LITTLE BOOKS, BIG KIDS

there are few things i love more than beautiful children's books. there's something about the simplicity that a children's book forces. no matter how profound the idea, or how big the lesson, authors and illustrators have to get to the core of it in order to convey it in a way kids will understand. the result, i think, is that they often convey big lessons in a beautiful, timeless, minimalist, special way. combine that with the fact that they *havetohave* illustration and it's always a recipe for inspiration.

maria popova (who i've mentioned before as an amazing resource for all things smart and pretty) compiled a while back some of her favorite lessons from classic children's books. i love the quotes she picked so much i thought i'd share them with you and add some of my favorite related illustrations.

THE LITTLE PRINCE:

“here is my secret. it is very simple: it is only with the heart that one can see rightly; what is essential is invisible to the eye.” (illustration by so ri yoon)

WINNIE THE POOH:

“you can’t stay in your corner of the forest, waiting for others to come to you; you have to go to them sometimes.” (illustration is an original ink and watercolor drawing by pooh author ernest h. shepard)

THROUGH THE LOOKING GLASS:

“now, here, you see, it takes all the running you can do, to keep in the same place. if you want to get somewhere else, you must run at least twice as fast as that!” (illustration by brigitte bryan)

LITTLE WOMEN:

“someday you’ll find a man, a good man, and you’ll love him, and marry him, and live and die for him. and i’ll be hanged if i stand by and watch.” (book cover by anna bond)

THE WIZARD OF OZ:

“you have plenty of courage, i am sure,” answered oz. “all you need is confidence in yourself. there is no living thing that is not afraid when it faces danger. the true courage is in facing danger when you are afraid, and that kind of courage you have in plenty.” (illustration by lisbeth zwerger)

via brain pickings

ADVICE TO LITTLE GIRLS, FROM A YOUNG MARK TWAIN

i’m always discovering beautiful and thought provoking things over on brain pickings. author maria popova says this is one of her favorite posts and it’s one of mine too.

in 2011, maria came upon an italian edition of a little known story by a very young mark twain. written in 1865, and featuring artwork by russian-born illustrator vladimir radunsky, the book playfully, and beautifully, encourages girls to think independently. last year maria brought the book to america. (you can get your copy here. i just got mine.)

i am in love with these images. and this playful text. and with the concept. and with the fact that it was done in 1865. and that it was written by a thirty year old mark twain!

"Good little girls ought not to make mouths at their teachers for every trifling offense. This retaliation should only be resorted to under peculiarly aggravated circumstances."

"If at any time you find it necessary to correct your brother, do not correct him with mud — never, on any account, throw mud at him, because it will spoil his clothes. It is better to scald him a little, for then you obtain desirable results. You secure his immediate attention to the lessons you are inculcating, and at the same time your hot water will have a tendency to move impurities from his person, and possibly the skin, in spots."

"If your mother tells you to do a thing, it is wrong to reply that you won’t. It is better and more becoming to intimate that you will do as she bids you, and then afterward act quietly in the matter according to the dictates of your best judgment."

via brain pickings