Cinderelly, Cinderelly!

While Cinderella was not my very favorite Disney princess as a child, she was definitely up there. She had some characteristics I couldn’t help but admire. Most importantly, she communicated with woodland creatures. That’s right, she talked to birds and squirrels and mice, not to mention, they talked back! They also ran errands for her and helped her clean! Who needs a prince when you have little animals for friends? At least, this was my thought process as a child. In reading Cinderella as more of an adult, the absurdity of woodland creatures helping someone clean is clearer to me.
I went and saw the movie “Enchanted” over break. When the Cinderella character was in New York and needed some help cleaning, she sang her little song, and hilarity ensued. In exchange for bluebirds and quaint, roly-poly mice, her helpers were squadrons of pigeons, sewer rats, flies and most disgusting of all; cockroaches. The scene was a highly comical parody on Cinderella and her helpers!

Growing up, I had the privilege of being read to by my parents every night and throughout the day. I remember when I was two or three, my favorite book was the one about “ten monkeys jumping on a bed, one falls off and bumps his head..” You know the rest; well I was so proud of myself because, I could READ! That’s right I knew every single one of those words and could read it to you if you asked me, or if I just thought you needed to hear this amazing feat! In reality, of course, I couldn’t read the book at all, I just had it memorized.
Its so funny babysitting for kids who try and pull of the same exploit, and the best part is that they, like me at their age, really believe that they CAN read! Before gaining literacy, they can’t comprehend what its like to read a sentence without stumbling over every letter. I am so excited thinking about what it will be like seeing children progress in their reading and other skills over the course of a school year. It will be something extraordinary to witness.

Witches and Evil Moms on PBS, Oh My!

Hansel and Gretel, without a doubt, has to be the scariest fairy tale. I vividly remember watching a Hansel and Gretel video when I was younger. It was on PBS and it was the the “Faerie Tale Theatre” version. I can still see the idiotic Hansel stuffing his face with food while the witch greedily waits for her meal.

The horrifying thought of parents abandoning their children is disturbing enough as it is. Then the story continues on with a woman who eats children! Older and slightly wiser as I am, I recognize the relevance of this story at the time of its conception and retelling. Food, or lack of, was a major driving force for the large number of poor people. It isn’t hard to understand a starving family dreaming of a house made of bread. Still though, that witch haunted me long after Hansel and Gretel escaped. If I have kids, I plan on trying to shield them from that disturbing story.

Ahh! I found it online! Watch if you’re brave enough!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=okpSINXsqSg

Book 1:Anatole and The Cat
Author: Eve Titus
Picture Book? Yes
January 23, 2008

Antole the mouse faces the classic problem situation. Yep, you guessed it, a cat. To his delight he works as a famous cheese-taster for the most famous cheese makers in all of France. He works at night, so the owner is unaware that his prized cheese-taster is not a man, but a fromage-loving rodent. When our beloved mouse faces the dilemma of a cat in his workplace he is nervous and mistakenly gives bizarre suggestions for improvements to the cheeses. One of his suggestions was to wrap the cheese in a banana peel for perfection. Poor Antanole must outsmart the cat or quit his job.
This book was an enjoyable read; with the personification of a mouse with a family, a job, and an aversion to cats (of course!) it is easy to see how a child could relate to the tiny character with fears, though I would expect his fear to make the child feel superior. The type of humor, absurdity, was a lot of fun. It was especially funny to read all of Antole’s suggestions for the cheeses: “Could be better, use crushed jelly beans” and “add six moldy marshmallows” would have had me on the floor laughing when I was 8 years old.

Outside Reading List

Book 1: Anatole and the Cat
Author: Eve Titus
Picture Book? Yes
January 23

Book 2: The Invention of Hugo Cabret
Author: Brian Selznick
Picture Book? No
February 10

Book 3: The Tale of Despereaux
Author: Kate DiCamillo
Picture Book? No
February 23

Book 4: Madeline
Author: Ludwig Bemelmans
Picture Book? Yes
February 28

Book 5: Ida B...and Her Plans to Maximize Fun, Avoid Disaster, and (Possibly) Save the World
Author: Katherine Hannigan
Picture Book? No
March 23

Book 6: Don't Let the Pigeon Drive the Bus!
Author: Mo Willems
Picture Book? Yes
March 25

Book 7: Freak the Mighty
Author: Rodman Philbrick
Picture Book? No
March 28

Book 8: Skippyjon Jones in the Doghouse
Author: Judy Schauchner
Picture Book? Yes
April 2

Book 9: Stargirl
Author: Jerry Spinelli
Picture Book? No
April 10

Book 10: Knuffle Bunny Too: A Case of Mistaken Identity
Author: Mo Willems
Picture Book? Yes
April 16