children’s books

Lucy Sings on Lucy Street

Posted on by Wendy Kennar

You may remember I have written about Robin Roberts before. In case you missed it, you can read my post about Brighter By the Day by clicking here.

Click here to read this post featuring From the Heart.

And click here to read my post about Everybody’s Got Something.

I’m definitely a fan. 

This week’s post features Lucy Sings on Lucy Street by Lawrence Roberts and Sally-Ann Roberts (siblings of Robin Roberts), with an epilogue by Robin Roberts. 

Not only is this a charming children’s book with delightful illustrations by Jestenia Southerland, it’s the story of how I came to own this book that makes it even more special to me. 

A friend of mine surprised me by ordering this picture book and having it sent to my address. She and I both admire Robin Roberts and find inspiration in the words she has written. It’s a natural extension, then, that we would both want to support a children’s book written by two of Robin’s siblings and inspired by their beloved mother, Lucimarian “Lucy” Tolliver. 

My friend knew that. And she didn’t just tell me about the book, she bought me a copy and completely surprised me by having it delivered to my home. 

At its heart, the book has a timeless, ageless message:

“Life is filled with ups and downs.

No matter what,

keep a song in your heart.

Keep singing.” 

In the book, Lucy’s family is experiencing tough times and struggling during the Depression. But through it all, Lucy finds comfort in her family, her singing, and her good friend, Wanda.

Friends. How lucky Lucy was to have Wanda as her good friend.

And how lucky I am to have Nina F. as my good friend. (There are two Nina’s in my life, so I’m using the teacher technique to differentiate between the two special Nina’s I know.)

Please note: I am including a link to buy the book that I’m highlighting this week. If you use my link, I do make a small commission on your purchase at no additional cost to you. I am working with Bookshop.org which also sends a portion of the profit to support local, independent bookstores.


The Word Collector

Posted on by Wendy Kennar

My sixteen-year-old son and I spent some time in his bedroom the other day, re-organizing his bookcase. (The same white Ikea BILLY bookcase that used to be in my childhood bedroom many years ago.) During college, I worked in a public library; I’m happy to help when someone wants to re-organize a bookcase.

Many of my son’s once-favorite picture books had sat on those lower shelves for several years now, largely untouched and unread.

“I don’t want to donate them, but I don’t want them out on my bookcase,” he said.

I understood.

There are some books that are so firmly rooted in memories that you can’t possibly imagine parting with them. For our son, that included Curious George books and a large stack of Todd Parr books. 

From his stacks, we did find a few to donate, and I found one I have now placed on my bookcase — The Word Collector by Peter H. Reynolds.

I could mention the book’s charming illustrations. 

Or the short and sweet author’s note on the inside of the front cover. 

Or the encouraging author’s note at the back of the book: “Reach for your own words/ Tell the world who you are/ and how you will make it better.”

But really, I’m keeping this book because of sentences like these:

“Jerome began stringing words together.
Words he had not imagined being side by side.
He used his words to write poems.
He used his poems to make songs.
They moved. They delighted.
Some of his simplest words were his most powerful. 
Jerome eagerly collected more and more of his favorite words. 
The more words he knew the more clearly he could share with the world what he was thinking, feeling, and dreaming.”

I am proud to be a word collector.

Readers, do you have any children’s books you keep near your writing space? Any children’s books you just can’t part with? Please share. 

Please note: I am including a link to buy the book that I’m highlighting this week. If you use my link, I do make a small commission on your purchase at no additional cost to you. I am working with Bookshop.org which also sends a portion of the profit to support local, independent bookstores.

The Case for Loving

Posted on by Wendy Kennar

Today, June 12th, is Loving Day. 

“Loving Day is the anniversary of a historic court decision for interracial marriage. Every year on June 12th, it’s a global day of visibility, education, and community.” (Taken from lovingday.org)

I’ve written about Loving Day before, because of its direct impact on my family — my African American husband and our mixed-race son. (You can click here to read a post I wrote in 2020.)  

And I continue to write about Loving Day because it’s so very important to remember that the rights and laws we currently have weren’t always our rights and laws. And, as we’ve seen, laws can be changed; revoked even. So I don’t take Loving Day for granted. 

This year, I wanted to highlight a wonderful children’s book — The Case for Loving: The Fight for Interracial Marriage by Selina Alko, illustrated by Sean Qualls and Selina Alko. (Fun fact — the author and illustrator are themselves an interracial couple.)

The charming book tells the story of Richard and Mildred Loving — how they fell in love, how they married (in Washington, D.C.), how they were arrested for living together in Virginia (where interracial marriage was not legal), how they wanted to leave their home in Washington, D.C. and legally live in Virginia with their three children, and how their court case made it all the way to the United States Supreme Court. 

And, what it all boiled down to was expressed in this brief, heartfelt message from Richard Loving which was read to the Supreme Court justices: “Tell the Court I love my wife, and it is just unfair that I can’t live with her in Virginia.” 

On June 12, 1967, the Supreme Court ruled unanimously in favor of the Lovings and interracial marriage. 

1967. 

Only 57 years ago.

Please note: I am including a link to buy the book that I’m highlighting this week. If you use my link, I do make a small commission on your purchase at no additional cost to you. I am working with Bookshop.org which also sends a portion of the profit to support local, independent bookstores.

Wendy and the So-So, Not Great, Very Painful Day

Posted on by Wendy Kennar

 

Do you remember the children’s book Alexander and the Terrible, Horrible, No Good, Very Bad Day by Judith Viorst?

It’s such a fun read. 

And even though my son is twelve now, it still sits on his bookcase. (So does The Cat in the Hat. Some books are timeless classics, after all.)

Alexander is having a tough day. It started when he woke up with gum in his hair. Throughout his day, one bad thing after another keeps happening to poor Alexander. He’s convinced life would be better if he moved to Australia.

His mother reminds him that “some days are like that. Even in Australia.”

Lately, I’ve been borrowing Alexander’s words, telling my family that I’m moving to Australia. Here’s why:

– I woke up before my husband’s alarm, after a fitful night’s sleep. My calf felt tight and it hurt just to lie in bed, just to have my calf resting against the mattress.

– I kept dropping things on the floor as I prepared breakfast. The chocolate chips for my son’s Eggo Waffle. My Cheerios.

– I couldn’t decide what to wear. All my usual jeans felt as if they had transformed into Skinny Jeans overnight. They seemed to grip my leg, like plastic wrap covering a plate of leftovers. 

– I went for a neighborhood walk with my son. I felt okay when we left the house. Somewhere, somehow while we were out, the pain came back. It didn’t creep back in either. It barged in. I limped home.

– I went upstairs to get my book, and as I did my knees creaked and groaned. It was painful to listen to and painful to climb the stairs.

– I went to sit out on our patio, to enjoy the sunshine and the colorful sight of my blooming plants, only to discover one of the neighbor’s dogs had pooped on my patio.

– I watered my plants after reading and somehow spilled water onto my feet instead.

– I spent time in the kitchen, boiling water for pasta, hand washing my son’s favorite popcorn bowl, and had to lean against the kitchen counter. My thigh began to hurt. Hurt like someone or something had hit it. Hard.

– I gingerly touched my leg, trying to find out why it felt different. The back of my left knee was puffy, swollen, and tender.

– I dealt with the pain all day long. 

– It wasn’t a terrible, horrible, no good, very bad day.

– But it wasn’t a wonderful, fantastic, great, very good day either. 

But I think even in Australia my leg would hurt, my socks would get wet if water spilled on them, and I’d be annoyed and disgusted to find dog poop on my patio.

 

The Best Kind of Gift

Posted on by Wendy Kennar

My ten-and-a-half year old son received an early Christmas gift last week from a friend of the family.  Well, she’s not just a friend of the family.  Several years ago, she and I taught at the same school.  Now she teaches at Ryan’s elementary school, and two years ago, she was his third-grade teacher.

The gift was a surprise to us both.  

It was wrapped, so as Ryan looked at it and felt it, he first thought it was an iPad.  It would have been an incredibly generous, though unlikely, gift.  But in his mind it was the right size.

It wasn’t an iPad.  It was a book.  A hardcover book.  A hardcover book signed by the author.  A hardcover book signed by the author and inscribed to Ryan.

And Ryan loves it.  

Ryan loves it so much he whooped and hollered around the house.  He proudly showed it off. 

I don’t think it’s a book Ryan would have picked up on his own had we just been browsing at our local Barnes and Noble or public library.  But because his teacher selected this book for him, because his teacher asked the author to sign the book for Ryan, Ryan is reading it. 

It’s a beautiful testament to the power of books and putting a book in a child’s hands.