Laura Charlotte

Rating:
Summary: Do Inanimate Objects Serve as Security Blankets?
Review: Amber Campsen Clemson University Student

In Laura Charlotte, Laura is having trouble going to sleep and asks her mother to tell her the story of Laura Charlotte. Even though she has heard it a million times, she enjoys learning where her name comes from. To her surprise, this same elephant was her mother's and had received the name "Charlotte" because of the beauty of the name. This stuffed elephant, Charlotte, grows to be Laura's security object, which can sometimes, states Maria Nikolajeva, have a deeper context and meaning. Many of the words and illustrations also affect the way that the reader sees the main character as an innocent child who grows to need the elephant. She is a child who needs the elephant to help calm her fears and to be a friend, rather than a child who used the elephant as a play toy. Floyd Cooper, the illustrator of Laura Charlotte, makes it easy to understand the drawings in the story. Cooper draws with pastels and soft colors to represent pictures of children innocently. When seeing these illustrations, readers can understand the story from a child's standpoint. Cooper also places many of the shadows and dark colors away from Laura so that the reader can focus on her feelings. One point in the story, Laura loses Charlotte, and the reader can see the darkness outside the window. Laura looks out into the trees and says that she wants to find Charlotte because she knows that Charlotte is afraid. Laura tells this story in first person point of view, which makes a more personable story, than if the narrator had told it. Notably, the dialogue is written in small black print. This font does detract from the illustrations but still sustains the importance of the plot, due to its size. Maria Nikolajeva's 1998 article, "Exit Children's Literature?" states that the presence of one object can easily be seen as the representation of something else. "If we regard these figures as metaphorical representations of the weak and the oppressed or as the child's projections of his or her own desires, we should not be misled by the outer form" (222). According to Nikolajeva, children often use inanimate objects to help cover fears and hidden secrets. Like many children, Laura uses a stuffed animal as a security object. Laura uses Charlotte as an excuse for herself, when she speaks of the elephant as being afraid of the dark. She makes sure that she has the elephant with her at all times. Just as Nikolajeva says, Laura may be afraid of the night, and attributing the fear to Charlotte helps Laura over come her fear, since they are there for each other. The reader can see that Laura is using the elephant as an excuse. Seeing the attachment that Laura feels, through the text and illustrations, toward Charlotte, the reader can see how much she understands the importance of the elephant. Laura's grandmother wanted to name the elephant Charlotte because of the beauty of the name. It meant a lot when Laura knew she had been named "Laura Charlotte" because her grandmother had said it was the most beautiful name she had ever heard. Looking from the perspective of the reader makes it easier to understand this remarkable children's story in its entirety, coming from Laura Charlotte's standpoint as a child. Bibliography Gailbraith, Kathryn. Laura Charlotte. New York: Penguin Putnam Books, 1990. Nikolajeva, Maria. "Exit Children's Literature?". The Lion and the Unicorn 22.2(1998): 221-236.

Rating:
Summary: Laura Charlotte
Review: I bought this book for my daughter because her name is Charlotte and at the time, her best friend was Laura. How often is it that you find a beautiful story whose heroine is a red-headed, brown-eyed little girl named Charlotte! (just like mine!) This book is sweet, it makes you feel all warm and cozy inside, as it talks about the importance of a multi-generational family and the important family heirloom that stems from a birthday gift, a gift that was made with love from a Grandma to her granddaughter.

Rating:
Summary: Laura Charlotte
Review: Laura Charlotte is an amazing children's story about the love of a family throughout generations. Laura's mother tells her about her favorite childhood memory and the history of her stuffed elephant, Charlotte. This book has been a favorite in my family and gives a sense of love to the reader.

Rating:
Summary: Still a Family Favorite
Review: On January 28, 1999 I wrote the review of Laura Charlotte, and more than a year later it is still a favorite bedtime story of my, now almost 7 year old, daughter. It is one that my husband and I never tire of reading to her, and as any parent of a small child knows, THAT is a great recommendation in itself!

Rating:
Summary: Still a Family Fovorite
Review: On January 28, 2000 I wrote the review of Laura Charlotte, which I signed "Albuquerque Reader". More than a year later it is still a favorite bedtime story of my, now almost 7 year old, daughter. It is one that my husband and I never tire of reading to her, and as any parent of a small child knows, THAT is a great recommendation in itself!

Rating:
Summary: Still a Family Fovorite
Review: On January 28, 2000 I wrote the review of Laura Charlotte, which I signed "Albuquerque Reader". More than a year later it is still a favorite bedtime story of my, now almost 7 year old, daughter. It is one that my husband and I never tire of reading to her, and as any parent of a small child knows, THAT is a great recommendation in itself!