Author of the Day: Virginia Lee Burton

Virginia Lee Burton wrote and illustrated a deep bench of classics. You know Mike Mulligan and His Steam Shovel, but I didn't realize that she was the author and illustrator of The Little House. Mike Mulligan seems like everyone's go-to book for little boys. I like it for little girls- Mike Mulligan and the steam shovel are heroic but warm and approachable, and great for exposing girls to something beyond the pink-and-princess books that seem to dominate large bookshelves. Even my favorite bookstore can't seem to resist grouping all the cheaply produced "girl" books in a corner, as if girls shouldn't be reading unless it is all about them. The Little House is a book that I forever associate with records, because when I was little we had the read-aloud record album that went with the book. Growing up in an older house in an area that was rapidly transitioning from farmland to subdivisions, The Little House terrified me. I do not recommend this book to children prone to dramatics who happen to live in rapidly-developing areas of the country.

Anyway, what do you give a boy to read that breaks the stereotype that machines are masculine and princesses and kittens are feminine?

Cover image source: Houghton Mifflin's Virginia Lee Burton site

Katy and the Big Snow is the answer to your Christmas, holiday, and general book-purchasing needs! In the tradition of Mike Mulligan and the Steam Shovel, Katy is a non-anthropomorphic bulldozer who harnesses her amazing strength to save the town of Geoppolis from a terrible blizzard.

"Katy liked to work.

The harder and tougher the job

the better she liked it."

When the truck-mounted snow plows try but fail, Katy is taken out of storage and leads the town out of imminent peril. This is Virginia Lee Burton at her absolute best, and I can only guess that she didn't receive a Caldecott when Katy was published in 1943 because Little House had just won it the year before. Tiny, detailed drawings dominate the page and reward the careful reader who takes the time to examine each one. Residents of a burning house toss tiny furniture from their windows. Skiiers tumble down hills. An almost taxonomic study of portable generators, steam shovels, dumptrucks, and all their kin ring the border of a page. Illustrations that are afterthoughts in this book would be the highlight of any other. Look carefully on the numbered map for such gems as "The Piggery," and don't worry--a quick Google search will calm anyone who's worried that it's a euphemism for pig slaughterhouse.

The best of all is a two-page spread with a small drawing of Katy in the upper corner and otherwise bare pages: this is Katy plowing through untouched, blanketing snow. It's a brave illustration and bold even now.

The entire book evokes feelings of both heroism, bravery, and coziness. It's the perfect book for anyone who enjoys snuggling up in a snowstorm, and the perfect medicine for little boys who refuse to read about anything but trucks and other little boys. Katy is a feminist before her time and a necessary companion to any purchase of Mike Mulligan.

Note that Katy can be hard to find- the board book seems to be available in stores, as does the paperback + CD set, but I wasn't able to find a new printing of the hardcover. One option for those seeking the hardcover is to go directly to Houghton Mifflin's website here to order it. They also maintain a good Virginia Lee Burton page that features great photos of the author as a young girl. Remarkable fact: she drew all her books first and wrote the words later! The website includes a brief autobiography, in which she explains her writing philosophy: "Whenever I can, I substitute picture for word."