REVIEWS
An Earth Child's Book of the Year
Mary Sue Moore, Ph.D., child psychologist:
An Earth Child’s Book of the Year is a delicately beautiful evocation of the seasonal round. Marian Louise Camden’s lyrical prose and the detailed pictures by Diane Beem Wright combine to transport young children to a wondrous land. But this special land is in reality an illumination of their very own world. Through the eyes of their new friends, the Earth Children, they are made aware of the significance and beauty of the seasons unfolding as the months pass. Led by the magic of successive moons, children can follow the glories of the year as it makes its circular journey. Each month brings different colours, trees, gems, flowers. At the same time, lives come and go, for there is birth, death and rebirth in the annual round. This is a jewel of a book that will open the eyes of young children to the daily marvels of the world they live in. Finely written and enchantingly illustrated, it is a book for children everywhere to cherish. ---by Claire Hamilton, Celtic author, harpist, and scholar Celtic Myths; The Celtic Book of Seasonal Meditations; Maiden, Mother, Crone; Tales of the Celtic Bards *** Reading--and then re-reading out of sheer delight--Marian Camden's An Earth Child's Book of the Year, and taking time to linger over the delightful and intricate illustrations by Diane Wright, a quote I've long cherished kept springing to mind. I believe Camden's story cycle perfectly reflects this statement by Black Elk, an Ogala Sioux, holy man, poet and philosopher: Now we are as one: earth, sky, all living things, the two-legged, the four-legged, the winged ones, the trees, the grasses. Together with the people, they are all related, one family. -from Black Elk Speaks, as told through John G. Neihardt, 1932
Mary Sue Moore, Ph.D., Child Psychologist,Honorary Senior Psychotherapist on Faculty of the Tavistock Clinic, London. Author of Reflections of Self: How Attachment Relationships Shape A Child's Drawing of a Person
Mary Sue Moore, Ph.D., Child Psychologist,Honorary Senior Psychotherapist on Faculty of the Tavistock Clinic, London. Author of Reflections of Self: How Attachment Relationships Shape A Child's Drawing of a Person
Claire Hamiliton, Celtic author and scholar: |
SilverFox, natural oils artist: |
An Earth Child’s Book of the Year is a delicately beautiful evocation of the seasonal round. Marian Louise Camden’s lyrical prose and the detailed pictures by Diane Beem Wright combine to transport young children to a wondrous land. But this special land is in reality an illumination of their very own world. Through the eyes of their new friends, the Earth Children, they are made aware of the significance and beauty of the seasons unfolding as the months pass. Led by the magic of successive moons, children can follow the glories of the year as it makes its circular journey. Each month brings different colours, trees, gems, flowers. At the same time, lives come and go, for there is birth, death and rebirth in the annual round. This is a jewel of a book that will open the eyes of young children to the daily marvels of the world they live in. Finely written and enchantingly illustrated, it is a book for children everywhere to cherish. Note: Claire Hamilton is the author of Celtic Myths; The Celtic Book of Seasonal Meditations; Maiden, Mother, Crone and Tales of the Celtic Bards. Mama Stacey, pagan blogger:This book full of lovely illustrations and a story to match! The book is a delightful story of children and seasons and the connectedness of all. Children can use their imaginations as they listen to the gentle changing of the moon, looking at detailed pictures that enhance the tale. Great book to give as a gift!
'An Earth Child's Book of the Year' is the perfect addition to any Pagan family's home library. All ages (even adults!) will appreciate the flowing story and scavenger-hunt style illustrations.
The Earth Child website is a kind of home-base for all of the books in the Earth Child series. There is a wealth of free information available that moves beyond the books and into the Earth Folk realm. Personally, I have pinned the site for future use during homeschooling. The book is a simple, paperback piece with about 30 pages. It is the size of your average coloring book. The book was gifted to us by the author, herself. She graciously donated a copy for us to feature in our very first giveaway, so the entire process of pouring over this book has been exciting! The Earth Children live in a tiny cottage in the woods, in the village of the Earth Folk. The central story flows from January's Ice Moon to December's Moon of Content, allowing us to follow the children as they draw, read, dream, play with puppies, and weave flowers together. While they celebrate the changing of the seasons, we also get to see what's happening in the Earth Folk village. Plants are blooming, animals are growing, apples are being plucked from the trees, and herbs are being sold. Coinciding with the Earth Children's daily activities, we hear the story of "a brave young man" living amongst the Earth Folk. This boy is different from the other children as his actions play out the wheel of the year. The golden haired boy searches for his bride, helps to bring in the harvest, and is reborn in the winter. What I Loved About This Book: -The stand out feature of the book is the illustrations. The seek-and-find aspect will have children pouring over this book for hours. There are faces hidden in the trees and gems hidden in flames. We still haven't found everything. It's highly enjoyable. - The pace and structure fits chapter readers and new readers alike. While there is an evolving story surrounding the God-character (the brave boy) that children with longer attention spans will enjoy, this book can be harnessed month-by-month for early readers as well. - I thought that the inclusion of some American secular holidays was a nice touch. While some Pagans include Groundhog's Day into their Imbolc celebrations, not all do. Thanksgiving is also alluded to in November. - Highly descriptive. Each sentence is packed with items of note for the corresponding season and month. - The cycle of death and rebirth is not glossed over. Even in the Pagan community, we still shield children from death, even though it is a vital life cycle and a core part of our beliefs. This book involves the loss of the God and acknowledges the process of mourning. . . Bottom line... we LOVED this book. It is a wealth of information on many levels and works well for all ages. Young children can study the pictures, older children can read the story, and adults can appreciate the work as a whole. This book will be used year round in our home and I encourage you to order one, too! This review provided by: http://inthehouseofmamastacey.blogspot.com |
An Earth Child's Book of The Year by Marian L. Camden is a pure joy to read. It was thoughtfully written and seems as if a lot of research went into it before it was written. I feel it was not only written for children but for adults also. To Ms. Camden I say Bravo. Although I am not a child by any stretch of the imagination this book transported me to my childhood. I loved the illustration by Diane Wright. They remind me of the way books were drawn when I was a child. It is nice to see that in this time of modern gadgetry books such as this can still be written so that children, and adults, can enjoy what we enjoyed not so long ago.
Annie N, teacher and grandma:An Earth Child's Book of The Year by Marian L. Camden is a pure joy to read. It was thoughtfully written and seems as if a lot of research went into it before it was written. I feel it was not only written for children but for adults also. To Ms. Camden I say Bravo. Although I am not a child by any stretch of the imagination this book transported me to my childhood. I loved the illustration by Diane Wright. They remind me of the way books were drawn when I was a child. It is nice to see that in this time of modern gadgetry books such as this can still be written so that children, and adults, can enjoy what we enjoyed not so long ago.
Denise E, attorney, author, artist, nature fan:This charming and delightful book is wonderfully illustrated. In its telling we see the circle of life - life, death and rebirth. While primarily intended for children, there is content that appeals to adults. The illustrations are both classic in style and quite fun because they contain "hidden" elements that are not readily apparent. Likewise, I believe the writing lends itself to multiple layers of meaning. Recommended
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