The Books We Loved

Today Olivia and Manda are joined by Cassie, for a trip to the past, as the ladies discuss Laura Ingalls Wilder's beloved, Little House on the Prairie series.  

SOURCES:

Various PBS articles

The Pioneer Girl Art Project, South Dakota Historical Society Press

The Laura Ingalls Wilder Historic Home & Museum website

A Kids Britannica biography

"The Little House Books: a historical slap upside the head," article from the blog, "A Bestiary of Books: Odds and Interesting Children’s Novels, 1900 – 1975”

Several Minnesota Public Radio articles

https://pioneergirlproject.org/2023/08/30/helen-sewell-the-first-little-house-illustrator/

https://lauraingallswilderhome.com/

"Where the Wilder Things are: the Laura Ingalls Wilder roadtrip

Today the ladies are joined by local picture book connoisseur, Ben, for a chat about summer-themed picture books your family will love! To check out Ben's picture book recommendations, he can be found on Substack or Instagram  . 

Titles discussed include:

Big Mama's, Donald Crews

Blueberries for Sal, Robert McCloskey 

It Began with Lemonade, Gideon Sterer

Summer is for Cousins, Rajani LaRocca

I'm the Biggest Thing in the Ocean, Kevin Sherry

Jabari Jumps (and it's sequel, Jabari Tries), Gaia Cornwall

Walking Trees, Marie-Louise Gay

Fireworks, Matthew Burgess

Flotsam, David Wiesner

Today the gals discuss author, Margaret Wise Brown, creator of the beloved classic, Goodnight Moon, and many other books. 

Recommended reads:

Kids:

The Important Thing About Margaret Wise Brown, Mac Barnett

Adults: 

Margaret Wise Brown: awakened by the moon, Leonard Marcus

In the Great Green Room: the brilliant and bold life of Margaret Wise Brown, Gary

Sources:

The Eric Carle Museum of Picture Book Art

The Traditional and Fine Arts Organization

Online exhibits on several of the illustrators discussed, taken from the University of Minnesota Libraries

MOMA’s website

https://www.esphyrslobodkina.org/

Encyclopedia Britannica online

An article titled: “Margaret Wise Brown’s Celebration of the Seasons,” by Danielle Ridolfi which was featured on Washington University’s library website

2026 article titled, “The Tao of Margaret Wise Brown,” which was featured in the Brooklyn Downtown Star

Today Olivia and Manda share their thoughts on The Correspondent by Virginia Evans; a 2025 release that continues to appear in the New York Times Best Sellers list (Hardcover Fiction). 

Also, in case you couldn't jot it down, Olivia announced this year's Summer Reading list, aka the Brit Lit edition, and titles are as follows:

June: The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe, C.S. Lewis

July: Emma, Jane Austen

August: Matilda, Roald Dahl

A speedy episode where each of the ladies share two titles apiece. Books recommended:

Turning 15 on the Road to Freedom: My Story of the 1965 Selma Voting Rights March, Lynda Blackmon Lowery

How to Read a Book, Monica Wood

A Woman of No Importance: the untold story of the American spy who helped win World War II, Sonia Purnell

This Story Might Save Your Life, Tiffany Crum