The Little Bookroom: Eleanor Farjeon's Short Stories for Children Chosen by Herself (New York Review Children's Collection)

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Summary: The Little Bookroom
Review: I was given this book in 1955 and still have my well-read copy. I loved the stories and read and re-read them when I was around eight years old. I especially loved Westwood and the descriptions of the wonderful ball gowns that were made - each one more marvellous that the last. I also loved the story of San FairyAnn. I am going to get a copy for my granddaughter who loves to read and I hope she will be as enthralled with the stories as I was at her age. The stories are magical and transport the reader to a different world and I still remember them to this day.

Rating:
Summary: The Little Bookroom
Review: It's a crying shame that this enchanting book is out of print. Perhaps tastes have deteriorated so much that the delicate, the lovely, the merely marvelous are no longer fashionable. Perhaps Eleanor Farjeon's sensibility, nurtured in the late Victorian period, and flowering in the 1920's and 1930's, is simply not able to connect with modern readers. But I don't believe it. I believe that the right child can still be entranced by her writing, and touched, even moved by her stories. Of particular note: "The King's Daughter Cries for the Moon," "Westwoods," "The Barrel-Organ," "Leaving Paradise," "And I Dance Mine Own Child," and the exquisitely poignant "The Glass Peacock." It seems unlikely that publishers comb these reviews for hints at what the public might buy, and less likely that one would see the value in this quiet masterpiece, but should one stumble across it I hope they pay attention and bring this book back to a new generation.

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Summary: "The Little Bookroom" should be in print - permanently.
Review: It's a crying shame that this enchanting book is out of print. Perhaps tastes have deteriorated so much that the delicate, the lovely, the merely marvelous are no longer fashionable. Perhaps Eleanor Farjeon's sensibility, nurtured in the late Victorian period, and flowering in the 1920's and 1930's, is simply not able to connect with modern readers. But I don't believe it. I believe that the right child can still be entranced by her writing, and touched, even moved by her stories. Of particular note: "The King's Daughter Cries for the Moon," "Westwoods," "The Barrel-Organ," "Leaving Paradise," "And I Dance Mine Own Child," and the exquisitely poignant "The Glass Peacock." It seems unlikely that publishers comb these reviews for hints at what the public might buy, and less likely that one would see the value in this quiet masterpiece, but should one stumble across it I hope they pay attention and bring this book back to a new generation.

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Summary: I want my own little bookroom
Review: When I first read some stories from 'little bookroom', I was 9 or 10 years old, I didn't like them very much. They were very different from the stories which I liked those days such as 'little mermaid'. 'snow white' and others about beautiful princesses, hansome princes, faries, and so on in a far-away strange lands. The stories of 'little bookroom' said about a princess who left palace with a ragged servant, a king who married a maid, a goldfish who regarded a globe the whole world, a small school-boy who believed his father's white lies, and a farmer who went to poverty by spending all his money for other people etc. I thought then they were weird for fairy tale characters, so concluded the stories were unattractive. However when I grew older, I found myself thinkng repeatedly those stories and finding more and more beauties that I had not understood. I read them again and got to love them deeply. There were'nt much dazzling luxuries or heart-thrilling adventures in the stories, but all of them were warm, friendly...and so on. The weird ones I hadn't like very much looked as if some old friends whom I had thrown over the fence of 'westwood' due to my ignorance of their true beauties. Reading them, I thought I could feel what Eleanor Farjeon had felr in her little bookroom, and now I want my own little bookroom.

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Summary: I want my own little bookroom !
Review: When I was 12 or so, I read some stories of this book which was translated in Korean. At first, I didn't like the stories very much, because they were very different form those day's my favorites such as 'little mermaid'or 'other fairy tales about princess and prince of farland.' In Eleanor's stories, even the kings, princes, and princesses did something such as dusting, cooking, going market etc. But after that, I found myself thinking repeatedly about 'the king and the corn', 'westwoods', 'the seventh princess', 'the kind farmer', and 'the author's note(in Korean book, it itself was titled "the little bookroom). So I read them again, really loved them, wanted to read them in English, and got this book form amazon.com. Every story was fascinating ! The children, fairies, kings, princesses who were cooking, dusting, and going market, were like my friend who I had thrown over the fense of 'westwoods'. I was really happy to meet and love them again, and I am happy now writing this and imagining someone who read this, read 'westwoods', or 'the kind farmer' , and love them. When I was reading the book, I felt I myself was in the 'little bookroom' and now I want my own little bookroom.