Module 2: Eloise

Module 2: (August 30-September 5)

Thompson, K. (1955). Eloise. New York, NY: Simon & Schuster.

Summary: Eloise is a six-year-old girl that lives in The Plaza Hotel in New York City, who spends her days talking to the hotel staff and guests, riding up and down in the elevators, and generally using her imagination to entertain herself in often unconventional ways.

My Impressions: The first thing I noticed about this book was that it didn’t have any periods, and I’ve got to admit, it was difficult to read until I got used to it! I had never read any Eloise books before this one, but I can absolutely tell why they are classics. Eloise is both annoying, yet incredibly adorable at the same time. I can’t imagine doing most of the things she does in the book, but I love how seriously she takes her “duties” as she sees them each day.

Reviews: “Eloise is one of the most recognizable characters in children's literature.”—The New York Times. http://www.eloisewebsite.com/books/book_essential_eloise.htm

“Here's the thing: Whether you are just about to fall in love with Eloise or have already baked her a cake you ought to have this book.”—Bowker’s Books in Print. (In Reference to the 50^th anniversary edition of the book). http://libproxy.library.unt.edu:2548/merge_shared/Details/RecordDetails.asp?navPage=1&item_uid=60357684

“My first happy response to Eloise was entirely due to the brilliant, iconic images. That brazen, loose-limbed, delicious little girl monster is Hilary Knight at his best.”—Maurice Sendak. http://www.eloisewebsite.com/books/book_essential_eloise.htm

Library Use: One idea might be to do a series of programs (perhaps during the summer reading club), where they read some classic picture books aloud, and then show a movie version of the book (with permission, of course). One week they could do Eloise, the next Madeline, Curious George, etc. Some kids will only know the book, some only the movie, but this way they get both!

Image retrieved from: http://www.amazon.com/Eloise-Absolutely-Essential-50th-Anniversary/dp/1416908234/ref=sr_1_5?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1290836145&sr=1-5