The childhood of books

By Lauren Roberts

Books geared to children have changed radically since my childhood. The simplistic tales, bland plots and childish illustrations I knew have given way to well-written narratives and attractive, sometimes glorious artwork.

In many of them, their most valuable feature is their focus — some subtle, others direct — on teaching a lesson, addressing a difficult situation or opening up life possibilities in a fun, entertaining way. And while it is impossible to single any out as being better than others, these two series are a good start for your young child’s library.

Rip Squeak and His Friends (and the Spanish version Rip Squeak y sus amigos), the first in a fascinating series by Susan Yost-Filgate and Leonard Filgate (Rip Squeak Press), introduce Rip and his sister Jesse, two white lovable mice who dream of great adventures. Suddenly finding themselves without humans in their cottage, they are enticed out by the smell of a cinnamon bun. But before they reach it, they hear a cat crying. Fearfully, Rip investigates and discovers Abbey, a kitten also abandoned by the humans. A friendship develops, and their adventures begin. Those adventures include a garden romp, a sudden rainstorm, a menacing tomcat, a heroic actor-frog named Euripides and a special toy room.

What could the friendship between a kitten, two mice and a frog teach? A lot. It teaches children that differences (between animals, between people) don’t matter; that unexpected situations are gist for imagining, not complaining; that life doesn’t always come with answers; and that new worlds can sometimes be “right under our noses the entire time!” Good lessons, yes? Yes!

In The Treasure, the second in the series, the friends find a treasure map that appears to lead to the pond near the house. Conquering their fear of bugs, they head out through the dense thicket on their adventure. Along the way, they encounter a duck and her ducklings, two ants and a dragonfly that teach the foursome that treasure is, in a clichéd but accurate phrase, in the eye of the beholder.

The third in the ongoing series will be out in late 2004 and continue each year thereafter. Both collectors and children’s editions are available as is the books’ artwork, which is spectacular. Magnificent and unique, these books are ideal gifts for children or even adults. Their website is worth checking out for the history and backgrounds of the illustrator and writer as well as the characters. I expect this publisher to become BIG.

A much more direct focus can be found in the “What Is” series by Etan Boritzer (Veronica Lane Books). Eleven books are planned, each one exploring a specific question. Charming illustrations and a well-written exploratory essay appropriate to children aged approximately 4 to 8 help them become aware of abstract concepts.

Currently available are What is God?, What is Beautiful?, What is Love? and What is Death? They are not, as Boritzer notes, “cute little moral tales.” Rather, they provide a loosely defined answer in poetic format that incorporates diverse views and complex feelings and, in the end, leaves sufficient room for the child to find her or his own answer.

Some of the subjects may seem inappropriate, but they are handled brilliantly here. What is Death? offers this: “So, maybe Death is not like / closing a door / and never being able to open it again. / Maybe Death is only a place / where a person, / and his or her Soul, / live on forever / in other people’s hearts.”

Although these books integrate multicultural aspects, there is an unfortunate tendency to assume a conventional family mold. (I think nontraditional families are worth including in some of the illustrations). Two smaller but no less serious flaws are the overwhelming use of middle-class white characters in the illustrations and the consistent use of the male gender. While there is diversity, there is not as much as there should be given the series’ emphasis on embracing differences.

If you can overlook (or perhaps override these flaws with your input), these books are an excellent introduction to life concepts. After all, as Boritzer put it, “Maybe (children) want to understand as much about love as they want to understand about chocolate chip cookies.”

Lauren Roberts’ e-mail address has changed. She can be reached at reviews-reflections@verizon.net.