The Horn Book » grown-up books

Ye olde children’s poetry

Elissa Gershowitz — Fri, 04 Jan 2013 17:20:31 +0000

Belt up your kirtles and hold onto your snoods. Fleas, Flies, and Friars: Children’s Poetry from the Middle Ages by Nicholas Orme (Cornell University Press, May 2012) presents a variety of verse from days of yore. After a brief context-setting chapter (“Children’s Poetry from the Middle Ages”), Orme provides sections on “Growing Up,” “Words, Rhymes, and Songs,” “Manners Maketh Man,” “Stories,” and “School Days” (further reading, notes, and an index are appended). The text explores the social history of medieval childhood; more fun, though, are the pieces themselves. Here’s a tongue-twister: “Three grey greedy geese / Flew o’er three green greasy furrows; / The geese were grey and greedy, / The furors green and greasy.” And here’s one of the “Rude Remarks”: “Hur! Hur! / The shrew bears the bur!” Oh, well; kids shalt be kids.

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Missed Connections: F4I [fan for illustrator]

Katie Bircher — Mon, 26 Nov 2012 19:36:29 +0000

–F4I [fan for illustrator]
(Boston)

I saw you from across the Paresky Center at the 2011 Boston Globe–Horn Book Awards ceremony. You were accepting your honor for illustrating Pecan Pie Baby. Charmed by your watercolors, your accent, and your admission that you can’t draw bicycles, I was too shy to ask you to sign my book. Now I wish I had.

Sophie Blackall’s Missed Connections: Love, Lost & Found (Workman, August 2011) has been out for over a year, but I just recently checked it out from my library. I’m so glad I did. This illustrated compilation of Craigslist’s famous — perhaps infamous? — “Missed Connections” personals ads began life as a blog. Blackall writes,

Messages in bottles, smoke signals, letters written in the sand; the modern equivalents are the funny, sad, beautiful, hopeful, hopeless, poetic posts on Missed Connections websites. Every day hundreds of strangers reach out to other strangers on the strength of a glance, a smile or a blue hat. Their messages have the lifespan of a butterfly. I’m trying to pin a few of them down.

Fascinated by the ads, Blackall began depicting the brief stories they told and posting the artwork and text pairs online.

The listings which prompt Blackall’s paintings are “the simple ones with peculiar details; lyrical ones with striking imagery; misspelled ones that are often unintentionally hilarious; and tender, surprisingly moving ones.” All of these are represented in the collection with illustrations ranging from the literal to the fantastic. Sometimes Blackall’s interpretation of the ads is so literal it is fantastic, as in the misspelled ad linked above and in this one posted by a self-described “half Asian girl”:

“Help with Luggage – W4M – 23″

Blackall’s warm watercolor and Chinese ink paintings capture the Missed Connections postings in all their hopeful, romantic, slightly creepy glory. A few of my favorites:

“Girl with the Golden Swan Bike”- M4W – 28

“Floral Print Jacket on the L – M4W – 26″

Love this concept? There’s plenty more where that came from. Not all of the illustrations made it into the book, so check out the blog for additional images. Blackall did a special edition painting based on a contest entry for Boston.com’s Love Letters column, and another for Time Out New York. NYC’s subway system commissioned an Arts for Transit train poster from her (as well as one from fellow BGHB fave R. Gregory Christie). And prints of many Missed Connections illustrations are available for sale in Blackall’s Etsy shop. Who knows? Maybe you’ll recognize yourself — or the one that got away — in one of them.

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Sumo

Ariel Rosen — Mon, 19 Nov 2012 18:00:35 +0000

I’ve never witnessed an actual sumo wrestling match, so this graphic novel about sumo caught my curiosity. Thien Pham’s Sumo (First Second, December 2012) follows Scott, an American college graduate who thought he was heading toward the NFL but didn’t make the cut and subsequently lost the love of his life, Gwen. A new opportunity and the chance to move across the world from his old life are immensely appealing to him, so he relocates to Japan to pursue sumo wrestling.

Blocky shapes tell Scott’s story, with blue, green, and orange hues guiding the reader through his past and present.

flashback: Scott discusses his impending move with a buddy

Scott’s portrayal as a bit of a fish out of water in Japan is realistic, as he’s never been exposed to Japanese culture — much less sumo wrestling — before; details about sumo customs come from his coach. Scott soon welcomes the routine of his newfound sport (and a blossoming romance with the coach’s daughter). The novel is a short but poignant read about taking risks and getting used to something different.

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Reluctant muses

Meredith Sittmann — Mon, 05 Nov 2012 17:20:12 +0000

The Fairies Return, Or, New Tales for Old (Princeton University Press, October 2012), an anthology of revisioned fairy tales originally collected and published in 1934 by Peter Davies, was recently re-published. The collection offers unique, satirical versions of many of the beloved classics, but I was struck most by the biographical information regarding Peter Davies in Maria Tatar‘s introduction.

For those unfamiliar with the name (hint: think Finding Neverland), Peter Davies was the youngest son of Sylvia Llewelyn Davies and the namesake to J.M. Barrie’s eternally youthful Peter Pan. While there is some speculation about whether Peter or his older brother Michael was the actual inspiration for the character, Peter was burdened most of his life by his immortal name. That got me wondering about other real-life muses plagued by their literary stardom. To name a few:

Alice Liddell (Alice of Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland) begged her neighbor Charles Lutwidge Dodgson—better known as Lewis Carroll—to tell her a story. However, scholars have long debated the appropriateness of Dodgson’s relationship with the young girl and her sisters.
Christopher Robin Milne (Christopher Robin of Winnie-the-Pooh) was the son of A.A. Milne. As a child, he received a stuffed bear he called Edward, and carried him everywhere. This relationship inspired his father’s most famous literary vision . . . and also got Christopher teased shamelessly by his peers.
John Nettleship (Severus Snape of the Harry Potter series) was J.K. Rowling’s middle school Chemistry teacher. He was horrified and embarrassed to learn that he was one of three inspirations for the vilified Professor Snape.
John Gray (Dorian Gray of The Picture of Dorian Gray) was a friend of Oscar Wilde who was so offended by the similarities between himself and the youthful Dorian he threatened to sue the publication who first called him “Dorian”.

That said, the desire for literary immortality is still appealing for many. If you had to pick a literary figure to be your own doppelganger, who would it be?

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Deck Z

Katie Bircher — Wed, 31 Oct 2012 18:12:40 +0000

Chris Pauls and Matt Solomon’s adult novel Deck Z: The Titanic: Unsinkable. Undead. (Chronicle, September 2012) begins in early April, 1912, when German pathologist Theodor Weiss is summoned to Manchuria to investigate what appears to be a particularly virulent strain of plague. Weiss takes a recently infected victim to a laboratory to study the disease, which quickly progresses from flu-like symptoms to a “total loss of higher functions” and “unbridled aggression.” After Weiss realizes the German government plans to seize his findings — and a vial of the infectious fluid he calls “the Toxic” — for military use, he flees for America on the Titanic.

A German agent with his own violent agenda assaults Weiss and unleashes the virus onboard. Within hours the massive ship is infested with zombies, which the crew attempts to quarantine from the rest of the passengers. Then the Titanic collides with an iceberg, and all hell really breaks loose.

Be warned: this is no campy Pride and Prejudice and Zombies–style mash-up but a serious, gory horror story. History buffs will appreciate details about the Titanic’s construction and the appearance of historical figures like Captain E. J. Smith (portrayed as a man of honor and a badass), designer Thomas Andrews, “Unsinkable” Molly Brown, and White Star Line manager J. Bruce Ismay. But with all the bloody zombie action, zombie fans are the real intended audience here. This quick, creepy read is perfect for Halloween.

Read more about the Titanic here; more zombies are here.

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Tragedy of the traveling pants—no spoilers

Elissa Gershowitz — Wed, 16 May 2012 18:47:26 +0000

I recently started reading Ann Brashares’s Sisterhood Everlasting (Random House, 2011), a ten-years-later installment of the popular YA Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants series (Sisterhood is shelved in the grown-up section at my library). The story picks up with the girls (women) pushing thirty, successful in life and love (for the most part) but wistful for their teenage closeness. Everyone is beyond thrilled when Tibby, who lives in Australia, organizes a reunion vacay in Santorini.

I just got to the part where Carmen, Lena, and Bridget arrive in Greece. I was not prepared for what happens next. And then the book was recalled to the library.

Has anyone else read it? Is it worth trying to check out again? Even if I’m not in the mood for a tear-jerker? No spoilers, if possible. (I know, the book’s not new, but still…)

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Dorothy, how does that make you feel?

Elissa Gershowitz — Thu, 16 Feb 2012 19:41:50 +0000

feel?" width="108" height="166" />The formidable Kenneth Kidd explores the entwined history of children’s literature and psychoanalysis in Freud in Oz: At the Intersection of Psychoanalysis and Children’s Literature (Univ. of Minnesota, November). Essays include “Three Case Histories: Alice, Peter Pan, and The Wizard of Oz,” “’Maurice Sendak and Picturebook Psychology,” and “T Is for Trauma: The Children’s Literature of Atrocity.” The book, with its extensive endnotes, thorough bibliography (The Horn Book makes a cameo), and well-organized index, is a psychoanalytic literary critic’s dream.

feel?" width="105" height="163" />On a related note (sort of), I’m reading Out of Oz (Morrow, November), the last in Gregory Maguire’s cycle of adult books that began with Wicked. Has anyone psychoanalyzed those? Galinda and Elphaba: more than friends? Liir and Nor: mommy issues? Animals and animals: identity crisis? Master’s thesis, anyone?

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Borrow this.

Katie Bircher — Thu, 11 Aug 2011 17:05:00 +0000

Lucy Hull, protagonist of Rebecca Makkai‘s adult novel The Borrower (Viking, June), is a sardonic twenty-something children’s librarian. Her favorite patron, ten-year-old Ian, runs away to escape his parents and the anti-gay youth group they’ve stuck him in. Like Claudia Kincaid before him, Ian realizes that he needs somewhere to run away to, and the library presents a safe haven overnight. Lucy discovers the runaway when she arrives early the next morning, then finds herself on an unexpected, unauthorized road trip with Ian. It’s never quite clear to Lucy or the reader who’s kidnapping whom. Woven throughout their madcap escapades (featuring the Russian mafia, ferrets, a holy relic, and the Canadian border) are homages to the canon of kids’ books, with cameos by The Very Hungry Caterpillar, The Hobbit, Goodnight Moon, Madeline, The Wizard of Oz, and more.

Ten pages in, I texted a children’s librarian friend: “You HAVE to read this book.” Lucy and Ian’s adventures are occasionally heart-wrenching and often hilarious, but no matter how outrageous their exploits, their actions feel organic and believable. Makkai’s frequent literary allusions seem like secret messages from one children’s lit lover to another: have you read this? how about this one? While I have a hard time picturing a more perfect audience for The Borrower than myself and my twenty-something Simmons grad friends, it’s not just a novel for the children’s lit in-crowd. Decoding The Borrower‘s literary references does make up a significant part of the reading experience, but the books Makkai alludes to are mainstream enough that most readers will be able to share in the fun. Lucy’s relatable early-adulthood ennui and insecurity make her a sympathetic character; Ian captures that delicate balance of adorable and annoying only a precocious pre-teen can truly embody.

Chicagoist has a great article on the novel here. Also check out Screwy Decimal, the blog of New York public librarian Rita Meade. Her tongue-in-cheek dispatches from library land could have been written by Lucy herself—particularly “Postcards from the Edge (of the Reference Desk),” detailing an encounter with Meade’s own feisty ten-year-old patron.

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They don’t call ‘em “graphic novels” for nothing.

Katie Bircher — Thu, 10 Feb 2011 22:29:00 +0000

Publisher BOOM! Studios usually sends review copies of their entire frontlist—kids’ and grown-ups’ comics alike—which means we get everything from Wall-E and Cars to Pale Horse and Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep?. Cindy snatched up The Muppet Show, a series she remembers fondly from childhood, but as a zombie fan I’m excited for the adult-geared 28 Days Later: The Hot Zone. (Who hunts zombies in a Catholic schoolgirl skirt? I’m just sayin’.)

What I’m really looking forward to is the Samuel L. Jackson–authored Cold Space. Starring ~~Samuel L. Jackson~~ Mulberry, “a wisecracking, butt-kicking, on-the-run-outlaw [who] crash lands on a hostile planet,” looks like it’ll be either awful or awesome. Knowing Samuel L. Jackson (of Snakes on a Plane fame/infamy), it’ll likely be a bit of both.

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Bummer.

Katie Bircher — Wed, 19 Jan 2011 18:50:00 +0000

Yesterday’s mail brought a letter promoting Henry P. Gravelle’s The Fort Providence Watch. Being a big fan of all things morbid, I’m intrigued by the synopsis:

London surgeon Dr. Paul Barnet’s career is shattered by a botched surgery and brazen attack that nearly takes his life. Because of his downfall from society, loss of skills and the love of his fiancee, Dr. Barnet attempts to regain his lost career, and surgical abilities, through an alter ego—Jack the Ripper.

Jack the Ripper does occasionally show up in children’s fiction, playing a major role in Claudio Apone’s Italian import My Grandfather Jack the Ripper, reincarnated in Ian Beck’s Pastworld, and making a cameo in Rick Yancey’s The Monstrumologist. But I don’t think we’ll be reviewing The Fort Providence Watch (or the publisher’s other stuff), as it seems unlikely that a press called “Damnation Books” publishes many kids’ books.

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