I still have my old beat-up copy of Mein Allerschoenstes Woerterbuch by Richard Scarry (My Best Word Book). This Richard Scarry Dictionary has seen some loving in its time. Now, it’s hard to get excited about a dictionary. Most are thick and filled with many words I can’t spell, so it’s impossible to look them up. Frankly, although I always have one on my desk, it’s more to hold down loose papers in front of the open window than to actually be used for its intended purpose.
On the other hand, my first dictionary, Mein Allerschoenstes Wörterbuch, was worthy of attention. I must have pored over the pages 1000 times when I was a child, looking for my favorite characters: Lowly Worm, Huckle the Cat, and all the little mouse families.
My copy is over 40 years old… and is a bit battered.
Richard Scarry Dictionary – German English
The concept is simple. Each page has a theme: Zoo, Grocery Store, City with pictures of things you would find there. Each drawing has the German word AND the English word beneath it. (Perfect for a bi-lingual child!) A few short sentences tell what’s happening on the page and also pose a question to get kids looking hard. For example, on the Boat and Ship page, the book asks…” What swims on the water but isn’t a fish? (In this way, it’s a bit like “Where’s Waldo”; you have to find the image that fits the question).
Not all pictures are objects or nouns. Some pages show action words or things we do, while others have colors. There are even pages for basics, like the Alphabet and Numbers.
Imagine the dictionary as a fun game. Richard Scarry’s anthropomorphized characters are always quite interesting to look at. (How does a pig hold a knife?)
As an adult, it occurs to me that this is a very strange image….is the pig really carving a ham?
Who is Richard Scarry?
I used to think that Richard Scarry must be German; why else would he create German-English dictionaries? Some editions of Mein Allerschoestes Worterbuch have English, German, and French). But actually, he was an American illustrator who moved to Switzerland in the early 1970s. His many children’s books have sold over 100 Million copies in multiple languages worldwide.
The times may have changed the Allerschoenstes Worterbuch a bit. As times changed and social values adjusted, the book may not have “Cowboys and Indians” anymore. (It’s my understanding that the publishers and the Scarry family wanted to make the books as noncontroversial as possible.) They still have the Richard Scarry magic that draws kids in and makes them love to read a dictionary.
Today You can Still buy Mein Allerschoenstes Worterbuch
And other Richard Scarry Word Book
Mein allerschönstes Wörterbuch
In der großen StadtAlles was fährtRichard Scarry Mein allerschonstes Buch vom Fruhling, Sommer, Herbst und Winter
I still have some of the books from my childhood (way back in the late 40 ‘ s through early 50’s). Among them are books like the fieble (children’s reader), Mecki (detailing his adventures in Schlaraffeland…. a land of milk and honey) and a storybook named Purzel. Treasures, one and all.
Yes.. I treasure mine !