Pasteur was faced with the dilemma of curing rabies. He was able to invent a potion that could fight the effect of rabies, so when a family’s son is bitten by a rabid dog, Pasteur injects him with the serum.
The serum is depicted by soldiers who march through the needle into the boy’s body, where they fight the disease agents, who are depicted by fierce monsters. After an intense battle between the soldiers and the monsters the boy is healed and the family overjoyed. So we find because he believed in himself, Louis Pasteur invented not only the process of pasteurization, but of curing rabies.
Many images stick out from these books years later. How could I forget the evil look in the baseball player’s face while Jackie Robinson slides into second base? Or Beethoven losing his hearing when being pulled onto a train by his ears during his youth? Or Abraham Lincoln running a mile to find the woman he owed a penny? It seems most of these books were wonderful when it came to presenting an emotional center, easy for children to grasp.
Perhaps it’s because I was raised in a house of very clear, very firm morals, but for me these books were never about the value displayed on the cover. They merely served as a common thread for the book. The real story was that these people faced real problems head-on and for that are significant to history.
The illustrations were also significant. Warm colors, with some pigments occasionally out of place as befit’s a late-70s to late-80s palette. The animated look goes along with the fantasy element of imaginary friend that each main character has. Did you know Abe Lincoln’s spirit animal was a squirrel?
The Valuetale series is an excellent idea executed wonderfully. By featuring people of different races and time periods, the readers are treated to both familiar and unfamiliar faces. We learn that to get anywhere in life we will have to face obstacles. And we find that the journey of life is as colorful as we could ever wish it to be.
read about others' love for the series:
The Value Tales book series is a lifetime investment because not only did I enjoy them as a kid but now my kids get to enjoy them as well. My sister also uses them in her public school classroom and we use them in homeschooling. Well worth the investment! Thanks for the linky to my site too!
ReplyDeleteThanks Gretta,
ReplyDeleteI enjoyed what you wrote about the Value Tales series.
And I'm glad to hear your children like them as well!
The new editions, Value Tales Treasury, have a distinctly 21st century look, making me second-guess whether the originals were good enough for today's young readers.
I guess a classic is a classic in any era!