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What the Dormouse Said: Lessons for Grown-ups from Children's Books
This one-of-a-kind collection reminds weary adults not to lose sight of the values and virtues they learned as kids. Here are over three hundred quotations from over two hundred well-loved children's books, such as Charlotte's Web, Peter Pan, Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone, Eloise, Sounder, Number the Stars, and Goodnight Moon, organized by topic, among them Acceptance, Goodness, Family Woes, and Growing Old. On Silence: "I assure you that you can pick up more information when you are listening than when you are talking."--E. B.White, The Trumpet of the Swan. On Reverence: "Dying's part of the wheel, right there next to being born. . . . Being part of the whole thing, that's the blessing."--Natalie Babbitt, Tuck Everlasting.
With clever illustrations from Pierre Le-Tan, here is a book to share with a friend or keep by your own bedside. It's the perfect gift for your sister, your mother, your brother, your nephew, your kid's teacher, your daughter away at college, your son in the Navy, your mailman, your priest, for the old lady next door, or for the baby just born. Most importantly, give it to yourself. It will help you remember why you loved reading in the first place.
With clever illustrations from Pierre Le-Tan, here is a book to share with a friend or keep by your own bedside. It's the perfect gift for your sister, your mother, your brother, your nephew, your kid's teacher, your daughter away at college, your son in the Navy, your mailman, your priest, for the old lady next door, or for the baby just born. Most importantly, give it to yourself. It will help you remember why you loved reading in the first place.
160 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 1999
27 people are currently reading
218 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 34 reviews
July 10, 2013
Often it is stated "out of the mouth of babes". We forget the profound wisdom that is found in the pages of children's literature. After picking up this little book I am inspired to go out and pick up some of those classics again.
August 19, 2008
Children’s books are often dismissed as a lesser form of literature when compared to books aimed at adult audiences. However, children’s literature often contains universal truths that can benefit readers of all ages.
What the Dormouse Said: Lessons for Grown-ups from Children’s Books, is a charming collection of literary quotations. Amy Gash first became interested in children’s books after the birth of her son. She began to seek out good children’s books after her son was old enough to request the same story over and over again. This was an act of self-preservation, one to which many parents can relate. Ms. Gash soon found that not only was she reading children’s books to her son; she was also reading them for her own enjoyment. Along the way, she was able to glean wisdom for adult living from these tales intended for children.
The book covers subjects such as love and friendship, imagination, wisdom, courage, acceptance, nature, character and individuality, growing old and hidden truths. The quotations are from a wide variety of sources: Charlotte’s Web, Mary Poppins, The Water-Babies, Ella Enchanted, The Little Prince, Rebecca of Sunnybrook Farm, Goodnight Moon, The Velveteen Rabbit, Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone and Sarah, Plain and Tall; just to name a few. There are wonderful illustrations by Pierre Le-Tan interspersed throughout the book.
I read many of the books quoted in What the Dormouse Said as a child, more of them as an adult, and have discovered many titles that were new to me that I will seek out in the future. It’s a delightful book for anyone who enjoys children’s literature.
I’d like to close my review by sharing some of my favorite quotations from What the Dormouse Said with you:
“Each thing she learned became part of herself, to be used over and over in new adventures.” –Gypsy, Kate Seredy
“Grownups sure do a lot of pretending and call it politeness.” –Miss Charity Comes to Stay, Alberta Wilson Constant
“You saved me once, and what is given is always returned. We are in this world to help one another.” –The Adventures of Pinocchio, C. Collodi
“The Dormouse sulkily remarked, ‘If you can’t be civil, you’d better finish the story for yourself.’” –Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland, Lewis Carroll
What the Dormouse Said: Lessons for Grown-ups from Children’s Books, is a charming collection of literary quotations. Amy Gash first became interested in children’s books after the birth of her son. She began to seek out good children’s books after her son was old enough to request the same story over and over again. This was an act of self-preservation, one to which many parents can relate. Ms. Gash soon found that not only was she reading children’s books to her son; she was also reading them for her own enjoyment. Along the way, she was able to glean wisdom for adult living from these tales intended for children.
The book covers subjects such as love and friendship, imagination, wisdom, courage, acceptance, nature, character and individuality, growing old and hidden truths. The quotations are from a wide variety of sources: Charlotte’s Web, Mary Poppins, The Water-Babies, Ella Enchanted, The Little Prince, Rebecca of Sunnybrook Farm, Goodnight Moon, The Velveteen Rabbit, Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone and Sarah, Plain and Tall; just to name a few. There are wonderful illustrations by Pierre Le-Tan interspersed throughout the book.
I read many of the books quoted in What the Dormouse Said as a child, more of them as an adult, and have discovered many titles that were new to me that I will seek out in the future. It’s a delightful book for anyone who enjoys children’s literature.
I’d like to close my review by sharing some of my favorite quotations from What the Dormouse Said with you:
“Each thing she learned became part of herself, to be used over and over in new adventures.” –Gypsy, Kate Seredy
“Grownups sure do a lot of pretending and call it politeness.” –Miss Charity Comes to Stay, Alberta Wilson Constant
“You saved me once, and what is given is always returned. We are in this world to help one another.” –The Adventures of Pinocchio, C. Collodi
“The Dormouse sulkily remarked, ‘If you can’t be civil, you’d better finish the story for yourself.’” –Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland, Lewis Carroll
May 14, 2021
Didn't find many actually meaningful quotes, or new-to-me books that have good quotes in them. The premise is fantastic... I recommend the execution be, not reading Gash's favorites, but rather collecting your own.
August 16, 2019
Darling book
Beautiful quotes
Beautiful quotes
November 28, 2024
Remember the virtues you learned in children’s books.
August 30, 2023
A book that uses quotes as lessons or reminders if you would about what wisdom readers may have found in the books that they read as children. There are though a lot more young adult books in the list at a brief look rather than actual children book or even books geared towards juveniles but the author did state at the beginning she was up for exceptions so I guess there isn't much to say on that.
To me there is nothing wrong with the quotes themselves as some are those that stick with readers throughout their lives, some live on as pop culture and some are newish while at the same time bearing common words of wisdom that we as adults have come to learn from other sources if not from an actual book. And another thing I found interesting was that most of these books are much older works rather than more modern although I do know that isn't saying much since the book was published in 1999.
For the reader the book is separated into chapters that each explores a certain subject thus if you just wanted to flip through and find a thought then you can do that. Or there is the index in the back that lists all the books that were quoted from so if you are just trying to find a favorite book or a book in particular than you could also do it that way.
To me the reason I gave this book two stars is the fact that there were some entries that were somewhat illustrated. These "illustrations" were giant white boxes or the small one for the mouse that kept appearing throughout the book while the bigger box would hold the quote in a cursive font that was also usually quite small thus making it really hard to read. Furthermore the character that would appear was constantly the same simple sketch of a man reliving these quotes including one from Harry the Dirty Dog, which me uneasy. Why couldn't we have stuck with the child's theme thus adding much more interesting illustrations as well as some color?
All in all it was a decent read but one that I would recommend more so for skimming through or reading a few quotes each night before bed. Otherwise as mentioned by another GR user it would probably be more profitable for you to collect your own list if you have the time and thus make it more personal to yourself.
To me there is nothing wrong with the quotes themselves as some are those that stick with readers throughout their lives, some live on as pop culture and some are newish while at the same time bearing common words of wisdom that we as adults have come to learn from other sources if not from an actual book. And another thing I found interesting was that most of these books are much older works rather than more modern although I do know that isn't saying much since the book was published in 1999.
For the reader the book is separated into chapters that each explores a certain subject thus if you just wanted to flip through and find a thought then you can do that. Or there is the index in the back that lists all the books that were quoted from so if you are just trying to find a favorite book or a book in particular than you could also do it that way.
To me the reason I gave this book two stars is the fact that there were some entries that were somewhat illustrated. These "illustrations" were giant white boxes or the small one for the mouse that kept appearing throughout the book while the bigger box would hold the quote in a cursive font that was also usually quite small thus making it really hard to read. Furthermore the character that would appear was constantly the same simple sketch of a man reliving these quotes including one from Harry the Dirty Dog, which me uneasy. Why couldn't we have stuck with the child's theme thus adding much more interesting illustrations as well as some color?
All in all it was a decent read but one that I would recommend more so for skimming through or reading a few quotes each night before bed. Otherwise as mentioned by another GR user it would probably be more profitable for you to collect your own list if you have the time and thus make it more personal to yourself.
May 14, 2024
As a reader for most likely romance and self-help materials this book is profoundly established book for children. I highly recommend this for teenagers and young adults especially in this generation we are lacking empathy and stability to easily cope up with society without being threatened not just by the people around but including our individual selves.
December 27, 2018
Any adult who loves children's books would like this book. I have read many of the books, but a few were new to me. I recognized some of the passages quoted, but some I will need to find again. Excellent bibliography with page numbers sited.
May 10, 2017
This should be titled "A collection of quotes from children's books"
Not really lessons.
Not really lessons.
September 8, 2017
Non posso dare un voto più alto.
Si tratta sostanzialmente di un breve libro di citazioni tratte da libri per ragazzi.
Mi aspettavo qualcosa di più nonostante sia comunque una raccolta molto carina-
Si tratta sostanzialmente di un breve libro di citazioni tratte da libri per ragazzi.
Mi aspettavo qualcosa di più nonostante sia comunque una raccolta molto carina-
September 3, 2018
Loved reading this as it reminded me of so many books from my childhood . The quotes helped to trigger fond memories of a “ kinder, gentler time.”
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January 24, 2025I didn’t know Eleanor Farjeon wrote the words to the hymn “Morning has Broken.” That’s impressive. This was a happy walk down memory lane.
October 22, 2025
Charming, delightful! It is all the loveliest quotes in one place. Us grownups sure could use the reminders.
November 23, 2025
Kept this one by the toilet to avoid scrolling 😅 Quite inspiring! Such simple quotes feeling quite profound. A wonderful collection of perspectives.
January 3, 2024
This is a charming books of inspirational book quotes from children's and YA stories. It was fun to see how many I recognized and to hear about titles I hadn't know about before.
February 4, 2016
For the quoteaphile that I am! With quotes from some of my favorites including...
"So many things are possible just as long as you don't know they're impossible!" The Phantom Tollbooth by Norton Juster, 1961
"Thou hast only to follow the wall far enough and there will be a door in it." The Door in the Wall, Marguerite de Angeli 1949
"Nothing ever seems interesting when it belongs to you - only when it doesn't." Tuck Everlasting, Natalie Babbitt, 1975
"What you can do is often simply a matter of what you will do." The Phantom Tollbooth by Norton Juster, 1961
"War ain't nothing but wickedness, and them that live to come home will have the mark of the beast upon them." The Perilous Road, William Steele, 1958
"When you have done a great many things, you forget to speak of them...It is those who do very little who must talk of it." Miracles on Maple Hill, Virginia Sorensen, 1956
Just a few of my favs...an excellent book to own and revisit regularly!!
"So many things are possible just as long as you don't know they're impossible!" The Phantom Tollbooth by Norton Juster, 1961
"Thou hast only to follow the wall far enough and there will be a door in it." The Door in the Wall, Marguerite de Angeli 1949
"Nothing ever seems interesting when it belongs to you - only when it doesn't." Tuck Everlasting, Natalie Babbitt, 1975
"What you can do is often simply a matter of what you will do." The Phantom Tollbooth by Norton Juster, 1961
"War ain't nothing but wickedness, and them that live to come home will have the mark of the beast upon them." The Perilous Road, William Steele, 1958
"When you have done a great many things, you forget to speak of them...It is those who do very little who must talk of it." Miracles on Maple Hill, Virginia Sorensen, 1956
Just a few of my favs...an excellent book to own and revisit regularly!!
November 3, 2024
This was a fabulous book that can be read over and over again. I loved it! It contains quotes "Lessons" for grown-ups from children's books. I was familiar with almost all of the children's books that they quoted, and could put the book in the particular situation it was being quoted for. It reminds us of values we learned as kids, though the quotes were not from the adults in our life, but from the books in our life.
April 14, 2012
What's not to love here? As someone who has read most of the books Gash has quoted from, it was the literary equivalent of being gifted with milky cocoa and homemade oatmeal cookies. So satisfying to be reminded epigrammatically about what's really important in the world, both then and now. A lovely comforting collection of almost truths! A little gem.
August 29, 2013
A cute little book with a catchy title. I found the illustrations a little disappointing---though some are spot on--they are all black and white line drawings. It's fun to read little quotes from favorite children's books--and some I didn't know but now want to read. Good for a little read on an afternoon.
November 25, 2013
"The time has come "the walrus said, " to talk of many things of shoes and ships, and sealing wax....of cabbages and kings. " From Through the Looking Glass Lewis Carroll . A cute book of sayings and quotes from children's books. I still say the above quote to my grown kids when we need a serious private chat ! A great idea, but I already knew most of them.
February 5, 2016
I have not read the majority of the books that were quoted, however, this is a nice collection of quotes. There were a few familiar ones, some good and bad ones, but overall an interesting book to read. It made me wish I had kept a notebook of quotes I have liked over the years from the books I have read. I may start doing that now.
December 30, 2007
Great gift for a children's librarian, writer, teacher, and the like. Infuriating for those of us who are life long quote collectors and lovers of children's books that we didn't think of it first.
September 20, 2009
Words of wisdom from children's books containing witty and inspirational quotes. It's a good resource for my classroom because the reading program I use is based on themes such as kindness and courage, and I can use the quotations from these books for my concept board.
September 19, 2013
This is a quick read and reminded me of so many great books I have read and add to my list of books I want to read. I would have loved to see more quotes-one favorite from Ella Enchanted "It is helpful to know the proper way to behave, so one can decide whether or not to be proper."
October 13, 2007
Oh, I love this book. It's an invaluable resource for all sorts of things : )
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July 2, 2011Good children's book! Very nice and entertaining!
August 12, 2011
My source for wisdom when the world gets far too confusing to bear.
September 15, 2011
I need to read more Children's books!
October 12, 2012
One of my favorite reference books of all time! This is a fun book to browse.
Displaying 1 - 30 of 34 reviews