Happy St. Patrick’s Day! If you’re Irish, well, today is your day. If you aren’t, feel free to celebrate anyway, because in the immortal words of Mallory, “People need a special day to pretend that they’re Irish.”
Irish or not, we can all use this day to ask for the intercession of the mighty St. Patrick. The newsletter includes a marvelous audio drama about the saint, as well as books of other Irish saints and legends, and some Irish-themed food ideas the whole family will enjoy. And don’t forget, St. Patrick’s Day isn’t the only feast being celebrated this week. Many Catholics around the world will pause their Lenten observances to honor the foster father of Jesus, St. Joseph, and some may even host a St. Joseph’s Table party.
For some fascinating history into the St. Joseph’s Table tradition, Sarah’s thoughts on The Little Mermaid, and a post about Goodnight Moon (1947) that will blow your mind, read on.
Luck o’ the Irish
First, St. Patrick’s Day can’t be celebrated properly without good food. This Irish Soda Bread is wonderfully easy to stir together, and perfect for little hands to help with. (Don’t forget some Kerrygold butter for spreading!)
Once your bread is in the oven, settle down and dive into one or both of Tomie dePaola’s picture books about the Apostle of Ireland.
After you’ve taken your bread out of the oven and let it cool a bit (otherwise, it will crumble badly when you cut it), you can turn to another dePaola classic, Jamie O’Rourke and the Big Potato (1992), or maybe his rollicking rendition of Fin M’Coul (1981). Sarah also enjoys Margaret Hodges’s Saint Patrick and the Peddler (1993). She also didn’t know that Eve Bunting and Jan Brett had teamed up to write a book for the holiday, Saint Patrick’s Day in the Morning (1983), and she’s hoping to find it at her local library soon.
If you still have bread and breath left, finish out your day by learning about the Emerald Isle’s other saintly notables with Alice Curtayne’s Twenty Tales of Irish Saints (1955).
Now that you’ve read yourself hoarse, take a breather and listen to the excellent audio drama about St. Patrick, put out by the Augustine Institute. (A word of caution: This audio drama is fairly intense, so be careful with younger listeners. Also, if you or your parish has a Formed account, this audio drama, along with the CCC film about the good saint, are both available there.)
Blessed feast to you all!
A misunderstood mermaid
Duncan Fyfe is out with a piece in the Financial Times (an interesting place for a children’s literature review) looking at the hotly debated tale, The Little Mermaid (1837). Hans Christian Andersen’s beloved story does not, as many may know, end with a marriage for the mermaid. Over the years, other authors and entertainment behemoths have taken Andersen’s tale and run with it, changing, massaging, and tweaking their way throughout. Much as she loves Andersen’s original stories, Sarah was never enamored with The Little Mermaid, and usually found the ending to be a bit manipulative (finger-pointing at children not to be bad, otherwise they’d prolong the suffering of the spirits—of which the mermaid is now one). She even found a note in her Puffin edition of the story, most likely from her college Children’s Literature class, where the professor (Sarah thinks) said the story should’ve ended: Right after the little mermaid throws away the knife and jumps into the sea. No need for all that nonsense about spirits and stuffy children.
Regardless, something about Fyfe’s essay bothered her. Perhaps it was his conclusion, or his seeming dig at Disney for its view of traditional marriage in the movie. (Side note: If this is his biggest criticism of the movie, perhaps he should watch it again. Sure, there’s a happy ending, but it’s not a story about following your heart. Hidden behind that delightful music is the story of a thoughtless, spoiled girl getting everything she wants, a weak father who caves to her every whim, and a fairly lame prince.) Perhaps what so many people miss about this story, in their pursuit of a “happy ending”: The little mermaid doesn’t actually pursue her own way, as Fyfe claims. She gives it up, sacrificing herself for the sake of the beloved.
The original fairy tale is well worth your time, and Sarah recommends you dust off your old Andersen book after reading this essay and give the whole story a good pondering.
Fairy tales must be in the air here, because thanks to some inspiration from a recent podcast, Sarah’s reading back over her various fairy tale books, starting with Grimm’s. These are fascinating—and sometimes terrifying—stories, and they deserve close and careful reading. Ask yourself about the descriptions of characters. Consider the implications of weak father figures. Look at the various colors described and reflect on their potential symbolism.
To help with all of this, check out Hillsdale College’s Classic Children’s Literature course, taught by Larry P. Arnn, Dr. Dan Coupland, and Dr. David Whalen.
Prepare to be surprised and delighted.
“Goodnight Nobody”
That phrase has apparently worried many a child ever since Margaret Wise Brown’s wildly popular Goodnight Moon was published. Sarah, being a rather unobservant child, didn’t think much of it, but Jon Klassen and Mac Barnett definitely have. Their fascinating conversation over the words, art, history, and layout of this enduring children’s classic is worthy of your time.
A powerful intercessor
Wednesday, March 19th, is the feast of St. Joseph, husband of the Blessed Mother and foster-father of Jesus. If you’re Italian, you may have heard of or participated in the tradition of the St. Joseph’s Table. This delicious custom originated on the island of Sicily, and was brought to America by immigrants. Catholic Culture has a helpful writeup on the feast’s history, here is a guide to the symbolism behind each item on a traditional table, and here is even more table information.
Recently, Word on Fire’s Votive imprint put out a book about the origins of this tradition, filling a serious gap in the saint book market! Find it here.
What the kids are reading
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