This post is dedicated to a very special Newborn Baby...Mama Squirrel's FarAway Sis had a boy on Christmas Day! Yes, I mean yesterday! A brother for the Cutest Nephew in the World. Mama Squirrel and Mr. Fixit are delighted to be an aunt and uncle again.
Today's book is
All for the Newborn Baby, by Phyllis Root, illustrated by Nicola Bayley.
The inn was full.
It was cold in the stable,
dark and bare.
But Mary held her baby close,
and when he fussed,
as babies do,
she sang a little cradle song
all for the newborn baby.
And the rest of the book is Mary's lullaby.
Hush now, baby,
In the manger,
Donkey shares
His sweetest Hay,
Oxen breathing
Warm beside you,
Keep the winter
Cold away.
The book's not very long, but it's gorgeously illustrated. Some of the lines come from old "Christmas miracle tales" and carols: there are roses blooming on snow, cherries to be picked, and spiders spinning silken blankets. Nicola Bayley's borders are filled with butterflies, moths, and flowers, which are all given their Latin names on the endpapers. One Amazon reviewer pointed out that the lack of action in this book wouldn't really keep her six-year-old entertained, and she's probably right; but as she also said, it's worth carving out a space to share it at least once during the Christmas season.
All the world
So bright and new
Waits for you, my newborn baby.
Hush and sleep
The whole night through.
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