Book picks similar to
The Story of Holly and Ivy by Rumer Godden


christmas
picture-books
childrens
children-s-books

The 101 Dalmatians


Dodie Smith - 1956
    With their human owners, the Dearlys, to look after them, they lived in a comfortable home in London with their 15 adorable Dalmatian puppies, loved and admired by all. Especially the Dearlys' neighbor Cruella de Vil, a fur-fancying fashion plate with designs on the Dalmatians' spotted coats! So, when the puppies are stolen from the Dearly home, and even Scotland Yard is unable to find them, Pongo and Missis know they must take matters into their own paws! The delightful children's classic adapted twice for popular Disney productions. Ages 8-11

The Man in the Moon


William Joyce - 2010
    When a newly orphaned baby in the moon makes friends with the children of Earth, he seeks a way to ward off their fears and nightmares.Up there in the sky.Don’t you see him?No, not the moon.The Man in the Moon.He wasn’t always a man.Nor was he always on the moon.He was once a child.Like you.Until a battle,a shooting star,and a lost balloonled him on a quest.Meet the very first Guardian of Childhood.MiM, the Man in the Moon.

The Five Chinese Brothers


Claire Huchet Bishop - 1938
    "An original nonsense tale told with...spirit and gusto." -- The Horn Book

The Rescuers


Margery Sharp - 1959
    The task of this benevolent society is to befriend human prisoners in their cells, and perform daring rescue bids. As this story opens, the Chairwoman of the Society is proposing the rescue of a Norwegian poet who is being held in grim conditions in the Black Castle.

Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer


Robert Lewis May - 1939
    May, a copywriter working at Chicago's Montgomery Ward & Co., wrote a holiday story at the request of his employer. Almost two and a half million copies of the little tale about a reindeer with a shiny red nose were given away to all the children who visited Montgomery Ward stores that year. The rest is history. Over seventy years later, the beloved classic is once again available in a hardcover faithful facsimile of the 1939 Rudolph, with original text and original Denver Gillen illustrations.

Miss Rumphius


Barbara Cooney - 1982
    The countless lupines that bloom along the coast of Maine are the legacy of the real Miss Rumphius, the Lupine Lady, who scattered lupine seeds everywhere she went. Miss Rumphius received the American Book Award in the year of publication.To celebrate the thirtieth anniversary of two-time Caldecott winner Barbara Cooney's best-loved book, the illustrations have been reoriginated, going back to the original art to ensure state-of-the-art reproduction of Cooney's exquisite artwork. The art for Miss Rumphius has a permanent home in the Bowdoin College Museum of Art.

Bedtime for Frances


Russell Hoban - 1960
    And then there are tigers and giants and ominous cracks in the ceiling to keep her up. Will Frances ever go to sleep?

Corduroy


Don Freeman - 1968
    When all the shoppers have gone home for the night, Corduroy climbs down from the shelf to look for his missing button. It's a brave new world! He accidentally gets on an elevator that he thinks must be a mountain and sees the furniture section that he thinks must be a palace. He tries to pull a button off the mattress, but he ends up falling off the bed and knocking over a lamp. The night watchman hears the crash, finds Corduroy, and puts him back on the shelf downstairs. The next morning, he finds that it's his lucky day! A little girl buys him with money she saved in her piggy bank and takes him home to her room. Corduroy decides that this must be home and that Lisa must be his friend. Youngsters will never get tired of this toy-comes-alive tale with a happy ending, so you may also want to seek out Dan Freeman's next creation, A Pocket for Corduroy. (Ages 3 to 8)

Mrs. Piggle-Wiggle


Betty MacDonald - 1947
    Piggle-WiggleMrs. Piggle-Wiggle lives in an upside-down house and smells like cookies. She was even married to a pirate once. Most of all, she knows everything about children. She can cure them of any ailment. Patsy hates baths. Hubert never puts anything away. Allen eats v-e-r-y slowly. Mrs Piggle-Wiggle has a treatment for all of them.The incomparable Mrs. Piggle-Wiggle loves children good or bad and never scolds but has positive cures for Answer-Backers, Never-Want-to-Go-to-Bedders, and other boys and girls with strange habits. '[Now] in paperback . . . for a new generation of children to enjoy.' -- San Francisco Examiner Chronicle.

The Stinky Cheese Man and Other Fairly Stupid Tales


Jon Scieszka - 1992
    A revisionist storyteller provides his mad, hilarious versions of children's favorite tales in this collection that includes "Little Red Running Shorts", "The Princess and the Bowling Ball", "Cinderumpelstilskin", and others.

Sylvester and the Magic Pebble


William Steig - 1969
    But when a lion frightens him on his way home, Sylvester makes a wish that brings unexpected results.

Go, Dog. Go!


P.D. Eastman - 1961
    Seuss. From big dogs and little dogs to red, green, and blue dogs, dogs going up and dogs going fast . . . who knew dogs were so busy? And laughter will ensue at the repeated question “Do you like my hat?” Like P. D. Eastman’s classic Are You My Mother? Go, Dog. Go! has been a go-to favorite for over fifty years, leaving audiences of all breeds wagging their tails with delight. Originally created by Dr. Seuss, Beginner Books encourage children to read all by themselves, with simple words and illustrations that give clues to their meaning. "The canine cartoons make an elementary text funny and coherent and still one of the best around."--School Library Journal.

The Hundred Dresses


Eleanor Estes - 1944
    Wanda Petronski is ridiculed by her classmates for wearing the same faded blue dress every day. She claims she has one hundred dresses at home, but everyone knows she doesn’t. When Wanda is pulled out of school one day, the class feels terrible, and classmate Maddie decides that she is "never going to stand by and say nothing again." A gentle tale about bullies, bystanders, and having the courage to speak up.

The Little Drummer Boy


Ezra Jack Keats - 1968
    The little drummer boy comes along, although he is too poor to bring a present fit for a king. Instead, he plays a song on his drum for the Christ Child. Within the little drummer boy's seemingly simple gift lies the true spirit of Christmas. Ezra Jack Keats' vivid, jewel-toned artwork perfectly illustrates this classic holiday carol. Music for the song appears at the back of the book. "Keats evocatively portrays this story." -Publishers Weekly

Merry Christmas, Mom and Dad


Mercer Mayer - 1982
    Whether he's making wreaths, eating gingerbread cookies, or putting the star on the top of the tree, both parents and children alike will relate to this beloved story. A perfect way to celebrate the holiday season!