Amy Ella Blanchard (1856–1926)

A tiny black kitten, homeless and cold, sneaks into Dr. Brewster's home one snowy evening in this brief Christmas novella, following close on the heels of that prosperous bachelor. Ingratiating himself with his frolicsome behavior, Kittyboy causes the good doctor's thoughts to travel in a different path, and noticing an account in the newspaper about all the letters sent by children to Santa Claus, he begins to consider a novel idea. Namely, that he obtain those letters, and secretly fulfill the wishes of the children who wrote them. Little does he realize that his course of action will lead, not just to happiness for many unfortunates throughout the city, but to the fulfillment of his own heart's desire, in the form of a reunion and renewed relationship with the woman he loved and lost, some years before...

Published in 1898, Kittyboy's Christmas is only the second book I have read from the immensely prolific Amy E. Blanchard, who published upwards of eighty children's books from the 1880s through the 1920s. The Blanchard book that I had read previously was the 1881 poetry collection, Holly Berries, which did not impress me favorably. I found some of the poems rather twee, particularly those written in a child's voice, or in Blanchard's cutesy approximation of one. As a consequence, I wasn't sure what to expect with Kittyboy's Christmas, but for the most part I found it quite enjoyable. It's a little cream puff of a story, with just the kind of Christmas spirit I like to see in my holiday reading. The ungenerous learn generosity, and the lonely find friendship and love—what's not to appreciate? As a cat lover, moreover, it also didn't hurt that these transformations were set in motion by an adorable little black kitten. I didn't care for the "amusing" baby talk Blanchard puts in the mouth of little Elinor Temple—perhaps this is just a characteristic of the author's writing, when it features younger children?—but it wasn't as pronounced here as in some of the lisping poems in Holly Berries, and the main narrative was not flawed in this way, so I overlooked it. Recommended to readers who enjoy vintage Christmas stories in which the magic of the season works a transformation in the characters' lives.… (más)

Orginally published in 1881, Holly Berries is a collection of forty-one poems for young children from the pen of Amy E. Blanchard, with beautiful, full-color illustrations by Ida Waugh. For reasons that are not clear to me, early editions of the book only listed Waugh on the cover and title-page, but eventually Blanchard was added to later printings. The selections here address the experiences of young people - their play, their relations with family members, their dealings with their animal companions. The opening poem, from which the collection takes its name, compares children to holly berries, which must be gathered in, especially (one presumes) at Christmas-time. Two other Christmas selections are included: Christmas Morning, which offers a sing-song, hinting description of (an unnamed) Santa Claus's visit the previous night; and Christmas Carol, which depicts children singing carols. Other selections address playing games both physical (Hide and Seek, Nellie Swinging, The Boat), and imaginative (The Well Diggers, Fishing); their interactions with their pets and with wild animals (The Butterflies, The Birds' Nest, Naming the Kittens, Nobody's Dog); and their relations with family (Waiting for Papa, Grandma). The book closes with a selection about bedtime, and one about a villainous spider...

Holly Berries was a bit of a surprise to me, and not a happy one. Because of its title, cover art, and first few selections, I had incorrectly assumed that it was an anthology of Christmas poems for children, rather than a more general one that happened to contain a number of Christmas selections. Perhaps it was presented this way because it was meant by the publisher (E.P. Dutton) as a Christmas present idea, the year it was first published? Whatever the case may be, I was disappointed to discover that it contained so little Christmas content. A further, and much more significant disappointment occurred after reading the selections that were present, as for the most part I found them lackluster in construction, forgettable in content, and often laughably twee. Many of the poems were awkward, with rhymes that felt forced, but the poems written in "baby voice" were particularly grating. Here's the opening of The Stained Dress, for instance: "Dess all dirty, / Oh my, my! / Never mind, Fwank. / I wouldn't kwy, / We'll go wass it, / You and I, / All come out, / By-and-bye." It doesn't improve from there, unfortunately. The only selection here that made much of an impression (a favorable one, that is) upon me was Nobody's Dog, which depicts the sad experiences of a stray canine who longs for a home, and is abused by some local boys. He's seen being comforted by a little girl at the end, but I hoped for a somewhat more conclusively happy ending, to be honest. Judged on text alone, this would have been a one-star title, but I did find Waugh's artwork quite appealing, in a Golden Age illustrative way that reminded me a bit of Kate Greenaway at times, so I raised my rating to two stars. Here are the children singing Christmas carols:



And here is the aforementioned 'Nobody's Dog:'

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