February 11 – Make a Friend Day

Happy Make a Friend Day!

You Will Be My Friend! written and illustrated by Peter Brown (2011)

Lucy decides that she will make a new friend. But she seems to have trouble with everyone she meets. She splashes all the water out of the frog’s puddle. She eats the bees’ hive. She asks too many questions. When she can’t make a friend she decides to force a friendship, demanding ‘You will be my friend!’. When that doesn’t work either, Lucy gives up. Just then a flamingo swoops down. Squawk. Squawk. Oh! My! Gosh! The flamingo wants to be friends with Lucy. And they do all the fun things Lucy wanted to do with a friend.

 Bear’s New Friend written by Karma Wilson and illustrated by Jane Chapman (2006)

Bear hears a rustle in the tree. Who could it be? Is it Mouse? No, Mouse is right there. Who could it be? Perhaps it is hare. No, Hare hops along to see who it is. It moved past them very fast. They couldn’t see who it was. Was it Badger? No, Badger and Gopher and Mole are looking into a deep hole. Who could it be? Raven and Wren flap down to see what’s going on too. No one knows who is hiding in the hole. Then a small voice calls out. ‘Hoo…hoo…hoo!’ It’s a shy baby owl. Now they all know each other and scamper off to play with their new friend, Owl.

The Friend written by Sarah Stewart and illustrated by David Small (2004)

Annabelle Bernadette Clementine Dodd was a very odd child. Her parents were often away and her best friend was Beatrice Smith, her housekeeper, nanny, and friend. On Mondays they did the wash and while it hung outside to dry, Bella and Bea went down to the sea. On Tuesdays they did the ironing and then went down to the sea. On Wednesdays they cleaned all the rooms and then went down to the sea. On Thursdays they shop and garden and then went down to the sea. On Fridays they baked and then went down to the sea. On Saturday they scrubbed the floors and windows and on Sundays they went to church and rested in the garden. But when no one was looking, Belle snuck down to the sea to play all by herself. A big wave took her ball away and then Belle away. It’s a good thing Bea saw that she was missing and ran down to the sea just in time to scoop her out of the water. Belle apologized for going alone and offered Bea a cup of tea.

*****

I like to use any opportunity to share classics as well as newer selections. This one won the Caldecott Medal in 1965 and is still popular today.

May I Bring a Friend written by Beatrice Schenk de Regniers and illustrated by Beni Montresor (1964)

Rhyming text about a little boy who is invited to tea at the palace on Sunday. He asks if he can bring a friend. The king and the queen graciously agree, and the boy brings a giraffe. On Monday, the boy is invited again and again he asks if he can bring a friend. He may and he does, he brings a hippo. On Tuesday the boy brings monkeys. On Wednesday he brings  an elephant. On Thursday the boy brings lions. And on Friday he brings a seal. Finally on Saturday, the boy takes the king and the queen to the zoo to visit his friends.