Plucked Eyes and Rice Pudding: My Favorite Children's Books

By Elaine Viets

Here's a charming custom that I hope catches on: A book shower for a grandma to be. We were asked to give a new grandma our favorite children's book, so she would have her own library to read to her newborn grandson.
Buying that gift was easy – and enjoyable. I gave Grandma my favorite book, The Poky Little Puppy.
This book had a terrific plot, involving dessert (rice pudding, chocolate custard and strawberry shortcake) and five adorable but disobedient puppies who dug holes under the fence and went out into the "wide, wide world."
Years later, I learned that The Poky Little Puppy was written by Janette Sebring Lowrey and illustrated by Gustaff Tenggren. It was "one of the original 12 Little Golden Books," according to Wikipedia. "The Poky Little Puppy has sold nearly 15 million copies since 1942, making it one of the most popular children’s books of all time."
In fact, it "has outsold many other famous books such as Dr. Seuss' Green Eggs and Ham."
What you read as a child is supposed to shape you for life. In my favorite Little Golden Book, the poky protagonist managed to finagle two nights of gobbling his brothers' and sisters' desserts before he was caught and sent to bed without supper. If you ask me, it was worth it. That's ten desserts eaten and one missed. The odds were in the pup's favor.

The Little Red Hen taught cooperation, and The Saggy, Baggy Elephant was about finding myself. All good life lessons in those little twenty-five cent books.
When I was a little older, I learned the Grimm's fairytales at my stern German Grandmother Viets' knee. She read me gruesome tales. In Cinderella, her mean stepsisters were forced to dance in red-hot iron shoes until they collapsed. You won't find that in the Disney version. In other Grimm tales, eyes were plucked out with thorns, treasures were stolen, and evil witches were shoved into fiery ovens.

Nowadays, psychologists recommend the kinder, gentler fairytales of Charles Perrault. But it was too late for me – I'd already been warped by that greedy puppy and those Grimm tales.
Pass the pudding, please.
So tell me, what were your favorite children's books?

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Comments

[Art Taylor]

We did this for Dash's baby shower! It was so great to see the range of books that people brought, and to hear what made those books so special to them. When we read them to Dash (and many ages, so we're still working toward some) we always talk about who gave the book to him and share when we can a little story about it. Such a fun thing to do, so meaningful.

[Judy Hixon]

King and the Princess copyright 1949. Author Jack O’Brien. The relationship between the cat and dog always stayed with me, to the extent that a few years ago I went in search of a copy and actually found one!

[Alan P.]

While Princess Two is now 14, almost all of the children's books are still on the shelf. A box was just packed up, but many are still in the house.

"Are You My Mother"; "Little Gorilla"; "Pat the Bunny"; "Babies by Gyo Fujikawa" & "Caps for Sale" are all books read to me and then read to my children. One day, read to my grandchildren.

[Alan P.]

Two more books at our house. "Heather has Two Mommies" (now almost 30 years old) and "Who's in a Family?" by Robert Skutch.

[Margie Bunting]

I love this idea! I make sure gifts to my grandson, Henry, always include at least one book, and I am thrilled that my son and daughter-in-law have read to this now-2-year-old since birth. Recently I witnessed my daughter-in-law reading some cloth books to my 3-month-old granddaughter, and Autumn couldn't have been more animated. I'm sure both will be early readers.

[Elaine Viets]

It's funny how those early stories stay with you. I used to babysit for a family of SEVEN kids in St. Louis, and I've stayed in touch with the parents. They knew THE POKY LITTLE PUPPY was my favorite book and for my birthday gave me a copy. It's just as good as I remembered.

[Elaine Viets]

I agree, Art. Book showers are terrific ideas and I like you stories behind the stories. A double gift.

[Elaine Viets]

What a lovely idea, Alan, to pass on the books to your grandchildren. I inherited my mother's set of Nancy Drew mysteries and loved them. The generational connection is important.

[Elaine Viets]

I agree, Margie. Your grandchildren will grow up to love books. I had stories read to me at a very early age and pestered adults with "Tell me a story." Now I get to tell stories for a living.

[Mark]

You know, I’ve never read Pokey Little Puppy. Heard of it, but never read it.

Some of my favorites include How the FrimchnStole Christmas (year round) and Nate the Great (my first mystery).

[Elaine Viets]

Love Nate the Great! Count me as a fan.

[Storyteller Mary]

Dad favored library books for our small house/five kids, but I remember we read a copy of Disney's JUNGLE BOOK literally to pieces, loose pages carefully kept in order, and there was a book of nursery rhymes I knew so well that my uncle thought I could read as a pre-schooler. My students at Downtown Daycare loved GREEN EGGS AND HAM, and a very prickly high school student became sweet the day I brought Patricia McKissack's FLOSSY AND THE FOX into class. "My favorite book!" Yes, there's magic in those pages. <3

[Elaine Viets]

Green Eggs and Ham. I forget that Dr. Seuss book, Mary.

[Beth Schmelzer]

Went to a baby shower once where the mom-to-be received 3 copies of Pat-the-Bunny, a book she didn't know. I said keep them: one for Mommy and Daddy, one for Grandma's house, and a spare for when the first one gets used and torm. Remember this Moms and Grandmom?!

[Elaine Viets]

"Pat the Bunny" is a classic, Beth. Babies love it.