Owl at Home: 10/11/06

For Sean's third birthday we gave him a bunch of books about owls, including Owl at Home by Arnold Lobel. This book is in Sean's current rotation of favorite books. Although I remember reading it last year when I gave him the book, I don't have any record of having read it, therefore I am counting it towards this year's list of books read.

As with Lobel's Frog and Toad books, Owl at Home consists of five chapters, each one a different short story about Owl and some sort of adventure he's had at (or near) home. The stories are: "The Guest," "The Bumps", "Tear-Water Tea", "Upstairs and Downstairs" and "The Moon." I think Sean's favorite of them is "The Bumps" in which Owl mistakes his feet under his blankets for a bumpy creature waiting to attack him when he falls asleep in bed. My favorite is either "The Guest" in which Owl makes the mistake of leaving the door open during a winter snow storm and "The Moon" in which Owl thinks the moon is following him home and worries that his new friend won't fit inside his home.

While the stories are simplistic and lacking the dynamic humor of the dysfunctional friendship between Frog and Toad, the illustrations still carry the warmth and charm of Lobel at his best. Though Owl is a loner, he's a good natured sort and the illustrations bring life to him. If you read this book, stop to enjoy each of the illustrations.

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