"Wholesome children's titles"

National Review is having a sale of children's books. I took advantage of the offer last week and the books arrived yesterday - three great sets [two books each] that they describe as "wholesome children's titles." They are wholesome, and good, and fun, and I anticipate much pleasure from them.

1. Treasury of Classic Children's Literature [Volumes One and Two]. A selection of stories most of which were originally printed in St. Nicholas Magazine, a popular magazine for young people that published from the last decades of the 19th century until the mid-20th. The stories in these volumes were selected by William F. Buckley, Jr. and include authors like Mark Twain, Rudyard Kipling ["Rikki-tikki-tavi"], Jack London, Louisa May Alcott, and many others.
2. Treasury of Classic Bedtime Stories [Volumes One and Two]. These volumes collect all twenty of Thornton Burgess's "Bedtime Story Books." My father owned some of these books and I have pleasant memories of his reading them aloud. The stories follow the adventures of such as Reddy Fox, Peter Cottontail, Jerry Muskrat, and Old Man Coyote. The characters and their adventures are perfect for younger children. Burgess intended not only to create good children's stories but also to encourage an appreciation for nature.
3. A boxed set of two Howard Pyle books: The Wonder Clock and Pepper and Salt. Howard Pyle was a painter and illustrator of considerable reputation - the founder of the Brandywine School which also included N.C. Wyeth and other noted artists. These two are among a number of books for children or young people [e.g. The Book of Pirates, Story of King Arthur and His Knights] that Pyle both wrote and illustrated.

Store on National Review Online