26 Fairmount Avenue, by Tomie DePaola - Autobiography

My students come to me with a repertoire of knowledge about Tomie DePaola books under their little knowledge belts because they do an author study on him in the second grade. Therefore, when I pull the Tomie DePaola books for them to read with our story, The Mysterious Giant of Barletta, they pretty much already think that they know everything about him that is possible. That is when I decided to bring out the autobiography. Remarkably, they don’t read this with the author study in the second grade so that left me, the third grade teacher, to have a little trick up my sleeve. Be forewarned, however, that you will experience many laughs when you read this book, because DePaola is certainly one of the most hilarious children that I have encountered!

The story begins around the time that Tomie was approximately age four and his family was beginning to build their new home on 26 Fairmount Avenue. A hurricane struck Meriden, Connecticut that fall and nearly destroyed the production of the home and many city ordinances nearly stopped the finalization of the home altogether, but in the end, the family moves in. In this book, Tomie is the youngest child (his sisters come later in life) with one older brother. Evidently the brother is a good child and student, and the reader can infer, through various incidents in the book, that Tomie was nothing like his older brother. In fact, his first day of kindergarten Tomie, with as much self-confidence that a five-year-old can have, haultily walked up the school steps and marched right up to the principal. The principal asked him who he was and Tomie replied and then curtly asked who she was. The reader starts gaining the feeling that Tomie may not have made the best decisions throughout grade school when we are left hearing Tomie say that he got to know the principal very well throughout he next couple of years. This leaves the reader to infer that Tomie was not the “best” of students, so to say.

Another funny occurrence happened that first day of kindergarten when he finally walked in to his classroom, met the teacher, and asked when they were going to beginning reading. Interestingly (and I use that term with sarcasm), the teacher told him that they would not learn how to read until next year, in the first grade. Tomie simply stated that in that case he would come back next year, turned around, and walked home. How very defiant for a child and with such confidence. I love it! I know a child like that!

Tomie DePaola’s book, Nana Upstairs and Nana Downstairs, was mentioned in this book with Tomie talking about going to visit his grandmothers and sitting with Nana Upstairs for visits. The respect that he felt for this older woman is very evident and sincere through this writings, even when he recalls an uncomfortable incident with laxatives. I will leave this little section of the book closed until you open it and read it for yourself; and believe me, it will be well worth it!

Finally, Tomie was a child after my own heart when he went for the first time to see Walt Disney’s Snow White. He was so excited because his mother had read the book to him many times and he was delighted to get the opportunity to see it in moving picture. However, as we all experience at least once in our lives, most movies never exactly match the books. Tomie was so outraged at this that at age four he stood up in the movie theatre and shouted at the screen! He was of course hushed by another woman behind him, but the sight of seeing an outraged child shouting at a movie screen for not going exactly by the book makes me smile. I have wanted to do this many times but couldn’t quite pull it off with as much “class” as DePaola did. His mother came and rushed him out of the theatre as soon as the movie ended, however. So funny!