Wednesday, December 7, 2022

Finding friends…

 This is the third book by Jan Brett that I have featured on the blog.

As we left the book on the last blog post, the Gingerbread Baby was snug inside the gingerbread house that Mattie had fashioned for him.  However, Mattie wasn’t one to stay in his room all the time to be company to the Gingerbread Baby.  



Mattie liked to spend time with his friends, and the Gingerbread Baby became lonely.  

So…he slipped out of the house while Mattie was busy working on something.  He was serious about searching for friends.
He came upon some swans, but they weren’t moving at all.
After encountering other creatures that weren’t especially friendly, he decided he needed to head home.  There were townspeople chasing after him, but he managed to arrive safely.

Well, these pictures transferred out of order.  Mattie had been busy with a recipe, baking friends for the Gingerbread Baby!  Jan Brett designed clever, fold out pages in the back of the book that show the new playmates!  Whee!  They were ready for fun!

Once again, Jan Brett’s illustrations extend to the margins of the pages, these give ingredients for Mattie’s gingerbread creations!  You may be able to see some of that in an above picture.  

Perhaps it’s time for me to bake some gingerbread people!  Magic happens when flour, sugar, eggs, spices, and butter are combined!  

Children’s books have a special spot in my heart, and Jan Brett is one of my favorite authors!  



8 comments:

  1. Nellie, I also love children's books for the beautiful illustrations. One day, I

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    1. ooops, didn't all go through! one day, I'll share the tale of my Gingerbread Disaster {not my fault!}

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  2. Oh I LOVE Jan Brett's works. I used to give them as gifts to the little people in my life, always longing for a set for my own shelves. And then one wintery day many years ago, not too long after we were married, Rick came home with a copy of a book he'd purchased from a school fundraising event-- it was Jan Brett's Christmas Treasury. Alas, it doesn't have the Gingerbread story, but it includes my two favourites: The Mitten and The Hat. Her artwork is captivating and so beautiful. Thanks, Nellie, for sharing your love of these wonderful stories.

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  3. Baking gingerbread men sounds like a great idea. :)

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  4. Darling photos of the Gingerbread Friends. The first thing I baked for my future husband when we were dating was a Gingerbread Boy. When I took him out of the oven his leg was broken. Instead of throwing him out I told my future husband that he broke his leg running away as fast as he could. Thank you for bringing this memory to mind. xo

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  5. Well, Sister, I'm afraid that my husband wasn't a fan of gingerbread, and my daughter dislikes the taste of ginger, so I just haven't ever made any gingerbread people. These books are adorable, and your gingerbread is delicious! Love you!

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  6. Oh Nellie, it sounds adorable. Makes me think of biting into a gingerbread cookie for breakfast!

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  7. Hi Nellie - I love Jan Brett books. As a retired librarian my family always were gifted these books for the holidays. I remember one year everyone got the one about mittens with a pair of mittens. Thanks for sharing Jan Brett with us all !

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