The Tailor of Gloucester | Beatrix Potter #ALiteraryChristmas

 

Feeling very grateful, right now, that Tarissa @In the Bookcase is hosting A Literary Christmas this year. It made me search my shelves for something Christmassy that I hadn't read yet. It led me straight into the delightful and utterly charming arms of Beatrix Potter.

I confess that I did not read any of the Peter Rabbit stories when I was a child. I had to wait until my early childhood teaching years to discover them. The first time I tried to read one aloud, I stumbled with the phrasing and pacing of Potter's writing. The story has plenty of drama and suspense, but it isn't immediately apparent. You have to read it several times to find the most dramatic way to read it out loud, in a way to keep the attention of twenty, very modern, 4 year olds.

It is twelve years since I taught my last class (I was reminded just yesterday of how that final class has grown, when one of them popped into the bookshop to buy books for her mum for Christmas. She is now in her final year of school, and has matured into a thoughtful, gracious young woman). Which is my long way of saying that it is also twelve years since I last read The Tale of Peter Rabbit (1902). 

I now have a beautiful hardcover copy of Beatrix Potter's Complete Tales. It contains a lovely map of Hawkshead and Sawrey, showing where many of the stories take place, including the Tailor of Gloucester sitting next to the road to Gloucester and South Coast, with Pig Robinson. This collection then lists all the stories in chronological order. The Tailor of Gloucester is the third story. To get to it, one has to go past the original Peter Rabbit and The Tale of Squirrel Nutkin (1903).

However, I couldn't skip past so glibly. 

I settled down, with the memories of classes past arrayed in front of me, and read Peter Rabbit, then Squirrel Nutkin out loud. All the old phrasing and pacing came back to me. I knew where to pause for dramatic effect and how to milk the tension. I was transported to another time and place. These two mischievous characters are drawn so sympathetically, it's hard not to love them and their naughty ways. However, Potter was writing these stories for the children of her former governess, so she was careful to give both Peter & Nutkin a proper comeuppance, for after all, bad behaviour should come with natural consequences.

The Tailor of Gloucester is a longer story and was considered by Potter to be her favourite from amongst all her books. It is based on the true story of a tailor in Gloucester, John Prichard, who was commissioned to make a waistcoat for the local Mayor. He had to leave it unfinished on Saturday evening, but when he turned up to work again on Monday, it was finished, except for one buttonhole for which there was 'no more twist'. In real life, it was his two assistants who secretly helped out. In Potter's imagination the helpers turned into little brown mice and the setting became Christmas Eve. 

Our hard working tailor becomes stricken with a fever. In his delirium he keeps muttering about needing 'one more twist', and 'where is my twist'? He is ill for three days, until it was Christmas Eve. Everyone else was buying geese and turkeys and baking Christmas pies, but not our poor tailor. His only company was his mean old cat, Simpkin.

But it is in the old story that all the beasts can talk, in the night between Christmas Eve and Christmas Day in the morning (though there are very few folk that can hear them, or know what it is that they say).

Rather like the Grimm's Brothers fairy story, the Elves and the Shoemaker, the tailor's hard work and dedication is rewarded when he needs it most. Even Simpkin, sees the errors of his ways, and does his bit to help out too.

A review appeared in the trade journal, The Tailor and Cutter, on Christmas Eve 1903. One hundred and seventeen years later, it is hard to top!

we think it is by far the prettiest story connected with tailoring we have ever read, and as it is full of that spirit of Peace on Earth, Goodwill to Men, we are not ashamed to confess that it brought the moisture to our eyes, as well as the smile to our face. It is got up in choicest style and illustrated by twenty-seven of the prettiest pictures it is possible to imagine.

Epigraph:

• I'll be at charges for a looking-glass; and entertain a score or two of tailors. Richard III

Christmas Eve at Coogee Beach - even the tree is in quarantine this year!

Merry Christmas 2019

Christmas Tree in Martin Place, Sydney

Our Australian summer has been awful so far.

NSW has been ablaze since August when the mid-north coast and south-east Queensland fires flared up. Several large towns were threatened at different times including Tenterfield andTaree. Two people died and it burnt through 31 268 hectares.

On October 26, a lightning strike caused a fire around the Gospers Creek area. Due to extreme weather (heat and wind) and the dry conditions caused by drought, it quickly spread to the Hawkesbury region and the Blue Mountains. So far it has burnt through 459,848 hectares, threatening the towns of Wiseman's Ferry, Lithgow and Blackheath.

The south coast has a smaller fire constantly threatening to get out of control around Balmoral, Bargo and Pretty Beach. Another six people have died and over 2 000 000 hectares of land has been burnt out or is still burning. Cooler conditions this week have eased the situation, but the fires are not out.

Sydney has been enveloped in smoke haze on and off for two months. Ash particles have created the poorest air quality days on record. Central West NSW has also been enveloped in smoke and ash this past month. It all depends on the wind. Recently, we in Sydney, have had some sou'easterly winds blow it away...but of course, it has just blown the smoke out west.

My family and friends west of the Great Dividing Range are now smothered with this ghastly smoke haze and ash particles.

Due to road closures and fire hazards many people have chosen to Christmas at home this year.

Including us.

Both Mr Books and I are working the holiday shifts at our respective jobs this year, so we only have the two days break to plan for. On Christmas Eve eve, we ventured into the city to see the Christmas lights on St Mary's Cathedral, the windows at David Jones and the giant tree in Martin Place (see above).

On Christmas Eve, B19 flew back into the country after enjoying 6 weeks running around Europe with his friends. B22 plus his GF and her mum will be joining us for Christmas lunch.

Christmas at home means a quiet family day with just the four of us (plus the occasional friend popping by and pet-sitting service). Afternoon sleeps and board games are the prime activities. We may summon up enough energy to go to the beach tomorrow...along with everyone else left in Sydney!

But for now, I simply wanted to wish you all a very merry Christmas, however you celebrate this time of year. May peace and love surround you and yours.

Thank you for another fabulous year of blogging. I look forward to more of the same throughout 2020.

A Maigret Christmas by Georges Simenon

A Maigret Christmas contains three very different stories by Georges Simenon - A Maigret Christmas, Seven Small Crosses in a Notebook and The Restaurant near Place des Ternes - yet they all share a similar sense of melancholy and loneliness.

In Simenon's world, Christmas is not a time for goodwill and cheer, so seasonally well-adjusted readers beware! Instead, in these three stories, we visit long, cold night shifts, suicides and lonely prostitutes. The title story (first published in 1950) is the only one that features Maigret though. The other two are set in his world, his time and his place and provide an interesting backstory or subtext to his other stories.

The descriptions of Christmas Eve in all three were evocative of the season, but the paragraph that has stuck with me is the image of the two Maigret's carefully avoiding a certain topic all day,

He didn't feel depressed exactly. It was just that his dream - which he still could not remember - had left him with raw nerves. And anyway maybe it wasn't the dream but Christmas itself. He was going to have to tread carefully all day, weigh his words, just as Madame Maigret had calibrated her movements as she got out of bed, for she too would be a little more prickly than usual...But enough of that! Don't even think about it! Don't say a word that might bring up that subject. And later on, don't look out on to the street too often when the kids came out of doors and started showing off their toys.

If you love Maigret and his ever patient wife, then this little titbit about their personal circumstances will break your heart. That this particular case involves a young girl, who by the end, will be in need of care and guardianship for a while, is a bittersweet outcome, that sees Maigret saying to Madame Maigret,

"Not ours to keep, no. Just on loan. I thought it would be better than nothing and that you'd be happy."

Seven Small Crosses was first published in 1951 and first translated into English in 1976. It features Lecoeur, one of the night shift 'owls' manning the police control room, taking emergency calls and patching through information to all the stations around Paris.

Lecoeur is hard-working, dedicated and very meticulous. These days he may even be diagnosed with high-functioning autism. A late-night strange set of incidents begins to take on a sinister and very personal meaning when he realises that his young nephew may have witnessed a murder and is on the run. Normally police procedural stories leave me cold, but the personal elements in this one, that were revealed gradually, created a great deal of tension and suspense.

The final, very short story (also referred to as A Christmas Story For Grown-Ups) begins with a suicide and ends with a drunken brawl between a prostitute and a young women attempting to get on the game. The older cynical prostitute guesses what is happening when she witnesses two men slowing getting the young ingenue drunker and drunker in a bar. She intervenes, even though she's not quite sure why. Perhaps it's because they come from the same small village outside Paris? Or perhaps it's because everyone should 'want to be Father Christmas' just once in their life.

'Just imagine if, once in their lives, everybody behaved like Father Christmas...Just imagine it, right?...Just once...And when you think of how many people there are on this earth...'

Yes, just imagine.

Merry Christmas

Wishing you all a peaceful, joyous holiday season, however or wherever you celebrate this time. 

Thank you for all your visits, comments and fellowship throughout the year.

It has not been an easy year for me & my time in blogger land has helped me get through some trying days. Blogging & reading keep me sane even when they add to my to-do list! 

I look forward to your company in 2019, but until then,

Merry Christmas from beautiful, sunny Australia! 

C. J. Dennis ‘A Bush Christmas’

The sun burns hotly thro' the gums, 

The chirping of the locusts comes 

 Across the paddocks, parched and grey. 

 "Whew!" wheezes Father. "What a day!" 

 And sheds his vest. 

For coats no man had need. 

Then Rogan shoves his plate aside 

And sighs, as sated men have sighed, 

 At many boards in many climes 

 On many other Christmas times. 

 "By gum!" he says, "That was a slap-up feed!" 

My Summer Reading Plans #1

The best laid plans and all that jazz.

This summer has been a bit of bummer when it comes to reading. Normally I love the lazy summer days as a great excuse to devour books by the bucket load - by the pool, on the beach or relaxing under the fan or air-con. But so far this summer, I've only had one whole day to do just that.

Life has continued it's hectic pace, with no let up in sight for the time being. *sigh*

My chapter a day #LesMisReadalong has been perfect and easy to fit into this new world order. But I miss finishing a book.

So I've been reading and reviewing various picture books on Goodreads to help me feel like I'm making progress (and to help me sound knowledgeable at work!)

Since I have no book reviews on the horizon (and no likelihood of a book review in the near future), I thought a picture book update was in order to keep these pages active.

My biggest find over Christmas, was the latest Rory the Dinosaur book. I fell head over heels in love with Rory and his dad and quickly hunted down the two earlier Rory books by Liz Climo.

Rory the Dinosaur Needs a Christmas Tree

I had resisted the charms of Rory and his dad - the simple drawings on the covers did not draw me in - but there was something about the joyful look on Rory's face as he was being tossed in the air by his Santa hat wearing dad that warmed the cockles of my heart this Christmas. 

So I opened the book. 

Oh, oh, oh, what an utter delight I found inside! 

How Climo manages to convey sooooo much emotion with little dot eyes is beyond me, but I'm completely heartbroken for Rory who realises he has to make do this Christmas without a Christmas tree. He and his devoted dad do everything they can to make it happen, but it doesn't work. The look on Rory's face as he goes to bed gazing at the spot in the loungeroom (with longing) where the tree should be just breaks my heart every single time I read the book (yes, I have read it multiple times this past month!)
Oh, oh, oh, but Rory's dad!!! 

He wins the best dad in the whole wide world award for how he solves the problem.
It's a delightful laugh out loud, hug the book to your chest moment. You then immediately want to share the book with as many people as possible, to share the joy of Christmas with as many people as possible. 

I am a doubter no longer.

Rory The Dinosaur: Me and My Dad

I'm now an official FAN of Rory and his marvellous dad. 

My love affair started with the more recent Christmas book, which to my mind, is the best of the three books, but this, the original story, is pretty fabulous too, I'm just not sure I can completely condone such helicopter parenting!

Rory The Dinosaur Wants a Pet 

It's hard not to love Rory and his dad.

Their simple lives, so delicately drawn by Climo, are genuinely touching and heartwarming but Rory comes across as being a little bit too simple in this story about finding a pet.

I wasn't sure whether I wanted to laugh or cry at Rory's solution to the pet problem. Perhaps his dad's helicoptering parenting style (as seen in the first book) isn't allowing Rory to make good choices for himself? 

The solution is clever and tragic at the same time. 

Making do, compromise and acceptance are all good traits to develop, but some better decision making skills might help Rory achieve his goals 

I know, I know, it's a picture book for kids, right?
But I'm weirdly that invested in Rory and his dad, that I want things to turn out okay for both of them. I sincerely hope Climo is writing and illustrating book four as we speak!

Here We Are: Notes For Living on Planet Earth by Oliver Jeffers

A great way to start the new year! 

It's hard not to be seduced by the special whimsy and charm of Oliver Jeffers but now that he's a dad, the aww factor has multiplied to the nth degree.

Here We Are is a love letter to his new born babe, showing him his own particular place is this big wide, wonderful world. Jeffers trademark humour and quirkiness abounds at every point and his illustrations provide the adult reader just as much pleasure as the younger readers.

Jeffers fans will also recognise several of his regular characters making cameo appearances. 

I can see this gorgeous picture book being given to many a newborn/new parent.
A classic in the making.

Australian picture books will feature in the next update post later this week.

What do you do when life gets in the way of your usual reading pattern?

Merry Christmas

To all my wonderful readers, 

thank you for your kind, thoughtful comments over the year.

This blog has evolved into a way for me to keep track of my reading journey.

I'm delighted that I can share the journey with so many like-minded bookish folk.

I hope this holiday finds you with loved ones, in good health.

I'm celebrating Christmas in Mornington, Victoria.

We're missing two of our brightest stars this year, but they would not want us to be glum, so we will make the most of our time together and honour their memories.

We have plans for walking along the beach and lazing by the pool.

A big, extended family lunch will be followed by a quieter slide night at home, with old family photos.

Where are you be spending the Christmas period this year?

Whatever you do today, however you celebrate or spend this time, I hope it finds you with the ones you love or remembering the ones you have loved.

Seasons Greetings from sunny, warm Australia.

Harriet Clare #6 Christmas Fair by Louise Park

Louise Park is an amazingly prolific Australian children's author who writes under several pseudonyms, including H. I. Larry (Zac Power books), Mac Park (Boy Vs Beasts books) and Poppy Rose (Bella Dancerella series).

The Harriet Clare series of books are written under her own name. Harriet Clare Secret Notebook #5 Mystery Dare was published a couple of months ago and Secret Notebook #6 Christmas Fair came out this month.

My six year old niece adores these books.

Their mix of fun fonts, activities and easy to read story lines are perfect for her. Harriet, just like my niece, is a bit of a tomboy who is sporty, but loves craft and dancing. I also suspect she relates to another red-head with unruly hair!

Christmas Fair is full of the delights and anticipation of an Australian summer - the count down to finish the school year and the big end of year concert, the putting up of the Christmas tree and the obligatory photo with Santa at the shopping centre.

Written in diary format, Harriet takes us on the highs and lows of getting ready for the festive season and summer holidays. Social dilemma's cause her a few hiccups along the way though, and Harriet asks for our help in the form of little boxes with 'what else could I have done?' or 'what would you have done?'

Harriet includes her recipe for Christmas Decoration Dough, so you can make your own tree decorations. She leaves you spaces to draw your own Christmas tree next to hers and she has great ideas on how to decorate your own Christmas cards. Harriet also shows you how to make your own snow globe.

Marlene Monterrubio's illustrations are decorative, expressive and add to the sense of fun.

The Harriet Clare series is perfect for the emerging reader who is just gaining some book confidence and feels ready to spread her wings a little. She has her own website here for more fun activities and information.

#AusReadingMonth

Christmas comes to the CBCA

For the first time in a very long time, two Christmas books have made this year's CBCA shortlist.


Little Dog and the Christmas Wish by Corinne Fenton and Robin Cowcher is shortlisted for the Crichton Award for New Illustrators.


Tea and Sugar Christmas by Jane Jolly and Robert Ingpen is shortlisted for the Eve Pownall Award for Information Books.

Little Dog was my favourite Christmas story from last year's crop of picture books. It was nostalgic, joyful and tender:

Wherever Jonathan went, Little Dog was beside him.

Jonathan and Little Dog go fishing and exploring together, they play ball and cuddle...until one stormy day...when Little Dog gets frightened and wanders into the big city and gets lost in the Christmas crowds.

Cowcher's beautiful pictures capture the natural movement and expressions of both dog and boy to a tee.

Set in the 1950's, her wistful water colours & line drawings evoke the period and celebrate the season.

Cowcher has worked at The Age as a designer and illustrator. In a 2010 interview with the SMH, Cowcher remarked that:

she had never resolved the tension between painting and drawing.

I'm not a trained artist, but her illustrations in Little Dog feel and look pretty resolved to me! And I love the mix of drawing and painting. The splashes of colour jump out of the page allowing Cowcher to highlight the iconic and the seasonal to great effect.

Even the end papers - full of sketches of little dog in various poses and profiles - satisfy the cute and adorable factor.

Little Dog and the Christmas Wish is highly recommended for 3+ audiences and all lovers of cute dog stories!

Tea and Sugar Christmas is a fictionalised account of the goods train used to service small, isolated outback towns with basic supplies and the occasional luxury item from 1917 until 1996.

Jolly creates a thoughtful story of waiting and hoping as young Kathleen (one of the few Indigenous protagonists in Australian children's literature) prepares for an outback Christmas. Kathleen's excitement and anticipation builds with each page because at Christmas time, the tea and sugar train also carries a very special visitor.

This story was always going to be a special one, but choosing Robert Ingpen to illustrate it was an inspired idea indeed!

Ingpen has illustrated many beautiful classic editions over the years, winning the biennial, international Hans Christian Andersen Medal in 1986 for his "lasting contribution" as a children's illustrator.

He uses cutaways, double page spreads and folds out that can be poured over for hours. The final section includes photographs, maps and archival information about the history of the tea and sugar train.

Suitable for all ages, but also a wonderful resource for primary schools to highlight diversity, change and continuity and celebrations.

A Christmas Carol by Charles Dickens

I'm not sure what I can say about my reread of A Christmas Carol that hasn't already been said a million times in a million different ways.

A Christmas Carol was first published in 1843 and it has never been out of print since. And there's a very good reason for that.
This novella is full of scary ghosts, the warm glow of redemption and a sweet-natured child to tug at our heart strings. All the ingredients for a good family story!

Dickens weaves Christian themes & social justice concerns into a tale that celebrates traditions, family, kindness & charity. Universal themes that still resonant down through the ages.

Thanks to Nancy's in depth, detailed review, I was on the look out for window motifs and bells. I also spotted many of Dicken's own personal themes shining through this story - the innocence of childhood, the horror of poverty & the almost saccharine sweet image of a family happily gathered around a blazing hearth.

Ultimately, A Christmas Carol reminds us that it is never too late to change, it's never too late to give & love, it's never too late to be kind & forgiving and it's never too late to laugh.

And thanks to all the love out there in twitter and blogger land I plan to watch The Muppets Christmas Carol special this year too!

It turns out I'm a 'Merry Christmas, bless you one and all' type after all :-)

It's Monday!

The Monday before Christmas is always busy, busy, busy for me.

When I was teaching , it was my first day off work & therefore the time to finalise everything for the summer holidays (ie pay rent & utilities up to the first week back at school in Feb, finish last minute shopping, pack bags, organise with neighbours to water the gardens, collect the mail etc).

Now that I'm in retail, the last Monday before Christmas involves extra work shifts, longer work shifts and much busier work shifts!
It's an exciting time - I love the hustle and bustle and everyone being so excited about reading and giving when they come into our little bookshop.

Trouble is, I'm the type who gets high-wired by excitement. I absorb all the energy and buzz and start bouncing off the ceiling! I find it hard to come down again, relax and get a good nights sleep.

I also find it hard to focus on a book at times like this. My mind wont settle, the words jump all over the place. I read a page and realise I have no idea what it was that I just read.

Somehow I managed to finish Gilbert's The Signature of All Things last week & write a review.I also read A Christmas Carol on the weekend.

The rest is a blur.

I have 3 more days of work, then a lovely 10 day break to relax with my family.

So what will I be reading during this time?

Given my head space right now, I will mostly be grazing until my holiday starts Christmas Eve afternoon.

I still have Adam Spencer's Number book to finish and Tiny Beautiful Things by Cheryl Strayed. I've also started grazing the short stories in Only the Animals by Ceridwen Dovey.

"Ten tales are told by the souls of animals killed in human conflicts in the past century or so, from a camel in colonial Australia to a cat in the trenches in World War I, from a bear starved to death during the siege of Sarajevo to a mussel that died in Pearl Harbour. Each narrator also pays homage to an author who has written imaginatively about animals during much the same time span: Henry Lawson, Colette, Kafka, Virginia Woolf, Tolstoy, Günter Grass, Julian Barnes, and others.

These stories are brilliantly plotted, exquisitely written, inevitably poignant but also playful and witty. They ask us to consider profound questions. Why do animals shock us into feeling things we can't seem to feel for other humans? Why do animals allow authors to say the unsayable? Why do we sometimes treat humans as animals, and animals as humans? Can fiction help us find moral meaning in a disillusioned world?"

Over the next two weeks I plan to read:

Vile Bodies by Evelyn Waugh for my Classic Club Spin

"Evelyn Waugh's second novel, "Vile Bodies" is his tribute to London's smart set. It introduces us to society as it used to be but that now is gone forever, and probably for good.

Improbably, this is a love story in which Adam Fenwick-Symes, a destitute young writer, hungers for Nina Blount, daughter of an eccentric aristocrat. But at the same time, it is a satire that plays against the social whirl of a class doomed to extinction as certainly as the dodo. "

Mademoiselle Coco Chanel & The Pulse of History by Rhonda K. Garelick will be my non-fiction indulgence.

"Certain lives are at once so exceptional, and yet so in step with their historical moments, that they illuminate cultural forces far beyond the scope of a single person. Such is the case with Coco Chanel, whose life offers one of the most fascinating tales of the twentieth century—throwing into dramatic relief an era of war, fashion, ardent nationalism, and earth-shaking change—here brilliantly treated, for the first time, with wide-ranging and incisive historical scrutiny.

 In Mademoiselle, Garelick delivers the most probing, well-researched, and insightful biography to date on this seemingly familiar but endlessly surprising figure—a work that is truly both a heady intellectual study and a literary page-turner."

North and South by Elizabeth Gaskell will not only be my first book of 2015, but my first reading challenge of the year as well.

"When her father leaves the Church in a crisis of conscience, Margaret Hale is uprooted from her comfortable home in Hampshire to move with her family to the north of England. Initially repulsed by the ugliness of her new surroundings in the industrial town of Milton, Margaret becomes aware of the poverty and suffering of the local mill workers and develops a passionate sense of social justice. This is intensified by her tempestuous relationship with the mill-owner and self-made man, John Thornton, as their fierce opposition over his treatment of his employees masks a deeper attraction. In North and South, Elizabeth Gaskell skillfully fuses individual feeling with social concern, and in Margaret Hale creates one of the most original heroines of Victorian literature."

Christmas TRee QVB 2014

This post is part of It's Monday! What Are You Reading? meme at Book Journey.

What will you be reading over the Christmas/New Year break?

 ********************************************************************************

I hope to have time to pop by your blogs over the next two weeks as well, but in the meantime,

a Very Merry Christmas one and all

and may the New Year be full of good cheer & happiness.

Scrooged - the Movie

In preparation for rereading A Christmas Carol I thought I'd like to see a couple of movie adaptations as well. Somehow I've managed to reach my mid-40's without ever seeing one!

Last night we watch Scrooged (1988) starring Bill Murray.

Scrooged portrays a modern day Scrooge as a young, successful but ruthless TV executive.
Made in the "greed is good" 80's, many of the movie trailers started with "now more than ever, we need this story..."

But sadly everything about this movie is now dated - the hair! the high waisted jeans! the basic graphics and special effects!

Bill Murray was very OTT the whole way through the movie - obviously the director was unable to reign him in on this movie. And the movie sufffered for this excessive over-acting.
It may have been "side-splittingly" funny in 1988, but now it was barely amusing.

However the message of family, goodwill & charity that is A Christmas Carol still managed to shine though.

Today I started reading the book.

My Folio Society edition has lovely large font, thick paper and lots of illustrations. But I'd forgotten how quickly one can read this story.

In an attempt to honour the process a little more though, I've slowed my reading right down.

For now I will leave with Marley's chain-linked Ghost...

"It is required of every man," the Ghost returned, "that the spirit within him should walk abroad among his fellow men, and travel far and wide; and if that spirit goes not forth in life, it is condemned to do so after death. It is doomed to wander through the world - oh, woe is me! - and witness what it cannot share, but might have shared on earth, and turned to happiness!"

A Christmas Carol Readalong

I've succumbed.

I wasn't going to commit to anything else between now and Christmas. But I really wanted to reread Charles Dickens A Christmas Carol this year....so I've decided to host the most low-key, easy, no-fuss readalong ever.

The hardest part has been making the badge...and I've just realised I forgot to add my blog addresss to it - do'h!

If you'd like to join me in reading or rereading A Christmas Carol simply say 'hi' in the comments below & spread the word.

Copy my badge, post on twitter or Instagram using #achristmascarol, share on facebook, goodreads or your own blogs. As much or as little as you like.

During the readalong stop by and let us know how you're progressing.
Tweet your favourite quotes, show us a picture of your particular edition, tell us how many times you've read A Christmas Carol over the years.
Why do you love it so much?
Which movie version do you prefer?
Have you seen a stage show or pantomine of A Christmas Carol?

Are you a Bah! Humbug! at Christmas or a "God bless us one and all!" type?

Maybe you'd like to tell us about your best (or worst) Christmas past.
What do you plan to do for your Christmas Present?
Tell us your hopes for the Christmas Yet To Come.

Or simply readalong knowing that folks all around the world are experiencing the same wonderful story at the same time as you!

I will be reading my lovely 2007 (second reprint) Folio Society edition.

Although I first read A Christmas Carol sometime in my 20's, I have not read this particular edition yet. The illustrations & colour plates by Foreman look delightful.

I'm looking forward to diving back into Dickensian London and finding the spirit (and/or ghost) of Christmas.

I hope you can join me in this adventure.
#achristmascarol

PS I have left Mr Linky open until New Year's Eve to give everyone plenty of time to write reviews over the festive season.

Merry Christmas one and all!

The Twelve Days of Christmas Island by Teresa Lagrange

I'm not always a fan of the Australianised Christmas carols.

The thought of rusty Holden utes, singlets & Santa wearing thongs usually make me cringe! The rhymes can also be clunky and, well, just too bloody Ocker for my taste!


But I've always loved Six White Boomers as sung by Rolf Harris (which might not be pc anymore) and Christmas in Australia by John Williamson.

You can click the play button (below) and listen to John Williamson sing Christmas in Australia as you read the rest of this post :-)


However, this year, I've found a new one that I do like - a lot.

The Twelve Days of Christmas Island is beautifully and artfully done. The rhyme & rhythm still works perfectly and the accompanying illustrations are lovely and very colourful.

To give you a taste, here is the second day of Christmas Island...

On the second day of Christmas, 

the Island gave to me, 

two goshawks

and an owl in a lilly pilly tree.

Christmas Island is home to hundreds of birds & native plants that are not found anywhere else in the world.

Lagrange has included birds like the Emerald Dove, Frigatebird, Booby, Christmas Island Thrush, Noddy, Glossy Swiftlet & Bowerbird.

At the end of the book is a double page spread of all the birds mentioned in the book with their full names & information about their habits.

Merry Christmas!

 

She's Making A List and Checking it Twice

It's that time of year again. When we pull out all the cheesy, corny Christmas books and songs. The ones that make us cringe, cry or cheer and not always for joy.

But I'll save the ones to avoid for another day.

Today I'm feeling sentimental and I want to share some of my favourites from my years of teaching. These are the books that worked - year after year - as read (or sing) out aloud stories to a wide range of children.

At the top of the list is Harvey Slumfenburger's Christmas Present by John Burningham.

It's quite a long, repetitive story but the story hooks the kids (& me) in every single time.
Father Christmas has finished his Christmas run and has tucked the reindeer into bed. As he climbs tiredly into his own bed, he sees that that there is still one present left in his sack!
It's for Harvey Slumfenburger who lives at the top of the Roly Poly Mountain (which is far, far away).
The thing you need to know about Harvey is that he is poor. Very poor. And the only present he gets each year is the one from Father Christmas.
So, of course, Father Christmas has to get the present to Harvey Slumfenburger, come rain, hail or shine.
This is a story about overcoming adversity and the merits of perserverence and determination. It highlights the sacrifice AND ultimate joy of giving and generosity.

Ahhhh, now I feel all warm and gooey :-)

So from the sublime to the ridiculous!

Rolf Harris. Six White Boomers.

Do I need to say anymore?

Except I love this song. It is so kitsch, so retro and beautifully illustrated by Bruce Whatley (think Diary of a Wombat). But most importantly it is fun and very Australian.

When I was teaching I would often read books that could help me lead a discussion about an issue that was worrying the class.

At this time of the year most children have been rehearsing for class concerts, end of year dance, gymnastics and choir extravaganzas. It is exciting and exhausting for everyone concerned.
It can also be a very anxious time with performance jitters creating 'funny tummies' and sleepless nights.

I found One Little Angel by Ruth Brown to be perfect for this particular Christmas problem. A little girl who is too shy to go on a stage at her school concert and hides in the wings.

Naturally she discovers that going onto stage is scary, but worth it for the applause, the belonging and the great feeling of overcoming personal adversity!

A new book released this Christmas by Jane Ray will become one of my favourites simply for the illustrations.

The Twelve Days of Christmas is gorgeous, detailed and sumptious.

And if you're feeling brave enough - a great book to sing our loud with gusto!

Another sing our loud, but this time with feeling - is the Little Drummer Boy.

This particular Christmas song is my personal favourite. It creates a bitter sweet sensation. I have been known to sing this book with my classes - with tears rolling down my face and a huge smile on my lips!

The illustrations and version in Ezra Jack Keats book hit just the write spot if you can find this old editon in a second-hand bookshop.

An oldie, but a goodie is Pat Hutchins The Silver Christmas Tree.

A simple story of friendships, surprises and belonging. All wrapped up in the magical beauty of Christmas.

My final choice is not a traditional Christmas story.

But it's a book I always read at this time of the year to my older classes so it comes to mind whenever I think of an Australian Christmas.

It is Tim Winton's The Deep.

Anyone who has read Winton's adult novels will know of his fascination with the sea and his abilty to turn a beautiful phrase. This particular story is perfectly complemented by the lovely sea-green illustrations by Karen Louise.

Once again we have a story of overcoming personal adversity and belonging as we follow young Jess as she works through her fear of the deep, the deep, the deep.

Reading this book aloud to a group of preschoolers was always a magical experience for me. They would start off fidgety and unsure about the style of the book. But within a few pages the only sound in the room was my voice and the rustle of the turning pages as 20 children (and a couple of assistants!) held their breaths.

The ending was a joyous release and celebration of the Australian summer.

there's not much more to say after all that, except...

Merry Christmas and happy reading.