Green Bean Books
  • home
  • shop books
  • shop audio
  • youth advisory board
  • contact us
  • about

Salutations, Stamps and Seals: Notes on the epistolary kid's books that elate us! 

9/9/2012

0 Comments

 
Picture
Dearest Reader!

We hope this letter finds you well and wild-minded! As the weather turns and we turn to our writing desks and our reading chairs, a couple of are new books are reviving our love for books about LETTER-writing!

Picture
Same Sun Here by Silas House and Neela Vaswani: What starts as a class project penpalship between an Indian girl who has just emigrated to Queens and a boy living on a mountain in the Appalachians buds into an incredible best-friendship. This book is a great primer on activism, what it means to be American, and cross-cultural understanding--all written in letter form! A totally eye-opening look at two unfamiliar worlds for kids growing up in the NW! As a bonus, both of the correspondents are emerging creative writers exchanging artistic ideas by mail like real grown-up writers do!

Picture
Letters to Leo by Amy Hest: A totally darling book of letters from spunky fourth-grade budding writer and artist Annie Rossie to her new pup Leo. Annie has a marvelous sense of humor in merry moods and muddy ones. Annie confides in Leo re. normal school things like spelling bees and best friend spats, but also writes about the death of her mother, which Hest treats tenderly and thoughtfully. This book could spur some pretty cool writing prompts too! A good reminder that you can write letters to reveal things to yourself and that addressing them to a real reader is NOT NECESSARY! 

Picture
Thank You, Miss Doover by Robin Pulver: A riotous book about letter-writing conventions, creative communication, and the role of revision! Jack makes knee-slapping mistake after knee-slapping mistake in thanking his Great Aunt Gertie for a stationary set he was less than ecstatic to receive: "Dear Aunt Gertie, Thank you for the USEFUL gift. It's my own personal paper, in case you forgot. It's not my favorite gift, but I have used it a lot. Just ask my mom. Love, Jack."

Picture
The Jolly Postman by veteran children's book authors the Ahlbergs: This interactive "archive" of letters between nursery rhyme characters was my prize possession as a kid and a fledgling epistler! The book contains a series of real pullout letters! Very sophisticated. I made a whole series knockoffs, composing possible exchanges between my favorite storybook personalities! What might a Wild Thing have to say to Stellaluna!?

Picture
It's a bit early for Christmas considerations, but J.R.R. Tolkien's collection of Letters from Father Christmas to his own children is stunning, silly, and utterly special. Tolkien wrote and illustrated the book himself, adding a new letter each Christmas until his children were grown! Check out the regular version or the pop-out version, structured like The Jolly Postman.

Picture
Picture
Visit the store to check out kajillions of accessories to jumpstart creative correspondence--
things like our WORLD'S SMALLEST POSTAL SERVICE kit, cartoony stationary sets, letterpress greeting cards, and Japanese stickers!

0 Comments

Your comment will be posted after it is approved.


Leave a Reply.

    Archives

    July 2021
    May 2021
    April 2021
    March 2021
    February 2021
    December 2020
    November 2020
    August 2020
    June 2020
    May 2020
    March 2020
    February 2020
    December 2019
    September 2019
    January 2018
    March 2017
    February 2017
    January 2017
    December 2016
    November 2016
    July 2016
    February 2016
    January 2016
    December 2015
    September 2015
    August 2015
    June 2015
    May 2015
    April 2015
    March 2015
    February 2015
    January 2015
    September 2014
    July 2014
    June 2014
    April 2014
    March 2014
    February 2014
    December 2013
    November 2013
    September 2013
    August 2013
    July 2013
    April 2013
    March 2013
    January 2013
    December 2012
    November 2012
    October 2012
    September 2012
    August 2012
    July 2012
    June 2012
    April 2012
    March 2012
    February 2012
    January 2012
    December 2011
    November 2011
    October 2011
    September 2011
    August 2011
    July 2011
    June 2011
    May 2011
    April 2011
    March 2011
    February 2011
    January 2011
    December 2010
    November 2010
    October 2010
    September 2010
    August 2010
    July 2010
    June 2010
    May 2010
    April 2010
    March 2010
    February 2010
    January 2010
    November 2009
    September 2009
    August 2009
    July 2009

    RSS Feed

Subscribe to our Newsletter!

* indicates required