So Delightful, it's Scarry! (Richard Scarry's Best Storybook Ever - Richard Scarry)

Member Name: QuinnElaine

Product:	Richard Scarry's Best Storybook Ever - Richard Scarry
Date:	16/05/09 (44 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: beautiful illustrations, fun learning, quality time with your kids

Disadvantages: Your lap can only hold so many kids at one time!

Richard Maclure Scarry was a children's author and illustrator who had over 300 books published in his lifetime. This popular author was born June 5, 1919 in Boston, Massachusetts, and died of a heart attack on April 30, 1994 in Gstaad, Switzerland where he lived and worked in his studio. Somehow, it does not surprise me that this Gemini was and continues to be so very popular with children around the world!

In every adult is a child who plays, and this particular Storybook most beautifully illustrates the loving playful bond between child and parent. Where else do we first begin how to learn and play than on a parent's lap or tucked up in bed hearing stories and songs? There are even stories in here about daddies being daddies, and they are being told by one generation to another the world over. Scarry's work excels at celebrating our many connections to everything in the Universe around us.



This 288 page book is a must have for every small child, and one cannot help thinking that Scarry must have been one of those rare and exceedingly clever souls who has not only learned the importance of playing with your inner child, but has found a way to share this wisdom with everyone who picks up one of his books! Even for it's hardbound size, the Best Storybook is relatively light, and perfect storybook size when you have a wee one or two tucked into your lap. Even infants enjoy looking at the clever and colorful pictures, and there are plenty of opportunities for them to learn to identify every day items from food to clothing, and more uncommon items like musical instruments or heavy machines, throughout the book.

The way the book is set up, there are many of these identification illustrations sets with amusing stories and cartoons scattered throughout. In the two page illustration entitled A Castle In Denmark, for example, we learn some rules that "you must obey if you life in a castle; or even if you live in a house." Tiny mouse people the floors of the castle imparting wisdom like the importance of not leaving toys on stairs, feeding your dragon, and putting your broom away after you have finished flying.

In Whisper In My Ear, Mrs. Mouse helps us count to 12 by whispering in her friend Elephant's ear all the nice things in her tiny house. Mrs. Mouse's 12 children impishly awake from their nap is a delightful conclusion to this counting tale. Is This The House of Mistress Mouse? is a charming tale of how Mrs. and Mr. Mouse met. Polite Elephant helps little ones begin to understand how to interact with others, but not every tale in here has some pointed lesson.

Many tales are simply things that children can relate to in a pleasant way, like Chipmunk's Birthday Party. Most kids, even quite small ones, can relate to the enjoyment of games, cake and friends. Scarry's trademark whimsy is evident in every tale. Each page is covered with the most enchanting illustrations that capture and delight the imaginations of children as they learn about everything from airplanes to the seasons. The soft blend of colorful images, whimsical characters, and simple well told tales makes a lasting impression.

Thumbing through this wonderful book, I can easily remember these illustrations from my own early childhood. I always liked to find Bugdozer, one of Scarry's tiniest characters. How interesting now to look upon this book after having passed the love of these tales and pictures on to not only my own children, but my grandchild and many other small children who have happened across my path! Perfect as a first book through to about the age when your child begins reading confidently on their own, this really is the Best Storybook ever. I've given it often as a first birthday/Christmas, or even new baby gift.

Remembering how much I loved this book as a girl, it was one of my first purchases when we had our own kids. They wore out two copies before they were grown, and I will never forget the wonder of peeking in on reading sessions where older siblings were reading to younger ones from this magical book. Now, this book graces our shelves yet again as a keepsake after the passing of our grandson who received this book from us on his last birthday. The newest little one in our family, our son's stepdaughter, is my latest in a long line of lapwarmers to enjoy Scarry's work.

I honestly believe that no home is complete without this book. Even if you have no children, you never know when you may have a wee visitor. You will definitely leave a lasting positive impression on any future generations by being wise and fun enough to introduce them to reading with this fabulous work by the incomparable Richard Scarry! Remember though that this is not the sort of book to be entrusted to those who have not learned to treat books with respect. The simple pages and Golden Books' binding is not meant to stand up to moist gnawing or aggressive pulling, although it will definitely feed the imaginitive minds of young readers. When I am too old to sit with a small child and pour over these wondrously illustrated tales, I hope I'm lucky enough to have someone to read to me!

Summary: A wonderful childhood memory to pass on