Customer Reviews

Lucky Mrs. Ticklefeather

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I came upon this reissue quite by accident and laughed out loud to see it available once again. This was one of my favorite childhood books, given to me at Christmas of 1952. Even at the time of its original issuance, the old-fashioned Mrs. Ticklefeather, her Puffin named Paul, the rather antiquated language, and of course, the wonderful illustrations of J.P. Miller all worked together to make this book a delight for young children, probably ages 4-8. The silly situations that the policeman finds while in search of the missing Paul add humor which a young child will enjoy. If the late author, Dorothy Kunhardt, were alive today, she'd be thrilled to know that yet another generation of young children are poised and ready to enjoy her book again. But then again, Little Golden Books always did know what children liked to read!

The Cooksey children growing up in the '50s and '60s were as lucky as lucky can be, we had a mother who read to us. And our favorite Little Golden Book was -- alas -- Lucky Mrs. Ticklefeather. Sadly, after six children the great storybook of Mrs. Ticklefeather and her puffin Paul was literally read to death and the book disintegrated. We, the six children, grew up and had children of our own and in the grand tradition of storytime, searched high and low for a copy of this darling book. I could still remember just how the cover looked with Mrs. T and her puffin playing their violins. I have yet to pass a "tall, tall, terribly tall building" and not wonder if in fact it might be where Mrs. Ticklefeather still resides. In the dear lady's honor, I too love sunflowers. I can hardly believe my good fortune to have found this favorite book. My sons are too old, but my granddaughter, born seven months ago, will have the book waiting on her Nonnie's shelf for when she is a little older and can hear the story. This is such an endearing story, I cannot understand why it didn't become the classic that the "Saggy, Baggy Elephant" did -- I shall simply rejoice that we've found it now in a re-issue.

This book was read to me over and over again when I was a young girl (that was over 30 years ago!) and now I have the wonderful opportunity to read it to my children. I loved it so much as a child that I deliberately kept it through the years for my kids. It is a favorite childhood memory. Mrs. Ticklefeather and her puffin Paul bring adventure into a young person's life. The illustrations are a bit dated, but they are fun and engaging nonetheless. The story never gets old no matter how many times you read it. Paul the puffin's quest to bring Mrs. Ticklefeather her sunflower is a sweet and endearing commentary on true friendship and loyalty.

My wife and I, both in our 80s, used to read Mrs. Ticklefeather over and over to our two girls when they were pre-schoolers. Almost every night, when asked what book shall we read tonight, the answer was usually Mrs. Ticklefeather. We bought two copies of the book and plan on giving them to our daughers for Christmas. One girl is now 54, the other 48. We hope they remember them -- I'm sure they will.

William Carnahan

I, too, loved this book in the 1950s. I have looked for it for decades and wish someone would put it into print again, so I could buy lovely new copies as gifts for all the wee ones!

This book was qritten in the 1950's, but is a wonderful story. It brings us back to a time of manners and respect. These are important lessons to give our children, if we have any hope of a decent future