Storybooks for St. Patrick's Day

We are heavily in the midst of Spring Cleaning here, but I wanted to pop in and share with you the two books we have been enjoying in anticipation of St. Patrick's Day. I love storybooks that feature leprechauns as I have never gotten over my childhood love of Little People and fairy folk. I also like books that give a true picture of life in other cultures/countries, so I treasure St. Patty's books set in Ireland. (We save the stories about Saint Patrick, the man, for oral storytelling, by the way).

The first book is St. Patrick's day in the Morning , by Eve Bunting , illustrated by Jan Brett (she's a huge favorite!)

 It is the story of Jamie, a little boy in a family full of big people (Toucie can relate to this guy!) who is told each year that he is too small to march in the St.Patrick's Day Parade.

Of course he finds a way to show that he can participate...he's a bit of a rascal (Toucie once again totally relates), but it is a sweet story. 

 ...and it takes place in Ireland, with beautiful glimpses of Irish countryside and village life in the illustrations.

The other book we've been spending time with is The Leprechaun's Gold. This one's by Pamela Duncan Edwards.

This is one of few leprechaun tales I've found that doesn't involve someone trying to capture a leprechaun and defraud him of his gold. 

(sorry about the not-so-good pictures) In this tale a good man is rewarded by the leprechauns. This man is Old Pat, a harpist...and that is one of the things that makes this story special to us. Sodie is a harpist and her huge, golden harp in the middle of our house (and of course the music that daily comes from it) is a big presence in our lives, so once again, Toucie can relate to this.

It is a wonderful story and I highly recommend it!

We have other fun preparations going on for our upcoming celebration of Saint Patrick's Day...I will share more later this week :)