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Thursday Diary

 I'm staying in a rental house, so I had to invent a new library for my kids. I generally have no advice about being with children, but I do have views on picture books, so here are (unsolicited) thoughts, below.


To me, the particular season we're in is a useful starting point. Fall is the best of the four seasons, so it has yielded strong books: "Ghosts in the Attic" (Kohara), "In the Middle of Fall" (Henkes), "Arthur's Halloween" and "Arthur's Off to School" (Brown), and "Ten Spooky Pumpkins" (Grimly).

Another guiding light for me is James Marshall. When Marshall died, several of his artist-friends contributed essays to a "tribute" book. My feeling is, if you're a writer/artist and James Marshall befriended you, then there is probably something worthwhile in your work. This thought has led me to "Epossumondas" (Salley), "Rotten Ralph" (Gantos), and "Where the Wild Things Are" (Sendak).

Also, people are often saying, there was more to Ezra Jack Keats than "Snowy Day." So, this fall, my son and I are finally going to spend time with "Peter's Chair" and "Pet Show."

And just a last note, about Marc Brown. I think Brown recently "retired" from the Arthur series, after thirty-ish years. I'm not extremely well-versed in "Arthur," but the books I've seen are detailed, filled with lively characters, and at least mildly surprising. You can't say that for every book you pick up. So: a tip of the hat to Marc Brown.

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