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June
2001
Children’s
Books as Greeting Cards --
June
Graduations
by
Susan Heyboer O’Keefe
June
graduations celebrate beginnings, whether a child is going onto first
grade, high school, college, or a new job. The transitions affect
us grown-ups as well, of course, whether we have an “empty nest” for
just a few hours a day or long enough to consider converting the
child’s bedroom into an aviary.
Books
are a wonderful way to celebrate moments of transition (and, let’s
face it, every other occasion and non-occasion in life). In recent
years children’s books have increasingly been used as greeting cards
for adult recipients. So here are few titles appropriate for June
graduations and June beginnings for all ages --
Yay,
You! Moving Out, Moving Up, Moving On by Sandra Boynton.
“Yay, You! / You did it! / You’re done! / You made it! / You’re
through! / O, what a moment! / Now what will you do?” This
cheerful book poses the many questions that go through one’s mind
right now. Both readers and Boynton’s endearingly quizzical
animals are reassured, however, that no matter which path is taken, all
will be well because they’re already terrific just the way they are.
Oh, the Places You’ll Go! by Dr. Seuss. For older folks,
this classic is much more than an exercises in nostalgia with its
strange yet familiar creatures and typical Seussian rhymes. It
covers the same material as the Boynton book but goes much further in
its consideration of what life has in store for us. Yes, all will
be well, but the Seuss book admits that all will be well in
the end -- and until you get there, you’re likely to have false
starts, temporary failures, and periods of boredom, waiting, and
loneliness. Unlike some of the other new-beginning books, this one
has much to say years after the event and should be brought out from
time to time and re-read as a reminder that ups and downs are a normal
part of life. A spirited ending keeps the final note optimistic.
Groovy Grad -- anonymous. If you really want just an
oversized card, try this. With an actual card and envelope inside,
this slim book has text derived from American Greetings, squiggly
figures, and eye-popping neon colors.
Love You Forever by Robert Munsch, illustrated by xxxxx.
This may not be an obvious choice for graduation and new beginnings, but
it’s a splendidly sentimental selection to give a child who’s moving
out. When the book was first published, I looked at its opening
pages and thought, yeah, yeah, another unconditional love book, and slid
it back onto the shelf. It wasn’t until a few months ago that I
actually read the whole book and was quite moved by the unusual ending
when the tables are turned and the now middle-aged child is rocking his
old mother and saying, Love you forever. Moved? All right, I
was weeping in the aisles. There are only so many times I can tell
my college-bound son to remember to eat his vegetables, go to church,
and don’t do drugs, so I may end giving him this as well.
Children's
Book-of-the-Month Club author Susan Heyboer O'Keefe has two new books
this spring: Love
Me. Love You and a board-book edition of One
Hungry Monster. Her other titles include Angel
Prayers, Sleepy
Angel’s First Bedtime Story, and
Good Night, God Bless. For fun, book info, and great parrot
photos, visit www.susanheyboerokeefe.homestead.com
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