Showing posts with label Father William. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Father William. Show all posts

Monday, January 30, 2012

Friends and Brothers by Dick King-Smith

A simple book about two brothers. William is finding it difficult to get along with his younger brother, Charlie. he thinks he is a show-off, asks far too many questions and is always saying the word "absolutely." It is a little bit dated but anyone who finds younger siblings pesky might relate to this little book. Some of it would be considered politically incorrect these days. Their mum threatens to hit William if he hits Charlie again. There are seven chapters in the book and each chapter is basically a separate story. The chapter called Snapdragon is quite a nice story about Charlie's pet beetle which he has named Snapdragon. One day William is looking in the matchbox where Charlie keeps him and accidentally lets him go...

Saturday, January 21, 2012

Father William by Lewis Carroll

This nonsense poem by Lewis Carroll has been faithfully reproduced and illustrated by John Anthony King. It is a puzzling piece and it would be interesting to know what students may make of it. Father William appears eccentric but full of energy and his idiot questioner probably should be "kicked down the stairs." The young man is worried about becoming old, whereas the old man is content with his age. This poem appears in his book Alice's Adventures in Wonderland which was published in 1865 and is recited by Alice in chapter 5.Evidently, it is a parody of Robert Southly's didactic poem The Old Man's Comforts and How He Gained Them