Cheaper by the Dozen

...was one of my favorite books as a kid. I read it over and over again, especially during summer vacations at my grandparents' house. I think that book, along with its sequel Belles on their Toes, a collected Louisa May Alcott, and a collected Mark Twain, made up the "appropriate for kids" library in the old farmhouse we used to move into for the month of August. So I was saddened to learn today that Ernestine Gilbreth Carey, co-author of the books and daughter of Frank and Lillian Gilbreth, had died last week.

Don't watch the movie(s). Read the book.

(first seen over at Fuse 8)

hot off the presses...

"Parents who engage in the age-old tradition of picture-book reading are not only encouraging early reading development in their children but are also teaching their toddlers about the world around them, according to a study in the November issue of Developmental Psychology, published by the American Psychological Association (APA). This finding shows that interactions with life-like color pictures can aid in children’s learning."

I personally think there are other good reasons to share picture books with kids (it's fun, they like it, etc.) but it's nice to have this confirmation, no?

Read the whole piece here.

a new column

check it out here, and leave me a comment!

And, then, go vote. Or, you know, vote first. The column will still be there when you get back.

(And, yes, this post is a duplicate of the one at my other blog. I'm busy today, ok?)

Celebrity children's books

Again. (Sigh.) This is a good piece, but haven't we already talked about the issue?

(Warning: shameless self-promotion in that second link.)

not about children's literature, but...

Brilliant: "instead of a t-shirt reading Carpe Diem, I need one that reads Carpe The Next Five Minutes, Then Nap."

read the whole post, titled "Reason #782 why depression sucks."

Writing yourself into the story

I have really never once since leaving the fifth grade wanted to be back there. Not that fifth grade was bad--in fact, I had a fabulous teacher who had colored contact lenses to match her outfits (this in 1971), and I thought she was great. It was a whole lot better than sixth grade, now that I think about it. Still, I was one of those kids who wants to grow up, the sooner the better, and I've rarely if ever had the nostalgic impulse to return to an earlier stage of me.

But if I were to be in fifth grade again, I'd want to be in Lelac Almagor's class at the National Cathedral School for girls in DC, if only to do this exercise. What a great story!

Read McSweeney's

for this little amusing gem:

Stories that would have turned out differently if the protagonists had had cellphones.