Thursday, July 8, 2010

Owl at Home

Arnold Lobel 1975

This is my favorite Arnold Lobel book, which is really saying something because he has written and illustrated so many great books (don’t worry, of course Frog and Toad will make it on here).



Owl invites Winter in, who proves to be a very poor houseguest. He tries to be upstairs and downstairs at the same time. He sleeps in his chair because of “bumps” in his bed (the kids and I still laugh about this story). He says goodnight to a moon that follows him home and in "Tear-water tea" (the best story) he fills his teapot by thinking about sad things that make him cry- chairs with broken legs, spoons that have fallen behind the stove, books that cannot be read because some of the pages have been torn out.  I don't know why, but I love the very last lines: 
 Owl felt happy as he filled his cup.  "It tastes a little bit salty," he said, "but tear-water tea is always very good."










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