Tag Archives: literary

Pop’s Top 10: Literary Baby Showers

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Oh, this is going to be CUTE. Katie searched for some of the most adorable literary baby showers she could find, and these parties do not disappoint! Here are Katie’s Top 10, in no particular order…

#10 GOODNIGHT MOON
From Bump Smitten

Those are PILLOWS at the heads of the tables! And while there are no bowls of mush in sight, there ARE these adorable “Hush” cookies…

#9 THE PIGEON NEEDS A BATH
From Tonya Staab

The pigeon in the cotton ball bubble bath, the rubber duckie…and the DONUT TOPPERS on the milk bottles below!

#8 CURIOUS GEORGE
From Kojo Designs

The mural of pages! The yellow hats! The spotted ties around the glass treat jars! And this adorable sock monkey balloonist…

#7 IF YOU GIVE A DOG A DONUT
From Pizzazzerie

Technically, this shower wasn’t just If You Give A Dog A Donut. It featured several children’s books, as evidenced by their charming party menu:

#6 WINNIE THE POOH
From Hostess with the Mostess

I love the non-pastel colors, the big red balloon, the charming floral centerpieces, and the quotes on the plates!

#5 WHERE THE WILD THINGS ARE
From Homeroad

The botanicals add such a fabulous wild feel to this table, and the little cookie packets and copy of the book for guests to sign are way cool. Plus…a cake with a crown and wooden platter!

#4 BABAR
From 100 Layer Cake-let

I think the photo of mom as a little girl reading says it all! Also love the lanterns/hot air balloons and the mini clothespin garland with prints from the books!

#3 PETER RABBIT
From Hello Brielle!

Awwww! The baby clothes Peter Rabbit scarecrow! And HUGE props for making vegetables so incredibly celebratory!

#2 GOLDEN BOOKS
From Aesthetic Nest

This bold, fabulous color palette is utterly fantastic. Definitely the winner of “Best Use of Yellow and Blue!” Also, the time and effort that went into these cupcake toppers alone. I’m impressed (and they provide the printables for them on their blog)!

#1 THE VERY HUNGRY CATERPILLAR
From Leigh Anne Wilkes

Fruit kabobs are PERFECT for hungry caterpillars! But check this out…one of the shower gifts was customized book chapter onesies for monthly baby photos!

The shower featured a number of books and treats (don’t miss the mouse sugar cookies!) but we thought we would end with something that applies to ALL literary parties. SO going to use this somewhere:

Please, sir, I want some more…

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dr dana oliver twist

Countless articles, numerous treatises, and dozens of dissertations have been written on the role food plays in children’s literature. And we have certainly done more then a few posts on it (see: top secret fooj, gingerbread house contest, and Harry Potter recipe testing).

With glorious fictitious edibles in mind, I developed a quick activity for Cotsen Critix, our children’s literary society for 9-12 year olds. The task was simple: match the food to the literary character. However, the list ranged from easy to challenging, thanks to the invaluable assistance of librarians on the ALSC listserv. They came up with tons of clever matches.

Below is the game, and here is the pdf version (and NO answer key! Mwah hah hah!):

characters and foods game

If you’re wondering where on earth we found a Victorian-esque dining hall for the blog photo, the answer is Proctor Hall. It’s the dining room for Princeton University’s Graduate College. It’s absolutely gorgeous, with wood paneling, oil portraits, and a massive stained glass window.

proctor hall princeton university graduate collegeI couldn’t resist busting out a little Oliver! at the end of the shoot. If you look closely, you can see that I truly got into character by smearing mud all over my London orphan face.

Disclaimer: I have NO vocal training, and am famous for messing up song lyrics.

Many thanks to Marybeth Shippole for graciously allowing us to visit Proctor Hall, and to all the ALSC librarians for their invaluable contributions to the game!

FEAR: The Game Show

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fear the game show

Fear is healthy right? It keeps us on our toes, gives us obstacles to overcome, and adds depth to our literary characters. Fear is there to be conquered! But, as this family photo of me suggests, some fears run mighty deep. For me, it’s clowns. Clowns…and green balloons shaped like the Loch Ness Monster.

We had a discussion about fear at Cotsen Critix, our literary society for 9-12 year-olds. And while bullies, lightning storms, and spiders were all addressed, we thought it would be interesting to see how well the kids knew their literary characters’ fears. To play the game, name the character, and then have your contestants try to name the fear.

Wilbur: Being made into bacon
Captain Hook: The crocodile
Mr. Tumnas: The White Witch
The Baudelaire Orphans: Count Olaf
Matilda: Ms. Trunchbull
Peter Rabbit: Mr. McGregor
Dorothy: Wicked Witch of the West
Sherlock Holmes: Professor Moriarity
Ron Weasley: Spiders
Harry Potter: Dementors
Neville Longbottom: Snape
Professor Lupin: Full moon
Hermoine Granger: Bad grades
The Borrowers: Being discovered
Mowgli: Shere Kahn
Mrs. Frisby: Dragon the Cat
Little Orphan Annie: Ms. Hannigan
Eragon: King Galbatorix
Black Beauty: Fire
Frodo: Sauron
Taran: The Horned King
Percy Jackson: Monsters…pick one!
Lyra: Mrs. Coulter
Chester: Bunnicula
Measle: Wrathmonks
Jemmy from the Streets: A hanging
Campers at Camp Green Lake: Lizards
Ralph S. Mouse: The vacuum cleaner
Matt Cruise: The ground
Claudia and Jamie Kincaid: Being discovered
Stuart Little’s family: The mouse hole
Ella Enchanted: Stepsisters’ orders
Ramona Quimby: Picture of the gorilla
The White Rabbit: Being late!