Sir Gillygad and the Gruesome Egg

Sir Gillygad is a knight, a doughy knight who rides about on his trusty frog called Gorf. They venture forth on adventures bold and exciting: to the Twinkle, to Holey Hill, to the Plain of Dreams—even as far as World's End. Then rumors are heard, rumors of an egg, a Gruesome Egg, with two leggs, a left leg and a right leg, and the leggs were bird’s leggs—which makes sense in an eggy sort of way. It is haunting the Daark Forest close to the Mumbly Mews and the gerwine Greneff.  So off Sir Gillygad gallops (well, hoppedy-hops), there to meet and confront this unique and remarkable beast.

 Sir Gillygad and the Gruesome Egg is an adventuresome tale, suitable for children aged 9 to 12 or thereabouts—and adults too, if they still are young at heart and open to the wonders that speak to the mystery of life and becoming.

59 illustrations + 23 capitals, 6x9 format, soft cover, 168 pages, $16.50. Purchase book

Eggs for the Hunting ~ starring Pine Cone and Pepper Pot and the illimitable Tiptoes Lightly

Spring is full of life and life is full of eggs, all sorts of eggs: great cosmic eggs and tiny butterfly eggs, salmon eggs and bird eggs, rabbit eggs and special eggs being gilded and painted by two gnomes called Pine Cone and Pepper Pot. They have been told (gossiped, to be correct) that Farmer John’s children, Tom and June, are going to give them special eggs for Easter, and they decide to reciprocate. However, if you are a gnome, a small gnome—even if you are two small gnomes—then the simplest of tasks (such as finding a bird who does not mind giving you a couple of their eggs) can be a problem ... !!! 

Woven into the fabric of the book are many tales, myths and legends: Pepper Pot reads the history of King Karnac and the Turning of Time, Madam Two-Pecks tells her chicks how the universe was created from the World Egg, and the Wise Salmon in Running River tells the fingerlings about the great cycle, the Egg of Life. ‘Eggs for the Hunting’ is a spring tale, a wonder tale, affirming the joy, humor and mystery of life.

Suitable for children from kindergarten to grade 3 or 4. Soft cover, 108 pages. Purchase book

The Fetching of Spring (a tale for grown-ups - 14 and up)

The Golden Bird has been stolen (apparently) and Tik-Tak is sent to fetch it. The naive and dreamy youth rides southwards (it’s warmer in that direction), gets kicked out of two kingdoms, meets Erce-Ma, loses his hopeless steed, gains a (much) better one, stumbles into the Undwelling and its townships, descends into Akkman’s Dwell, rescues the bird (and other abductees), returns (still not fully awake) with the bird, refuses the hand of the Princess (what!), becomes a successful entrepreneur, is jailed > is released > then steals the bird (wrong order, I know, but that’s the truth), returns to Spring, returns to Tansa, gets familied, assumes the kingship and unites the Three Kingdoms (well, it’s a work in progress).

The Fetching of Spring, written with a (sometimes) humorous nod to the fairy tale, has a deadly serious subtext. It is an awakening tale, the story all of us are in whether we like it or not. Setting out from the Kingdom of the Golden Bird our (inordinately) nascent hero descends via the earthly into contemporary sub-earthly realms. The story (and it is a story in the sense of storytelling) ends with worn-shoe idealism and a peppering of satire to spice things up.

Soft cover; 248 pages. Purchase Book

"The Fetching of Spring is wonderful reading of the very best sort: a story true and strong, told with joy and wonder, clarity and hope.  This one is not to be missed." Waldorf Books

"The Fetching of Spring is an excellent pick for anyone looking for a fun take on the fairy tale fantasy." Midwest Book Review

The Lost Lagoon ~ Adventures of Tiptoes Lightly and Greenleaf the Sailor

It is spring and Running River is in full flood. Tiptoes Lightly and Jeremy Mouse visit Greenleaf the Sailor and venture forth in his newly made leaf boat. Soon they are joined by Pine Cone and Pepper Pot the Gnomes and together they search for the Lost Lagoon the frogs have been so beautifully singing about.

Meanwhile, Farmer John reads The Adam Tales to Tom Nutcracker and June Berry. Later, Tom impulsively rides off on Chiron and he too comes to the Lost Lagoon. What happens on this night, with its majestic, rising moon, is filled with a wonder and magic that won't soon be forgotten.

With tons of illustrations and drawings, this book is suitable for reading to children from late kindergarten to grade 3, or used as a reader in grades 2 to 4.   Purchase Book

“The Lost Lagoon” is a fun and recommended pick for younger readers." Midwest Book Review

The Tales of Tiptoes Lightly

The Bee who lost his Buzz
Pumpkin Crow
Lucy Goose and the Half-egg

Tiptoes Lightly lives in an acorn high in the branches of a Great Oak Tree. Her tree sits on a knoll overlooking Running River, and she and her friends have a host of adventures. First they help the bee who lost his buzz – snagged on a thorn belonging to grumpy Mr. Cactus! Then they visit the house of Pine Cone and Pepper Pot and sail down to the sea to untangle Octopus – he’s too young to count his legs properly and gets them mixed up!

Later they journey to Snowy Mountain to hear from Jack Frost what kind of being he really is – and Jack tells the dramatic tale of how he came to be. Finally, after many adventures big and small they find out who the real mother of the half-egg is – the one that Lucy Goose found in the mud and is determined to hatch along with her own eggs.

Lavishly illustrated by the author-artist, these are simple, innocent and magical tales set in nature. Humorous, reverent, sanguine and droll, they are suitable for reading to young children (kindergarten to grade 3) or for young children to read (grades 1 – 4). Soft cover; 104 pages.  Purchase Book

“I wish there was something like this (Tiptoes Lightly) when my two children were growing up. It’s a wonderful book.” Louise Riveiro-Mitchell – author of ‘Autumn Sky’ Book Review Cafe

Big-Stamp Two-Toes the Barefoot Giant ~ Spring Tales of Tiptoes Lightly  

Big-Stamp is all about spring, when nature is alive and abundant and renewing. Jemima Mouse has tiny mouslings, the like of which Ompliant the Elephant cannot believe – they’re as furless and pink as a jelly bean! On they way, Ompliant has his leg pulled by the jokester Chit-Chat the Chipmunk, and later Tom Nutcracker bravely follows Ompliant’s giant footprints deep into the forest. He sees Ompliant at close quarters and scoots up a tree in terror. Now Tom is hopelessly treed, and there’s only one body big enough, with a trunk long and strong enough, to help him down. Luckily Tiptoes Lightly is there to build her magic bridges.

Other adventures are had too. Tiptoes sails down to the sea on a leaf and meets Spinner the Dolphin. She guides him up Running River, and she and Tom and June Berry show him his first flowers. Then Pine Cone and Pepper Pot the gnomes sail to Pixie Island and hear from Miranda how the blue and yellow Forget-me-not flower got its name. Afterwards, while visiting a huge boulder, Tiptoes and the gnomes are told by the rock spirit how ‘The Rock’ came to be sitting in the middle of the forest – because of Big-Stamp Two-Toes the Barefoot Giant, of course!

Extensively illustrated by the author, these are magical, humorous and reverent tales set in nature. Suitable for reading to children (kindergarten to grade 3 or 4) or for young children to read (grades 1 – 4). Soft cover; 100 pages. Purchase Book

"Love it! We have read all of the Tiptoes series and would HIGHLY recommend them to any child." Amazon Review

 The Festival of Stones ~ Autumn and Winter Tales of Tiptoes Lightly

Tiptoes Lightly and her friends celebrate the best of the autumn festivals: Michaelmas, Halloween, Martinmas, Advent and Christmas. Many adventures are had and festival tales told: at Michaelmas Farmer John recounts ‘The Most Beautiful Dragon in the Whole World’ to his children, Tom Nutcracker and June Berry, and on Christmas day he reads them ‘The Burden Bull of Scotland’. Tiptoes also tells tales – her favorites being ‘The Myth of Ella-jah’ which recounts how the animals were created, and the story of ‘The Sun-child and the Birds’ which she tells on Christmas eve.

On the way, Jeremy Mouse meets Olivia who lives inside an olive tree, is frightened at Halloween (by a You-know-what!), and almost drowns in Soggy Mire because the ice is too thin for sliding on – luckily he is saved by Mr. Owl the Vegetarian! Finally, Tiptoes and Jeremy Mouse build the first, and finest, snow-mouse the world has ever seen.

Capturing the inner mood of nature during autumn and winter, these lavishly illustrated tales are reverent, humorous and sacred. Suitable for reading to children (kindergarten to grade 3 or 4) or for young children to read (grades 2 to 4). Soft cover; 100 pages. Purchase Book

“This is a fascinating book by an extraordinarily imaginative writer.” The Reading Tub Review

Color and Gesture explores the inner life of color in a way that only eurythmy and the initiation science of Rudolf Steiner make possible. What appears is a world of incredible richness, depth and beauty in the most common, unlikely and unexpected of places—gesture. Gesture reveals the human soul, and the fabric of the soul is color; as a result, we find that the souls’ infinite expressiveness, with all its goodness, pathos, waywardness and humor, is intimately woven through with color experiences.

When we approach gesture via color, we discover whole gesture families, with, at times, the most unforeseen of bedfellows. We gain new insights into soul gestures, acting gestures, animal, planetary and zodiac gestures. The underlying eurythmic gestures of speech and music are also explored, and we learn to experience how the color chords underlying gesture are themselves a structured, musically-ordered language.

And when we approach color via gesture, we find inner laws, relationships and dynamics which allow us to gain, via artistic activity, not only a deeper understanding of color as a whole, but also a conscious foothold in the astral and etheric worlds.

Contents include: 51 Chapters plus Overview and Indexes, 250+ Figures and 170+ Haloes.
Subjects covered: Color Dynamics, Rudolf Steiner’s Eurythmy Figures, Soul Gestures, Color Figures, Acting Figures, Animal Gestures, Speech and Music Figures, Eurythmy Exercises, Elements and Ethers, Etc.

Available from the author, Rudolf Steiner College Bookstore,  AWSNA Publications,  Waldorf Books or Amazon

Retail: $38.50, Perfect bound, Format: 8.5 x 11, Pages: 552.    Purchase now!

"Reg Down’s Color and Gesture is a monumental work that explores in depth and with beauty the inner life of color ... this is an amazing book!" Nancy Parsons - Waldorf Books

See the Color and Gesture page for further reviews.

Leaving Room for the Angels - Eurythmy and the Art of Teaching

Review from AWSNA Chief Editor: "This is a remarkable book! The first section should be read by all Waldorf teachers. It contains wisdom and practical advice that will benefit every teacher. It is especially insightful with regard to adolescence. The second part of the book is for eurythmists. Reg Down illustrates forms and gives special hints to make life easier for all eurythmy teachers."

AWNSA Publications: Softbound • 240 Pages.

Available from AWSNA Publications, Rudolf Steiner College Bookstore and Waldorf Books.

"This is a remarkable book! The first section should be read by all Waldorf teachers. It contains wisdom and practical advice that will benefit every teacher." David Mitchell, Editor in Chief, AWSNA Publications

Toys inspired by Tiptoes Lightly

 Tiptoes Lightly ~ a fairy doll ~

Tiptoes is a light-as-air doll, handmade
from wool roving she hangs from a golden thread.
An original design based on the fairy
Tiptoes Lightly from Reg Down’s
magical children’s books.Use her for storytelling,
while reading to your children at bedtime,
as a decoration in a window, over a bed,
or in your child’s play-space.

Tiptoes is 9 inches tall and will enchant any child or adult. Handmade in the USA
Purchase HERE


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Pine Cone and Pepper Pot
~ the forest gnomes ~

Two wonderful gnome dolls patterned
after two favorite characters
from Reg Down’s delightful books.
They are both 8 inches tall, handmade with wool dyed in beautiful, muted woodland colors.
Use them at bedtime to act out stories,
or lead your child in imaginative play.
Boys and girls alike will enjoy these two characters!
Handmade in the USA



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