A New Favorite

We got the library regularly, and I check out lots of books for the children.  I usually sit down in a row and look through all the books in a section, selecting ones with intriguing titles, great illustrations, or something else eye-catching.  Some books turn out to be duds, but others become almost instant favorites.  I made just such a discovery the last time we went--the author/illustrator John Burningham.

Burningham is from England and is rather prolific.  I pulled out one of his books, glanced through it, deemed it worth a try, and then looked at the next book on the shelf.  Turned out the next twenty or so books were by Burningham.  I deemed them all worth a try and brought them all home.  What a find!  We loved all of them!  During the three weeks we had them checked out, we read them over and over.  The stories are funny, the illustrations delightful, and they have an English aura that is just wonderful.

One of our favorites is The Avocado Baby.  Blythe called it the "adocado" baby.  In the story, a couple with two children is expecting a baby.  They are all weak and they hope the baby will grow to be strong.  They are disappointed.  Not only is the baby not strong, it is a picky eater.  In an act of desperation, the mother feeds the baby an avocado and it actually eats it.  Thereafter, the baby becomes very strong.  Here is an illustration.

The adocado baby is so strong it can not only pull children but move furniture and carry groceries and defend the house from burglars.  The family posts a "Beware of the baby" sign on the front gate.  The children almost shrieked in delight when the baby throws two bullies in a pond when they are picking on the older but weaker siblings.  

We liked these books so much, I am going to begin a collection of our very own.