind the amazing, amazing illustrations by Robert Lawson: the odd-looking men from the city, the expression on Ferdinand’s face when he sits on the bee, the cork tree with actual corks dangling from it, the ladies at the bullfight, the rage of the matador… This book is a masterful example of the power of illustrations, as well as a wonderful tale of pacifism and remaining true to yourself.

If books from my childhood are now considered vintage, does that make me vintage too? I prefer the term classic…

Books on the list that I’ve reviewed here:

Where the Wild Things Are

Sylvester and the Magic Pebble

Alexander and the Terrible, Horrible, No Good, Very Bad Day

Other books illustrated by Robert Lawson:

Adam of the Road

Mr. Popper’s Penguins

They Were Strong and Good

Rabbit Hill