Margaret Wise Brown's wonderful bedtime children's story has stood the test of time and is as good today as it was almost 40 years ago. The wonderful illustrations by Clement Hurd are colorful and playful to the eye. Combined with Margaret Wise Brown's timeless storytelling, it's easy to see why so many children and parent's have loved Goodnight Moon since it was written in 1947.
My daughter Lilly can recite Goodnight Moon pretty much word for word, and often reads it to me instead of the other way around. I'd have to say that's a pretty good indicator of just how good a children's story is when a child can remember the story by heart.
We're actually on our second copy of Goodnight Moon at our house. Lilly was just over one when she decided she wanted to read Goodnight Moon with the pages all laid out in front of her (at least that's what I imagine she was thinking when she “unbound” the first Goodnight Moon).
As soon as Nana found out that we no longer had a working copy of Goodnight Moon, a new one arrived with Nana very soon after. My Mum loves the book as much as Lilly and I do, and she couldn't imagine the girls not having Goodnight Moon in the house.
Both my wife and I can also recite Goodnight Moon, pretty much word for word. Nana can too, and our youngest, Ella, who is almost 2, knows a good amount of the story as well.
My brother's kids, my nieces Chloe and Berly, also have Goodnight Moon too, and I bet if I called them right now, they could tell me the story off by heart over the phone.
These are the hallmarks of a timeless classic. Goodnight Moon has been passed down for two generations now in my family, and I know I will pass it down to the third. As far as children's stories go, Goodnight Moon is one of the best ever written. As a children's story author, I could only be so lucky if a children's story I write makes it to such a level as Goodnight Moon.
Thank you Margaret Wise Brown and Clement Hurd for giving my children and I such a wonderful part of our childhood.
No comments:
Post a Comment