For the last couple weeks we've been having tea at night with our four children while we read books and just sit together at the end of a day. The first book we've completed during this new tradition is A Nest For Celeste: A Story About Art, Inspiration, and the Meaning of Home by author and illustrator Henry Cole.
The story opens inside a Plantation House in Louisiana, and inside the wall- just under the sideboard in the dining room- lives Celeste, a mouse who enjoys making baskets, and is busy making her newest creation when the two rats that live alongside her come along to bully her into finding them dinner for the evening. From here, the plot moves along rapidly, and characters are quickly introduced- one being John James Audubon, who is staying at the plantation with his young assistant Joseph Mason. Much of the human story is true- the plantation and the family who lived there, the presence of Audubon and Joseph; an accident involving Joseph- but all of it is told through the eyes of Celeste, who is simply trying to find home.
The book is illustrated with fine pencil drawings by the author, and is organized into 37 chapters.
Basically, you should give it a look if you've got kids in the 4- 12 age range at home- or, if you just like good books.
Oh, and aside from Celeste, our favorite character of the book is an Osprey who Celeste befriends. Reminding us faintly of Foghorn Leghorn, he provided comic relief in touchier moments of the book.
No comments:
Post a Comment