Milly And The Macy's Parade [Hardcover]

Shana Corey (Author), Brett Helquist (Illustrator)

Book Description

Age Level: 4 and up | Grade Level: P and up

In the spirit of "Miracle on 34th Street" comes a heartwarming holiday story based on the true origins of the Macy's Parade,endorsed by Macy's. A stunning picture book debut from artist Brett Helquist

The Macy's Parade is a treasured American pastime. But few people know that the first parade in 1924 was organized by immigrant employees at Macy's eager to incorporate their old-world traditions into their new American heritage. W/ facility & flair, Shana Corey tells the fictional story of a Polish immigrant girl who helps envision this grand event. Brett Helquist's expressive, exquisitely detailed paintings are like holiday window displays come to life. Author & artist evoke the glamour & nostalgia of another era as well as the pride of what it means to be American.

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

Milly, the daughter of Polish immigrants, idolizes her dad's boss, Mr. Macy: he "was just about the most important person in America (next to the president of course)." So when Papa and his co-workers grow homesick for their Christmas tradition of "caroling from house to house," Milly takes her idea for "singing and strolling in the streets" straight to Mr. Macy. As her endnote explains, Corey's (You Forgot Your Skirt, Amelia Bloomer!) "history" of the Macy's Christmas Parade is more fanciful than factual, but it captures the flavor of its 1924 setting. (Parade enthusiasts should see also Pamela Pease's Macy's on Parade, noted above under "Thanksgiving.") Marching across the horizontal pages, the sharp-faced, pointy-nosed characters of Helquist's (illustrator of Lemony Snicket's books) spirited acrylic and oil illustrations may convey a more satirical mood than the text suggests, but period details bring the '20s roaring back to life. Ages 5-8.
Copyright 2002 Reed Business Information, Inc.

From School Library Journal

Kindergarten-Grade 3-The annual Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade is a highlight of the New York City holiday season with its marching bands and big balloons. In this story, set in 1924, Corey envisions a little girl whose immigrant Polish father works for Mr. Macy himself. Milly has the run of the store and can fly through the revolving doors and ride up and down the escalators and the elevators. She and all the fashionably dressed customers think that the Christmas merchandise is "gorgeous." But while Milly and her family are growing accustomed to America, they miss one wonderful custom from the old country: strolling from house to house singing Christmas carols. The child determinedly proposes to Mr. Macy a parade as an alternative. The marchers begin in Harlem with festive costumes, bands, and animals from the Central Park Zoo and end up on 34th Street. And so the annual festivity takes root. Helquist's acrylic-and-oil paintings feature colorfully dressed people with angular faces and bodies outlined in black. The author's note gives a history of the parade and acknowledges that while R. H. Macy himself died in 1877, he is a known character "-immortalized in the 1947 classic book and film Miracle on 34th Street-." While the references to the Follies and the Rockefellers and the Vanderbilts may be lost on children, this is an entertaining and lively variation on holiday stories.
Susan Pine, New York Public Library
Copyright 2002 Reed Business Information, Inc.

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Reading level: Ages 4 and up
  
• Hardcover: 40 pages
• Publisher: Scholastic Press; 1st edition (October 1, 2002)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0439297540
• ISBN-13: 978-0439297547
• Product Dimensions: 12.2 x 9.3 x 0.4 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.2 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 4.8 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (5 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,254,598 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

I grew up in South--in Savannah and Athens, Georgia and then Charlotte, North Carolina. When I was little, I loved stories about olden-day girls--my favorites were Betsy-Tacy, All-of-a-Kind Family, Little House On the Prairie. Imagine my delight when I went to college and discovered that I could take ENTIRE classes on (and get credit for learning about!) olden-day girls! Yay college! In college, I learned to call it women's history, but really--it was the exact same topic I'd been interested in since I was five. Now, I have the great pleasure and honor of editing books for children myself. I also write picture books, most of them true stories about brave women and girls in history--women like Amelia Bloomer and Juliette Gordon Low, who had the guts to take a stand for the things they believed in and change the world. When I'm not writing or editing, I'm usually reading with my two little boys. They like stories about oldenday girls, too (though truth be told, they prefer a good truck story).

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars I love this book!, October 17, 2002

By 

Dan Mitchel (NY) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Milly And The Macy's Parade (Hardcover)

I use historical fiction a lot in my classroom, and was excited to see Milly and the Macys Parade. It's a great story-with lots of alliteration--and also a beautiful illustration of how as a country of immigrants, most of America's culture and traditions (in this case the Macys Thanksgiving Day Parade) actually stem from various immigrant cultures and traditions. More important for my third graders though, it's a fun, engaging story (with a very spunky heroine determined to save the holidays) and not at all sappy. It's also a visual treat-the artwork is detailed and rich, but quirky enough so that the boys like it even though the main character is a girl . I've only had it in my classroom for 4 days, but so far students have taken it home every night. I whole-heartedly recommend this picturebook for the holidays or any time of year!

5 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars How it all started..., November 11, 2002

A Kid's Review

This review is from: Milly And The Macy's Parade (Hardcover)

Millie is a little Polish girl and gets the swing of things in New York. It's near Thanksgiving and the Macy's department store is wrapped up like a present. Millie visits the contents of the present everyday after school.
Millie's father works at Macy's and some of his friends from other countries besides Poland. They all miss their customs, holidays, food, and religion. That's when Millie has an idea that will suit everyone...
~Erin
Age 11

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Cute book, October 13, 2010

By 

cheimy - See all my reviews

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Milly And The Macy's Parade (Hardcover)

This is a great book to read around Thanksgiving. I had never heard of the origin of Macy's Parade and the book does a great job of blending the actual facts into a story that can be read to children. I plan on sharing this book with my students this year before Thanksgiving so they understand that there is much more to Macy's Parade than Thanksgiving.