Favorite Things

When I was a child, this was one of my favorite books. As an adult, my mother managed to score a copy at a yard sale after I mentioned to her how much I had loved that book and how much I would love to read it to my own kids.

In The Tales of Mr. Pengachoosa by Caroline Rush, a girl's pet hamster, Hammy, tells her a series of stories involving his grandfather, Mr. Pengachoosa. The stories are witty and imaginative and always manage to tie in with something happening in their real world. My favorites are "The Hunt," "The Wind Birds," and "The Snow House."

I had several hamsters over the course of my childhood. I remember sitting with my various hamsters and silently willing them to speak to me. In the book, Hammy explains that the reason not everyone hears hamsters is because "...you have to be a very still sort of person..." I would sit there thinking, "I'm a very still sort of person! Surely I can hear my hamster talk!"

I now share The Tales with my own children.

So, Dear Readers, do you have a favorite book from childhood that you are sharing with your children?