Tomie De Paola - 26 Fairmount Avenue: Books 1-4

Through the years, Tomie dePaola has written many picture books for children, but he is most well-known for the autobiographical ones.....Nana Upstairs & Nana Downstairs; Tom; The Baby Sister; and The Art Lesson just to name a few. For a long time, his readers would write to him and ask when he was going to write a chapter book. This wasn't something he was too keen on doing. It seemed like a rather intimidating task. Once more thought was put into it, though, the idea was more approachable and work began. The end result was 26 Fairmount Avenue.....Tomie dePaola's first (and successful) chapter book. If you have read any of the books mentioned above, you will recognize many of the "characters" in this one. 26 Fairmount Avenue is also an autobiographical work.

In 1938, four year old Tomie's new (and first) house was just starting to be built. This book takes the reader through important things that happened in little Tomie's life from the time that house was in its infancy to when the family was finally able to move in just after New Year's 1940......real life adventures.

The book opens with the hurricane of 1938 that hit Meriden, Connecticut. Tomie tells of what his family and the neighbors did to wait out the storm in their apartment building. Luckily, their new house was barely started at that time, so it wasn't damaged. Although the book's central theme is the home being built on 26 Fairmount Avenue, and Tomie's excitement (not to mention his parents' many headaches) over it, there are several other points in his life that he shares from that period of time......

Laugh as you read about the day that Tomie spent with his great-grandmother (Nana Upstairs). When Nana Downstairs forgot to leave candy for them in the usual spot, Tomie decided to find some on his own. He seemed to be successful when he located "chocolates" in the medicine cabinet. Except they turned out to be laxatives, so Nana Upstairs and Tomie ended up having kind of a bad day.

Share in his anger when, in the spring of 1938, Walt Disney releases the first full-length animated movie, Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs. Tomie's mother had read the true story of Snow White to him and his brother many times, and he loved it. He was so excited about seeing the movie, but felt angry and disappointed that apparently Mr. Disney didn't read the book well enough.....there were a lot of differences between the book and the movie. He was so mad, he stood up and yelled at the screen!

We get to go to school with Tomie on his very first day. He couldn't wait to learn how to read! When he introduced himself to his teacher, though, and she informed him that they didn't teach children how to read until the next year, he told her "Fine, I'll be back next year". He then turned around, left the school and marched back home! (His mother had a little talk with him that afternoon.)

Soon it is Christmas, then New Year's, and what does that mean? It's SO close to being time to move in! On the day that the family finally gets to move, Tomie and his brother have to stay in town so they aren't in the way. The finished and furnished house will be a big surprise for them. Later that night, the phone call comes that it is time for them to come home. When they get there, Tomie rings the doorbell. His mother and father open the door to greet them. Tomie runs into the house, straight up the stairs to his brand new room.....with new dressers and new beds......and.....

Welcome to 26 Fairmount Avenue!

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Tomie dePaola not only writes his books, he illustrates them as well. In this particular book, the drawings are black and white (except for the cover). Before the first of nine chapters, is a kind of introduction to the family and friends found in the following pages. Tomie has drawn pictures of each of them, so that the reader will recognize them throughout the story.

If your children are big Barney fans, they will probably already be familiar with the illustration of young Tomie and with Tomie dePaola himself. He was once on an episode with the big purple dinosaur and friends drawing the character of himself on an easel. That episode is where I first learned of this wonderful author.

Prior to this, Tomie dePaola aimed his books at younger audiences, but this one is more for the ages of 7-12. With 26 Fairmount Avenue dePaola has successfully crossed the line from picture to chapter book, thus extending his followers of young readers (or pre-readers). And since this book was a Newberry Honor Book, I must not be the only one to think so.

If you didn't think that autobiographies could make good children's books, you need to check this one out. If you like it, be sure to look for the two subsequent titles Here We All Are and On My Way.

Purchasing Information

Barnes & Noble

Hardcover May 1999--$11.19
Paperback March 2000--$5.39

Amazon.com

Hardcover May 1999--$11.19
Used--$4.39
Paperback March 2000--$6.29