Children's Book Monday

We've been on a bit of a colonial kick over here, but I'm sure you won't mind!



Our Colonial Year
by Cheryl Harness

What a wonderful way to view a colonial year, and, at the same time, take a good, hard look at ourselves and what we do- or don't do- every day!

January- Women gather by the fire when snowy winds blow. Their needles fly, their thimbles flash, all through the winter day.

May- The flock is sheared; their wool is washed, combed, spun, and dyed many colors. Good, strong cloth is on the loom and naked sheep baa-aa in the sunshine.

September- Children gather slates and books. The teachers clang the bell. They troop into the schoolhouse where they'll spend crisp days learning.

-from Our Colonial Year

As we walk through a colonial calendar year, the simple prose and quilt-like pictures are so pleasant to the ears and eyes. Each month has a state stitched in the bottom corner... New Hampshire... New York... Maryland, and if you love to fall into illustrations, this book will take you there!

A serving girl glares at a cat who has hopped onto a chair dangerously close to the table laden with food. A boy in a Tri Corn hat holds his slate at his side, its surface covered in letters and numbers; ahead of him, a girl walks down a hill holding quill pens and an apple. A young child cards the wool his sister has piled into a basket, his eyes lowered in serious concentration.

Every page invites discussion, explanation, definition; lean close and devour!

Happy Reading!

(Also highly recommended by Cheryl Harness- The Three Pilgrims.)