A Children’s Book from My Childhood

In response to The Daily Post’s writing prompt: “Bedtime Stories.”

Mr. Pine’s Mixed Up Signs by Leonard P. Kessler and Lilian Moore.

I’m not sure if this was a favorite bedtime story per se, but it is a book that I have always remember from my childhood. I remember the green color of the book, and the book jacket/cover. I remember the pictures from the book. I can see this book sitting in my room. I can still see my 7-year-old self, sitting in my green colored bedroom, that I shared with my sister, reading this book.

Maybe I always remember this book because it was the same color green as the bedroom I shared with my sister. Or maybe it was the fact that I ‘just got this book’…I understood it on a different level.

The story is about a man named Mr. Pine and he makes road signs for Little Town. Eventually, the signs got all worn and faded due to being out in all kinds of weather and the mayor of Little Town asked Mr. Pine to make new signs. Which Mr. Pine did…but just as he was done making all the signs, he misplaced his glasses. But he knew he had to get all the signs up so he went ahead and replaced all the old signs with the new ones…but because he didn’t have his glasses…the signs were all mixed up! This little book has remained with me through the years as a constant memory of my childhood.

As a young child, I may be just connected with this book, because I understood how one could see the world as fuzzy…owing to getting my first pair of glasses in second grade. I had been having a hard time reading the board in class and I remember my second grade teacher made me sit in the front row of the class so that I could see the board better. And then once I got my glasses, I didn’t like to wear them…even though I could see much better (I remember driving home from the eye doctors that first day and thinking how awesome it was to be able to see each and every leaf in the trees) but I was embarrassed to have to wear them. My teacher would make sure that I put them on and continued having me sit in the front of the room so that I wouldn’t have any more problems seeing the board.

As an adult, I like to think I am a pretty observant person. As a consequence, when I am out and about or driving around, as I am known to do often, due to my pet sitting charges keep me on the road, running from one end of the county to the other each day, I spend a good deal of time observing my surroundings. One thing I always notice, which makes me think of this book, is worn and faded street and road signs. Or signs that have been marked up with graffiti. Or signs that have been knocked over, either by a car hitting them or wind and weather making them blow or tip over. And I wonder who the “Mr. Pine” of the town is and why hasn’t he made new signs!

I loved this book! A few years ago, I actually tracked down this book…on Amazon, of course…a 40th-anniversary edition of the book had been published in 2001…and I purchased it for a few of the little ones in my life at the time. It turned out to be a favorite book for a little one I babysat for years 🙂