I was flabbergasted. I thought I was the only human alive that could possibly know who Scarlet O’Neill was. After all, the book I own was printed during WWII with substandard paper which crumbles to the touch. Each time I turn a page, the corner clips itself off. Even if people had some how heard … Read more
I ran across an article about challenges the Canadian libraries and school libraries faced for the year 2010. Despite lagging a year behind in their statistics, the outcome was quite pleasing to me, as someone who has written so much on banning books from school and public libraries in the US. Report of the Annual … Read more
Anne Anderson’s House That Jack Built is worlds apart from a Victorian’s book plate, or Art Deco vision, or a Golden Book’s mid century idea of what the perfect abode would look like in Mother Goose Land. Because of these differences it’s like a birthday, or holiday whenever a collector finds a new version of … Read more
I’m asking, because I need new creative places to take them! I have long ago left behind the notion that I could keep all the books I’d read. As a teenager, it didn’t seem so difficult–stack them in a corner of the room, and let them be. By college, I didn’t want to lug them … Read more
Sometimes subjects and ideas for articles are slim, and I struggle to come up with something meaningful, challenging, and pithy. Well, this is not a pithy one. It’s more of a dreamy reminiscence. About one book that trumps all others in my life. Mother Goose rhymes, nursery rhymes, captured me as a little tyke, and … Read more
On one of my weird road trips I had the privilege of visiting the little town of Wells in the NY Adirondack mountains. So it’s disturbing to find out how much damage has been done to their library and the entire picture book collection for children. They are asking for monetary donations to replace the … Read more
If it were up to me, probably never. No, that’s not true, I’ve taken some Anne Anderson Mother Goose illustrations and framed them. The book was missing half of the other plates, and already damaged. So, if the book is damaged, is it OK to remove plates? And how damaged is damaged enough? And once … Read more
What have you done, and what would you do, short of commit a crime, to attain a certain book you can’t live without. I mean, you really don’t think that life would nearly be as wonderful if you don’t buy the book sitting on the desk, or up in the bookcase, or in a shaded … Read more
