He would say, “Take your time” over and over for as long as it took to get a thing done. But the Sweep had been different with Nan. Most adults were impatient with children, snapping at them to hurry. “It’s okay” she said, giving him another sheet, “Take your time.” This is what the Sweep had always said to her when she was learning something new. His lines were clumsy and his first two tries ended in failure. “Now you try it.” Charlie put his finger to another sheet of paper and traced out an A of his own. She took a bit of chalk and wrote A on a piece of paper. Spells are magic that witches and fairies do.” “Let’s start with the letter A,” Nan said. “Oh yes,” Charlie said, “I know about spells. “Before you can read, I need to teach you to spell” she said. She found some books filled with nautical charts, which she decided would make excellent scrap paper. “Well, they are” Nan said, “But you can still read them.” “I thought these books were dulled” Charlie said. “Just think when we’re done, you can read any of these books” she told him. “Will it hurt very much?” “Of course not.” Then she added, “But it might give you a headache.” Nan and Charlie went to the study, which seemed like the right place for a lesson. “I think it’s time we taught you to read.” Charlie’s eyes went wide. She thought about Toby’s question, what sort of life was she giving Charlie cooped up in this empty house? She pulled herself up. But there was something in Charlie’s face that checked her response. She wanted more than anything in the world to go to sleep. I will be very careful not to rip them.” Nan rolled over and looked at him. “Oh”, Charlie said, and then “I will turn the pages for you. “I’m tired of that book,” Nan said unwrapping her muffler “And my hands are too sore to turn the pages.” “Why would all those animals and people want to hurt him?” He would always ask at the end. Charlie was convinced that The Wee Bannock was a Gollum like him. It was about a sort of cookie man who came to life and ran away to escape being eaten. The Wee Bannock was his favorite, but it also troubled him. And he had been asking Nan to read it over and over for weeks. It was the only proper story book in the house. “Can you read me a story?” He was holding a book of English tales, which included Jack the Giant Killer, Tom Thumb, and The Wee Bannock. For all she knew, he had been waiting in that spot the whole time. Welcome to the Read-Aloud Revival.Ĭharlie was sitting on the edge of Nan’s bed just as she had left him that morning. Today, I want to introduce you to the book and to the man who wrote it. It’s a Charles Dickens like adventure about the everlasting gifts of friendship and wonder. It won in 2019 Sydney Taylor Book Award and it won a place in my all time tippy top favorite books. Sweep: The Story of a Girl and Her Monster is a book written by Jonathan Auxier. He’s large and lovable and Nan, our heroine will raise him almost like her own child. This Gollum will come to know as Charlie. Huddled in the corner is a mysterious creature, a Gollum made from soot and Ash. She wakes to find herself unharmed in an abandoned attic, and she is not alone. This time though, she gets stuck in a chimney fire. The job is thankless, but with her wits and will, Nan has managed to beat the deadly odds time and time again. She spends her days doing dangerous work, sweeping out chimneys. Orphaned and alone, Nan Sparrow has no other choice, but to work for a ruthless chimney sweep named Wilkie Crudd. And it’s been five years since the Sweep disappeared. The special details of the endpaper map and deckled edges.The real-life children of London who were the inspiration for Nan.The long journey and many drafts from the first visit to Prague to the final manuscript.In this episode, you’ll hear more about Sweep: In this episode, I want to introduce you to the book… and to the man who wrote it. It’s a Charles-Dickens-like adventure about the everlasting gifts of friendship and wonder. And it has won a place in my all-time tippy top favorite books. This book, written by Jonathan Auxier, won the 2019 Sydney Taylor Book Award. Sweep: The Story of a Girl and Her Monster He’s large and lovable, and Nan, our heroine, will raise him almost like her own child. Huddled in the corner is a mysterious creature-a golem-made from soot and ash. She wakes to find herself unharmed in an abandoned attic. This time, though, she gets stuck in a chimney fire. She spends her days doing dangerous work–sweeping out chimneys. Orphaned and alone, Nan Sparrow has no other choice but to work for a ruthless chimney sweep named Wilkie Crudd. I t’s Victorian London in the late 1800’s… and it’s been five years since the Sweep disappeared.
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