Talking about children's books and films. Useful information for parents.
04 Mar 2013 Leave a comment
in Books, books 7+ Tags: animals, castle, cats, country life, dogs, England, family history, Magic, morality, mystery, Princess, religion, romance, strong girls
WINNER OF THE CARNEGIE MEDAL – 1946
by Elizabeth Goudge
University of London Press: 1946
238 pages – 12 chapters
Age: 7 (read to); 9 (independent reading)
Interests: magic, mystery, animals, castles, princesses, England, aristocracy, religion, family history, romance
NB: This book was adapted into a 1994 BBC series entitled Moonacre and a 2009 movie The Secret of Moonacre.
Next: The Secret Garden or A Little Princess by Frances Hodgson Burnett
Also by this author: Island Magic
13 Mar 2012 7 Comments
in Books, books 10+ Tags: British history, crime, ghosts, horror, poetry, romance, violence
GREENAWAY MEDAL WINNER – 1981
Alfred Noyes, text
Charles Keeping, illustrations
Oxford, 1981
32 pp.
Age: 10 +
(Reading Level: 9 +)
Interests: poetry, romance, history, horror, ghost story
Also by this illustrator: Charley, Charlotte and the Golden Canary, The God Beneath the Sea, Beowulf, The Lady of Shalott, Through the Window, Charles Keeping’s Classic Tales of the Macabre
07 Feb 2012 Leave a comment
in Books, books 4+ Tags: Fairy Tale, Magic, Princess, romance, witches
CALDECOTT MEDAL WINNER – 1998
by Paul O. Zelinsky
Dutton Children’s Books, 1997
32 pp.
Age: 4+
Interests: fairy tales, princesses, witches, magic, romance
Also by this author/illustrator: Rumplestiltskin, The Wheels on the Bus
06 Dec 2011 Leave a comment
in Movies, movies 6+, Old Movies, Silent Movies Tags: cities, city life, class, history, romance
Black & white, Silent
Released: 1931
Rated: G
Length: 87 min.
Age: 6+ commonsense.org sez: 8
Scary factor: Guns are brandished, especially during burglary, but more for comedic effect – no harm is done.
Violence: General slapstick knock-about humour. The Tramp is (cleanly) knocked unconscious in the boxing ring.
Questionable behaviour: drinking and drunken behaviour (including reckless driving) for humour; smoking cigars; wealthy drunk friend is suicidal in several instances
Interests: silent movies, history, city life, love story, money and class
Next: The Gold Rush, Modern Times, Buster Keaton’s Sherlock Junior
25 Nov 2011 Leave a comment
in Movies, movies 6+, Old Movies Tags: American history, con man, crime, marching band, music, romance, song and dance
Released: 1962
Rated: G
Length: 151 min.
Age: 6+ (for comprehension) Commonsense media sez: 6 +
Scary: nothing violent, only the talk of angry townsfolk about tarring and feathering Hill
Sexual Innuendo: in some dialogue and songs, but all G-rated and too oblique to be picked up by small children
Interests: musicals, song and dance, marching bands, history, small town life, con men
08 Nov 2011 Leave a comment
in Books, books 6+, Classics Tags: adventure, castle, Magic, mystery, romance, siblings, treasure
by E. Nesbit
originally published in 1907
New York: HarperCollins, 1992
288 pp, 12 chapters
Age: (read to) 6 + ; (read independently) 8 +
Interests: magic, castles, treasure, siblings, mystery, adventure
Also by this author: Five Children and It, The Railway Children, The Story of the Treasure Seekers, The Book of Dragons
30 Sep 2011 Leave a comment
in Movies, movies 5+, Old Movies, Silent Movies Tags: action, adventure, arctic, history, romance, snow, weather, winter
Written, directed by, starring: Charlie Chaplin
Rated: — (unrated)
Length: 95 min. 1925 release / 72 min. 1942 re-release
Age: 5 and up Commonsense Media sez: 8 +
Scary Factor: Little Tramp menaced periodically for comedic effect; two men struggle over a shotgun which is always pointing at the Tramp; he is also chased by starving, hallucinating miner with a gun and then an axe; cabin tipped precariously on edge of precipice; all threats are treated comically and violence is bloodless and kept at a distance
Intense Scenes: a wanted criminal shoots and kills two police officers before perishing in an avalanche
Other: a bear is shot offscreen for food; some smoking and drinking
Interests: old movies, silent movies, arctic adventure, history
Versions: restored 1925 print is 95 minutes long, with piano music and title cards; 1942 sound release is 69 minutes long, has an orchestral score, no title cards, narration written and performed by Charlie Chaplin
Next: other Chaplin – Modern Times, City Lights
See also: Top 5 Silent Movies for Preschoolers
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16 Aug 2011 Leave a comment
in Movies, movies 5+ Tags: action, chase, Fairy Tale, horses, Magic, Princess, romance
Rated: PG for brief mild violence
Length: 100 min.
Age: 5 and up. Commonsense Media sez: 5 +
Scary Factor: not overly scary, mostly just suspenseful chase scenes; scary-looking thugs in tavern are revealed to be sweethearts; Rapunzel is briefly menaced near the end by villains
Violence: Rapunzel repeatedly knocks Flynn unconscious with a frying pan for comedic effect; Mother Gothel stabs Flynn at the end; Mother Gothel falls to her death – though she disappears before she hits the ground, aged right out of existence
Intense: it appears as though Flynn dies in a very sad scene at the end, but he revives; psychological abuse Mother Gothel inflicts on Rapunzel may trouble some
Bad Behaviour: no bad language; there is beer in the tavern, but this is underplayed
Interests: princesses, fairy tales, magic, romance, horses, action, chases
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16 Jun 2011 Leave a comment
in Books, books 3+, Classics Tags: Fairy Tale, Magic, Princess, romance
CALDECOTT MEDAL WINNER – 1955
Cinderella, or The Little Glass Slipper
translated and illustrated by Marcia Brown
New York: Macmillan, 1954
30 pp.
Age: 3 +
Interests: fairy tales, princesses, magic
13 Jun 2011 Leave a comment
in Books, books 4+ Tags: Fairy Tale, fashion, Magic, romance
GREENAWAY MEDAL WINNER – 2003
by Shirley Hughes
London: Bodley Head, 2003
44 pp.
Age: 4+
Interests: fairy tales, fashion, love stories, magic
Also by this author: Dogger
Rarest Kind of Best 