A Little Bit Retro

I wasn't familiar with the works of Ellen Raskin, but we inherited two of her books and I'm not sure how I could have missed these!

In Nothing Ever Happens on My Block, the opposite, of course is true.  Bringing to life the mother's aphorism that, "Only boring people are bored," Chester complains and complains about how uneventful life is on his street, totally oblivious to not only interesting but outlandish things happening right before him (or rather, behind him). 

In Spectacles, a little girl sees all kind of strange things (a fire-breathing dragon, a chestnut mare, a blue elephant) that turn out not to be at all what they seem... until she finally gets the glasses she needs.

Both were written in the 1960s and a quick Wikipedia search revealed Ms. Raskin's authored quite a few books, including some young adult novels, as well as illustrated many written by other authors.

A Little Independence Goes A Long Way

Sometimes, when you try to give your child a little independence, things don't work out exactly as planned.  And that can be all to the good.  Mistakes are, after all, part of the learning process.  But when those mistakes happen in front of judgmental passers-by, well, it's no fun for mom.  I found that out first-hand when I let my 3-year-old go through the turnstile herself when exiting the subway earlier this week, after much begging on her part.  As she pushed her way through, the turnstile whacked her in the back of the head.  But she was all smiles -she had done it herself!  Unfortunately, the moment was marred (for me, not her) not by the minor head injury but by the woman who witnessed the incident and hissed at me, "I saw that!"

Little Critter's mom would surely understand.  In All by Myself by Mercer Meyer, an unidentifiable animal known only as Little Critter (and supposedly a porcupine, as the knowledgeable staff at my fabulous local children's bookstore informed me), does a number of tasks all by himself.  But in a nice touch, the pictures sometimes belie the words - as the text tells us he can tie his shoes all by himself, we see that in fact he can tie his shoes - to each other! - while his attempt to pour juice for his sister results in quite a mess.  And at the end of the book we see that of course mommy is irreplaceable for certain things - a story, a cuddle.   That is, comfort and love.  A book with a retro feel (first published in 1983 it looks even older to me) and a timeless message this somewhat forgotten classic along with the others in the Little Critter series is worth a look.

(Gentle) Sarcasm in a Picture Book

How do pictures and words interact in a picture book?  In some, like The Seven Silly Eaters by Mary Ann Hoberman and illustrated by Marla Frazee, there are details in the illustrations which are never mentioned in the text.  In A Couple of Boys Have the Best Week Ever, another Marla Frazee work (this time she is both the author and the illustrator) the pictures and text work together to produce sarcasm and humor perfect for children ages 5-7 (and their parents). 

James and Eamon go to stay with Eamon's grandparents for a week so they can attend a nature camp nearby.  As Eamon waits for James's arrival, his grandpa Bill extols the virtues of nature.  "Eamon thought this chat was fascinating," says the text.  The accompanying illustration, however, tells us us quite the opposite.  The fact that "James was very sad when his mother drove away" is belied by the picture of James happily waving and shouting bye to his mom.  And so on, much to the amusement of the reader. 

Just like a toddler who finds the box the present came in more interesting than the gift itself, James and Eamon find much more pleasure in each other's company than in nature camp.  In this story of friendship, the fruits of boredom and how children truly can amuse and educate themselves, the gently sarcastic interplay between the illustrations and the text is the icing on the cake.

What is your favorite example of how the words and text in a picture book complement each other?

A Mom with a Hobby

In most, if not all, of the books my kids and I have read, the mothers are primarily or solely caregivers.  Yes, in the Ramona series Mrs. Quimby gets a part-time and then full-time job (is "liberated!" as her daughter Beezus says), but, although she seems to enjoy her work well enough, she does it out of economic necessity.  In picture book after picture book, the moms give hugs and kisses, prepare meals, put children to bed, and tend to all the other daily minutiae of childcare, but do not seem to be doing anything sheerly for their own pleasure. 

Enter Mrs. Peter, the cello-playing harried mother of seven in The Seven Silly Eaters by Mary Ann Hoberman and illustrated by my new favorite Marla Frazee.  Although the story is, as the title says, silly - the seven children each eat only one item - and their mother is a total pushover, the clever rhymes and the delightful illustrations make it utterly enjoyable.  As the family grows, the mom still manages to find time for her passion.  Even as one of the kids dumps oatmeal on the cat (which always makes me think of the song from The Fantasticks which laments, "Why did the kids put jam on the cat?  Strawberry jam all over the cat?  Why would the kids do something like that?  They did it 'cause we said no!"), Mrs. Peters does not get up from her cello but yells at the offender across the room.  Although the cello disappears from the illustrations midway through the story as Mrs. Peters is overwhelmed by her household, in the end, she takes it up again.  

Of note (pun intended) is the fact that the cello is never mentioned in the text - we only see it in those charming illustrations.  Whose idea was it, I wondered, to include the cello?  The author's or the illustrator's? 

So I emailed Ms. Frazee, who graciously wrote back within hours.  Apparently, I was not the first person with these questions.  Linda Urban had previously "interviewed" Ms. Frazee by email and reprinted the conversation, which included this topic, on her blog, Crooked Perfect (full links included below).  Ms. Frazee gave exactly the answer I was hoping for: she put the cello in because she thought the mom needed to be defined by something other than her status as a mother alone.  And for that, I, for one, am grateful.

Can you think of any other picture books or early chapter books where the mother has a hobby, a passion, an interest besides her children?

Here are the links to the full conversation.  The last link is the one that discusses  The Seven Silly Eaters specifically, while the others talk more generally about the process of illustrating picture books, including the collaboration with the author and editor and about what makes a book a picture book.  I highly recommend the entire series.  Enjoy!

http://lurban.livejournal.com/2008/08/22/

http://lurban.livejournal.com/2008/08/23/

http://lurban.livejournal.com/2008/08/24/

http://lurban.livejournal.com/2008/08/25/

http://lurban.livejournal.com/2008/08/26/