Come along to the annual WCBA Quiz Night!

Katherine Mansfield Birthday Tour

Date: Sunday 14th October 2012

Time: Starting at 10.30am

Starting point: Katherine Mansfield’s Birthplace at 25 Tinakori Road, Thorndon.

Cost: The cost of the tour is $20.00, including entry to Katherine Mansfield’s Birthplace

Katherine Mansfield’s 124th Birthday will be celebrated with a tour conducted by Kevin and Margaret Boon.

The tour will begin at 10.30 a.m. outside Katherine Mansfield’s Birthplace, at 25 Tinakori Road, Thorndon. It will conclude at Katherine Mansfield Park, Fitzherbert Terrace, Thorndon, at approximately 12 noon.

The tour will not involve a great deal of walking but the emphasis will be on readings from some of Katherine Mansfield’s stories, including: The Wind Blows, A Birthday, Prelude and The Garden Party at locations that were associated with or inspired them.

After the walk you may wish to enjoy an A la Carte lunch at the Thistle Inn, Mulgrave Street, Thorndon, where Katherine Mansfield was also known to have enjoyed lunch. This is an optional extra and at your own expense.

To book, contact Kevin Boon:

k.boon@clear.net.nz

You're invited to WCBA Club Night ...

Margaret Mahy Nationwide Read - 11 August

Children's literature enthusiasts around the country are participating in this wonderful tribute on 11 August. See:

http://mmnationwide.blogspot.co.nz/

Farewell to Maurice Sendak

Tributes have flowed for Maurice Sendak, the brilliant author and illustrator of so many loved classics. Above is the beautiful window that the Kilbirnie Children's Bookshop's resident Sendak fan, Imogen Wilson, made to honour him.

Other NZ tributes are from children's author Raymond Huber,  Helen Lowe, The University of Auckland, and Auckland Libraries. Maureen Crisp also dedicated her most recent blog post to Sendak.

Panel Discussion: Children, Grief and Literature

The Museum of City and Sea is hosting a fascinating and important free panel discussion, as part of the 'Death and Diversity' programme of events.

The discussion, chaired by John McIntyre of the Children's Bookshop, aims to explore how to guide children through dealing with grief, funerals, and bereavement, with a strong emphasis on the value of literature.

Panelists: Tricia Irving-Hendry (Skylight);  Alex Collins (Editor, Learning Media); Chris Szekely (author of Rahui); Mandy Hager (author of Tom’s Story).

When: 
Sunday April 22 @ 2pm

Where: 
The Museum of City and Sea,
3 Jervois Quay,
Queen's Wharf, Wellington

Free entry.

More information:
http://www.cablecarmuseum.co.nz/assets/PDFs/Media-Releases/2012/DD-events-April.pdf

Discover the world of paper engineering (from 'The Titanic' to 'Spot')

A message from the Friends of the Dorothy Neal White Collection

The Friends of the Dorothy Neal White Collection committee would like to inform WCBA members that our AGM will be held on Wednesday 27 April 2011 at 6pm (drinks and nibbles from 5.30pm.

The meeting will be held in Poutama Ruma (The Training Room), Ground Floor, Archives NZ, 10 Mulgrave Street, Wellington, and will be followed by rabbity readings by committee members.

All welcome!

Visit our website http://www.dnwfriends.nzl.org/

Club Night Classics

Club Night last Tuesday was another lovely, cosy evening, with a relaxed group of us sharing one or more classic books from our own childhoods.

Here are the picks of this group on this particular night - each linking to a different  relevant site where you can buy the book, read a bit of commentary, or see covers from various editions:



Youngest readers

Phoebe and the Hot Water Bottles
The King, the Mice and the Cheese
The Elephant and the Bad Baby
Little Grey Rabbit's Christmas
The Fierce Little Woman and the Wicked Pirate
Dogger
The Great White Man Eating Shark
Amelia Bedelia
Washday at the Pa
A Child's Christmas in Wales
Petunia
Borka

Annie's Rainbow 

Waltzing Matilda

The Bunyip of Berkeley's Creek

The Three Robbers

Older children and teens
The Tim Books
The Swish of the Curtain
Pippi Goes Abroad
A Little Princess
Five on Treasure Island
Stig of the Dump
The Silver Thimble Storybook
The Faraway Tree
White Boots 
I Capture the Castle
The Blue Castle

We have another fun and informative club night coming up soon.

Stand by for more details!

WCBA Club Night 2: It's A Classic!

 

Children's literature enthusiasts and their friends are warmly invited to our next Club night - all details above.

Our last Club Night was a big success. You can read about it here.

Any queries, feel free to email us at the.wcba@gmail.com

Our wonderful visit to the Susan Price Collection

On the wet and windy Sunday just gone, Susan Price welcomed a small, enthusiastic group of WCBA members into her home to see her astonishing collection of over 20,000 20th Century children's books.

Susan has gifted the Collection to the National Library, but continues to house it herself, taking care of it, adding to it, and constantly updating her catalogue.

It was fascinating to hear Susan talk about her passion for history and realistic fiction, and see how her collection reflects this. In particular she has strong feelings about books that describe life during the World Wars, making sure those important memories are not forgotten.

After hearing Susan speak, we had free rein to explore the collection, and Susan was ready and willing to discuss any of the books. She was a mine of information about the history of important 20th Century children's publishers, and a highlight was being able to see different editions and translations of the same book, and talk about what these revealed.

Another charming and illuminating feature of her collection is the way she has gathered postcards, images, articles, and other ephemera, and tucked them in to the covers of books they are relevant to.

Each of us who went probably hoped to get something different from the visit ... an up-close look at a heritage collection of national importance; ideas for books to hunt out for our own children; a look at old favourites from our childhood; or the discovery of forgotten books that are as good or better than the enduring classics we know about ...

I think we all left having had these wishes fulfilled, and more.

Some people who had hoped to come were unable to, and others who went would like to go again, so we hope that we might organise another visit to the Susan Price Collection at some stage in the future!