It’s hard to believe, but we just completed the last book for our Notgrass History literature course. The book, Homer Price, by Robert McCloskey, was a great one with which to end the year. It’s a look at life in the mid-west in the 1950’s, the era we were studying.

Homer, who is based on the author, is a teenager who spends his spare time inventing things. He helps his Uncle Ulysses and Aunt Aggy in their lunchroom, meets a “super hero”, eats lots of donuts and even watches an entire subdivision get built! But of course, there are some snags along the way.

This cute book is made even better with Mr. McCloskey’s fine artwork. 

We give it five stars!

Misty of Chincoteague by Marguerite Henry has been on my “to-read” list for a long time. I like to use the Newbery Award and Honor books as a starting place when I’m looking for wholesome children’s books. And yes, I still read children’s books myself. I once worried to my mother that this meant that I was still at a child’s level of reading. She replied, “Good literature is good literature, age doesn’t matter.” Ah, that made me feel better. But you know, when it comes to books, there really is no “read-by” expiration date.

Misty of Chincoteague is definitely “good literature”. It’s the sweet story of a brother and sister who dream of capturing the mysterious horse they call “Phantom” on Assateague Island, off the coast of Virginia and Maryland. Together, they labor long and hard at odd jobs to save up the money to buy Phantom and train her themselves. When the long-awaited “Pony Penning Day” arrives, they are surprised when they see that Phantom is not alone – she has a beautiful colt with her. They name the little one, “Misty”. The story of Phantom and Misty is an engaging read, and the ending is just the way all books should end: just right.

Your children, grandchildren, and even you, will greatly benefit from this lovely addition to your reading list.

I wrote a review of Honey for a Child’s Heart, by Gladys Hunt a few months ago. In that book, Mrs. Hunt mentions the book The Wind in the Willows by Kenneth Grahame about a half-dozen times. It was one of her family’s favorite read aloud selections and her children made connections to that book throughout their lives. I had purchased that book about eight years ago, with the purpose of reading it aloud to my daughter. It didn’t take long to see that it was over the head of an eight year old, so I shelved it.

When I was reminded of it by Mrs. Hunt, I decided to give it a second try. The chapters are quite long, so we had to read them in halves. We got to chapter four before I quit reading it aloud. My oldest daughter did, in fact, enjoy it, but the rest, well, not so much. My five year old could barely stay awake for it. I did finish it myself and I must say, it is an adorable book.

Even though I’m adult, I fancied (as the British would say) visiting the charming, cozy, and cute world created by Kenneth Grahame. I guess I’m not yet too old to believe that animals can talk. I liked Mr. Badger the best, with Mr. Mole coming in as second favorite. I don’t believe that I would have enjoyed the book as a child, knowing my tastes back then. This gives me hope that one day, when my children are quite grown up, they will stumble upon this classic and find that maybe Mom was onto something after all.