I Just Read About That…

SOUNDTRACK: KIDS CORNER Top Ten of 2013 (2014).

Every year I’m curious to see what the kids who vote for Kids Corner music will pick as their top ten.  It is usually reliably silly.  But this year I have to say I was a bit disappointed in their selections.  Here’s the Top um, Eleven (two were tied of tenth) from 11 to 1.

• Allan Sherman – You Went The Wrong Way Old King Louie
• Dan Zanes – Turn Turn Turn
• The Plants – Aziphrale
• Lucky Diaz and the Family Jam Band – Thingamajig
• Shine And The Moonbeams – Bully Bully
• Trout Fishing In America – My Sister Kissed Her Boyfriend
• Weird Al Yankovic – The Saga Begins
• The Doubleclicks – Worst Superpower Ever
• Ratboy Jr. – Champion Of The Universe
• Sara Hickman – Radiation Man
• The Board Of Education – Why Is Dad So Mad?

I am especially surprised by Allan Sherman as I can’t imagine that too many kids would enjoy that song (which is funny if you know your history, but not really otherwise) and while I love Dan Zanes, “Turn Turn Turn” is not exactly a rollicking fun Top Ten song.  I actually dislike “Bully Bully” and while I love Trout Fishing in America and like “My Sister,” it’s certainly not their best song (and this list isn’t just new songs obviously).  The rest of the list is quite good, though.

And it’s a great choice for number one.  But next year, kids, more silliness!

[READ: January 1, 2014] The Flying Beaver Brothers: Birds vs. Bunnies

We were unreasonably excited to see that there was a new Flying Beaver Brothers book out!  We loved the first two quite a lot, so any return of Ace and Bub is a good thing.  But to also have the return of a nasty villain is quite nice too.

Yet it’s not all the same faces, because this time there are birds and bunnies causing havoc with our heroes.

Bob and Bob (the penguins who get a brief cameo) are rebuilding Beaver Island and Bub and Ace are heading there in a boat.  But a storm rages and makes them crash.  They walk around an island where they are quickly captured by an angry bunch of bunnies who accuse them of being bird spies (those are real?).  Indeed, the birds have been playing a  very loud sound that hurts the bunnies ears and makes them go underground.  So the bunnies are fighting back with a wind machine that makes the birds leave the sky.  Both of these machines were funded by a mysterious fellow named Wally (unbeknownst to the others).

When Bub and Ace escape (with the help of a bird) they are taken to the bird lair and immediately trapped and accused of being bunny spies. They easily escape from that trap and then discover the nefarious creature behind the trouble (with a call back to Fish Stix!).  Turns out this Wally is planing on making the island perfect for squirrels–so he can make a ton of money off of them.

Will our heroes save the day?  Of course.  But not without first causing some mayhem.  The book is very funny (The joke about their little tiny ears (while not original in any way) is freaking hilarious).  Eaton’s drawings are still simple but hilarious (and adorable).  And the story was just great.  I also just found out that another Flying Beaver Brothers book was released at the same time, so I can’t wait to find that one too.