Background of the ÒSaba BooÓ Stories
Some of my fondest childhood memories are
those of my mother reading me the Wonder Book Easy Reader entitled ÒBenjamin in
the WoodsÓ, by Eleanor Clymber, published in 1962. My mother would read that
story to me again and again, with me begging her to read it again as soon as
she spoke the last word. She would
often read it, two or more times, before I would let her leave my room. I remember the last sentence as if she
were reading it to me now.
Our children today need the same sort of
attention that my mother gave me at bedtime. Telling stories to your children allows them to relax and
their minds to wander through worlds they have not fully imagined. When my wife and I began reading to our
little girls, we read mostly from the same sort of story books that other
parents, and children, are familiar with.
One night, I went upstairs to tell my girls goodnight, and one of them
wanted to hear more than the one story we had read. I had already turned out the lights, but thought I would
continue with my own story. ThatÕs
how the story of Saba Boo, and his sister Ruby, began.
That first night I told a story, as it came
to me, of a young boy of probably 7 or 8 years old, who grew up a long time ago
in a land far away from ours; a place where young boys, and girls, were free to
discover a world of excitement and adventure, more or less on their own. The story I told was very interesting
to them. Often times they would
not let me leave until I told them just one more part. I would leave the story at a critical
point and say . . . ÒthatÕs all for now. . . Ó They loved the story and the suspense of what comes
next, but I wanted to make it more real for them. A few nights later, when I went up to say goodnight and tell
another part of the story, I brought something with me and placed it under the
bed—a piece of computer paper on which I had printed a color map of the
Island of Saba. I tore the edges
of the paper and used a butane lighter to slightly burn the edges, then
crinkled it a bit to make it look ÒoldÓ.
When I told my daughters the part of the story where Saba finds the map
of Saba Island, they began take turns telling
me many of the details on the map from their own minds. I then pulled the map out of the darkness
and their eyes lit up with excitement.
I realized something at that point; even very young children need a
chance to express themselves and discover things for themselves. These ÒartifactsÓ, as I like to call
them, the map, the snake charmerÕs flute, and others, created a vehicle from
which I could expand the story, and from which my little girls began telling me parts of the story of Saba
Boo.
If you will read the stories to your
youngsters, or make up you own, and use an object in the process, the
experience will be something they remember for their entire lives. All of the stories, and the ÒartifactsÓ
used with each, are available for purchase on this website. Spend time with your children at
bedtime while you can. Later on,
they will not want to be tucked in or have a story read to them. ItÕs a short window of time that will
evaporate before you are prepared to let it go.
Use the links below to order the stories,
and to order one or more of the ÒartifactsÓ. The ÒartifactsÓ come with instructions and suggestions to
get you started in the lost art of bedtime story telling. I also encourage you to make your own
ÒartifactsÓ and invent your own set of stories.
