Thursday, April 21, 2016

"Tell Me a Story" Book Review

I just purchased the sensational book Tell Me a Story: Stories from the Waldorf Early Childhood Association of North America.


This is a lovely early childhood book for Waldorf families... I absolutely suggest adding it to your collection if you are looking for stories to read or tell your child! Unlike some other Waldorf storytelling books there aren't puppetry ideas or directions for circle time movement games or sheet music for singing or other musical accompaniment to the tale. It is simply a beautiful age-appropriate compilation of gentle nature-oriented stories for little ones.

This is the kind of book you give to a new mother and father! And then you get a copy for yourself too and you end up lending that one to a friend and never getting it back... so maybe you should just go ahead and get three!


Here is the Table of Contents, which is what I always want to know when I'm considering buying a book:

    Simple Stories to Start With

    Good Morning, Mr. Jay
    Rimple and Dimple
    The Hungry Bunny
    Mister Grieder's Farm
    And the Little One Said...
    The Lost Jewel
    Good Night, Baby Bear


    Nature Tales

    The Harvest Mouse
    Autumn Bear
    The Snowflake and the Leaf
    The Snowdrop
    The Oriole's Journey
    Small Cloud
    The Story of a Butterfly
    Mother Spider


    Stories for Seasons and Festivals

    Michael and the Dragon
    The Boy Who Spoke the Truth
    The Golden Star Flowers
    Mother Earth and the Leaves
    The Old Owl on the Farm
    Winifred Witch and Her Golden Cat
    The Big Red Apple
    The Harvest Gift
    Squirrel Nutkin's Thanksgiving
    Hugin and the Shooting Stars
    Fiochetto Bianco
    The Golden Lantern
    Hugin's Lantern
    Mother Earth's Children
    Silvercap, King of the Frost Fairies
    The Crystal Cave
    The Child of Light
    Holy Nights
    The Polar Bear
    A Million Valentines
    Leprechaun's Gold
    Lady Spring Arrives
    The Mud Muffins
    The Little Pine Tree
    The Old Woman and the Tulips
    Grandfather Tomten and the Easter Surprise
    Golden Rabbit and the Rainbow Eggs
    The Caterpillar's Journey
    Corn Child and the Queen of Night
    Jimmy Acorn Stories


    Working and Helping

    The Little Girl Who Would Not Work
    The Legend of the Woodpecker
    Little Squirrel and the Mysterious Knocking
    The New Red Dress
    The Sheep and the Pig
    The Silent Maiden
    The Farmer Prince
    The Shining Loaf
    The Dragonfly's Tale
    The Fisherman and the Quiltmaker
    Do What You Can


    Journeys and Wonders

    The Story of the Mountain Pears
    The Sun's Sisters
    The Golden Pine Cones
    Peter, Paul, and Espen
    The Magic Lake at the End of the World
    The Dragon's Gate
    Hans and the Wonderful Flower
    Hidden Waters
    The Sword of a True Knight
    Wild Goose Lake
    Scarface


    Healing Stories for Special Situations

    The Little Seed's Journey
    Two Friends
    Knock, Knock
    Mouse Goes Looking for a House
    For Anastasia and Her Dear Grandmother
    Shuna, Teller of Tales
    The Wise Woman and the Magical Garden
    The Golden Fish
    Little Birds and Big Bugs


    Ending With Laughter

    The Travels of a Fox
    Little Half-Chick
    The Boy Who Tried to Fool His Father
    The Red Sheep
    Gecko's Complaint
    How to Break a Bad Habit


This collection of stories takes a spot on your shelf for sure, probably beside the Tiptoes Lightly series by Reg Down:


And Healing Stories for Challenging Behavior, Garden of Light: A Collection of Therapeutic Children's Stories, and The Knocking-Door-Tree Forest and Other Bangalow Tales: A Collection of Stories for Children, all by Susan Perrow, and Gifts from the Sea: A Collection of Stories for Children from Byron Bay, Australia, by Susan Perrow et. al. (These last three titles I got at one of Rahima's Waldorf conferences years ago and they are just lovely.)

My last recommendation in this category -- and it is one of the BEST books for Early Childhood if you can only afford one or two but you want to be Waldorf-inspired in your home and your parenting with toddlers -- is The Breathing Circle: Learning through the Movement of the Natural Breath by Nell Smyth. This is also THE book if you are trying to start a parenting or Waldorf homeschooling group for preschool and doing circle time, play time, snack, and stories. It walks you through all the HOW and WHY and is so inspirational. You just feel so all over warm and peaceful after you read it!!

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