I was a voracious reader as a child. One of my elementary report cards says something like, “Sallie checks many books out of the library. But does she read them?” Yes, I probably read most of them.
So to say a picture book is perhaps my favorite is a strong statement.
But as I sit here I cannot think of any picture book I loved more than Miss Suzy by Miriam Young. I still have my childhood copy and count it amongst my childhood treasures. And so I was delighted when I looked on Amazon to see that it is currently in print!
Miss Suzy
And I was not surprised when I saw there were 106 ratings on Amazon and every. single. one. of them was five star.
It is that charming of a book.
From Amazon:
Miss Suzy is a little gray squirrel who lives happily in her oak-tree home until she is chased away by some mean red squirrels. Poor Miss Suzy is very sad. But soon she finds a beautiful dollhouse and meets a band of brave toy soldiers.
How Miss Suzy and the soldiers help each other makes a gentle, old-fashioned tale that has captured the imaginations of girls and boys alike for forty years. Arnold Lobel’s enchanting pictures are sure to make the kind squirrel and the gallant soldiers the everlasting friends of all who turn these pages.
As I get older, it is interesting to look at how the books of my childhood shaped me and also why certain ones appealed to me so strongly. As I reread Miss Suzy this morning, knowing myself better now and who I was created to be, I can see why this book was one of my favorites. Why?
Because I see so much of myself in Miss Suzy.
I’m happy to report that Caroline also loved Miss Suzy and even has a stuffed animal squirrel she named Miss Suzy.
If you would like to discover lots of activities to do with Miss Suzy, please check out this post as well: Creative Learning Ideas for Miss Suzy as well as this Squirrel Unit Study Activities.
This is part of my A Month of Cozy Books series!
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[…] Fall is such a wonderful time to teach kindergarten and first grade students. They thoroughly enjoy the various autumn activities, including bringing pieces of nature into the classroom. Preparing an autumn themed unit can be fun and easy by including just a few of these activities and a variety of apple themed books for read alouds. Students of this age also enjoy scarecrow units, pumpkin units, apple units and meeting Miss Suzy, a sweet gray squirrel who enjoys collecting acorns and fireflies for her lamps. […]
Hah! I just bought that book for my grandchildren. It is very sweet.
Wow! I LOVED that book too. I haven’t even thought of it in (ahem) probably 30 years! Thanks for the great memory! I’ll have to get that one for my littlest. 🙂
I bought this book for my youngest daughter about a year ago and I can’t tell you how many times we have read it!
I suspect she will look back someday as this book being one of her very favorites, too.
I had that book too and really liked it!
Sallie, on your recommendation I bought the book on eBay. Got it yesterday (an intentionally chosen PRE-1985 book, so contraband, lol). I can see why it was a fave. What a great book! I love books about tidy creatures. Her sweet, simple house was so lovingly described, and how she cared for it made me want to tidy my own abode. And the toy soldiers were so gallant! Those red squirrels, do you think they were liberals? lol
Miss Suzy has long been my very favorite book! I have my copy (from childhood) on my craft table. I’ve been working on a miniature treehouse & “attic house” for her for years! Great book!!! wonderful story, lovely illustrations.