Madeline by Ludwig Bemelmans

Madeline (Picture Puffin S.) (Madeline)

by Ludwig Bemelmans

"In an old house in Paris that was covered in vines, lived twelve little girls in two straight lines." Our first introduction to the twelve little girls and Miss Clavel. Something is not right with Madeline. She wakes up with a terrible pain one night - it's her appendix! She has to go to hospital to have it taken out. Her friends are sad and miss her very much. But when they visit and find her surrounded by all her presents - and, best of all, see her new scar - they all decide they want their appendixes out too!

Reviewed by cherryblossommj on

5 of 5 stars

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Madeline has been a character in my head from my youth and then years of baby sitting that I expected to come back to, but I didn't really remember the story. We read it last night as part of a Sonlight P3/4 suggestion, but I'm delighted to see that it will also be on our Memoria Press Junior Kindergarten list.

The edition that we read was a part of [b:The 20th-Century Children's Book Treasury: Picture Books and Stories to Read Aloud|238068|The 20th Century Children's Book Treasury Celebrated Picture Books and Stories to Read Aloud|Janet Schulman|https://d.gr-assets.com/books/1411333628s/238068.jpg|230604]. I really enjoyed the story, but this is another example of one that really does not work in the condensed version. I think it would work for an older child, but for us it puts too much information on one page. I mean come on almost 12 individual pages on a two-page spread for the treasury? Sensory overkill, and ambiance loser.

I think now that I will have to get us our own individual copy of the book, but I need to decide whether paperback is fine, or if this is one that we need to splurge on as a hardcover. Opinions??

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  • Started reading
  • 3 August, 2012: Finished reading
  • 3 August, 2012: Reviewed
  • Started reading
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  • 3 August, 2012: Reviewed