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Archive for the ‘Children’s Books’ Category

Bannister & Nykko–The ElseWhere Chronicles Book Four: The Calling (2009) & Book Five: The Parting (2011) [translated 2010/2011]

Posted in Bannister, Boredom, Carol Klio Burrell, Children's Books, Fantasy, Fears, Garbage, Nykko, Short Books, Supernatural on February 9, 2013| Leave a Comment »

elsewhere4SOUNDTRACK: GARBAGE-Not Your Kind of People (2012).

notyourkinddAfter Bleed, I had basically given up on Garbage.  And they had given up as well, so it made the breakup easier.  For seven years they stayed away, but in 2012 the band reunited and released Not Your Kind of People.  I wasn’t planning to get it–two great albums and two very mediocre albums l leave a listener with a tough decision   But I heard good things–a return to form, less dance more rock and I gave in.

And it was a good choice.  The slickness is still there, which makes sense given who we are dealing with, but it feels more powerful than recent albums and, even better, Manson seems angrier which always makes her vocals better.

“Big Bright World” could have been a hit (for a new band) although it’s a little generic.  “Blood for Poppies” returns to that good grungy guitar sound and yet with its “Wo Ho Ohs” it also has pop song trappings.  “Control” is big and loud with some interesting sounds thrown on top.  It’s probably the closest to 2.0  Even the chorus is very old school Garbage, something they seemed to shy away from on the last two albums.

“Not Your Kind of People is a slow ballady type song but it stands above their recent ballads–the song is cleaner and darker, much more interesting.  And given how sweet the backing vocals of the chorus sound, I’m surprised I like it as much I do.  “Felt” has a real “Stupid Girl” feel to it, except for the poppy bridge.  I don’t like the end where she repeats the Oh oh oh oh oh oh oh bit, but that’s just something I dislike about pop music in general.  “I Hate Love” brings in all of the glitches and electronics that the band uses so effectively, and despite the retro-90s feel of that, it really adds to the music.  “Sugar” is a beautiful slow song. The kind that, when they do it well, sounds great.

“Battle in Me”  is almost a great song.  The guitar builds and then stops short–it worked so well on “Supervixen” but sounds just too sterile here–the technology too crisp or something   But “Man on a Wire” does everything right–the guitars, Shirley’s screaming/singing, the rough guitars–it’s a shame this is buried so far down on the album.  “Beloved Freak” is a nice closer although as I complained from “Special” quoting someone else’s song in your song is cool once, but dong it again sounds lazy. So here we get her ending the song with a line from “This Little light of Mine” which doesn’t work and rather than making you smile like it did on Special it makes you go, “Huh?”  Plus as anyone who ever wrote a paper knows, never end with someone else’s words!

Still, this is a nice return to creative excitement from the band.  And while it never reaches the majesty of their first two albums it comes close to some of their past glories.

[READ: February 1, 2013] The ElseWhere Chronicles Book Four and Five

After a hiatus, Bannister & Nykko return with what feels like a new version of The Elsewhere Chronicles.  The look of the art is slightly different.  It’s clearly the same artist but the lines and angles look a little different on the characters–just a wee bit harsher.  It’s odd.  But it shows that things are a little different now.

The setting is nine moths after the end of book three.  Max has not spoken to any of the others since the lat book when his mother slapped him. Indeed, he’s been hanging around with his brother and his brother’s friends who are no good (especially to Max).  But Theo and Noah had rescued a bunch of things from Grandpa Gabe’s house.  They stored them safely somewhere before the house was demolished.  Meanwhile, Rebecca has been ill and hasn’t seen any of them.  She believes that the illness was caused in the other world and knows she needs to return there to get better.

Max is having a hard time with his new gang  They don’t respect him at all and he actually hates hanging around with them all.  In fact they just kicked him out of their gang and he is sulking when he believes he sees Rebecca.  Could she really have returned?  He follows her as she goes to her grandpa’s house.  She starts to break down when she sees that it was demolished.  She’s about to despair when and old friend sees her and gives her comfort.

Noah and Theo show her that they have Gabe’s possessions.  And they show her that the have figured out how to use the machine.  So they reactivate the passageway and the three of them return to the other world.  Before we can really see what happens over there, Max heads off to the hiding place.  He also passes through the passageway where he runs into Gabe who (after threatening to kill Max) offers to drive him to where Rebecca and the boys must be.

They arrive just as Rebecca and friends sneak into a cave.  Gabe says that the cave leads to nothing but danger.  And as the book ends, we see that that is true…. (more…)

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Bannister & Nykko–The ElseWhere Chronicles Book Three: The Master of Shadows (2008) [translated 2009]

Posted in Bannister, Carol Klio Burrell, Children's Books, Fantasy, Fears, Nykko, Short Books, Supernatural, The Amoeba People on February 4, 2013| Leave a Comment »

ElsewhereBk3_C1SOUNDTRACK:  THE AMOEBA PEOPLE-“The Geologists Are Coming” (2012).

geologistThis is, “a special audio poem from The Amoeba People in honor of those hard-working scientists who carry tiny hammers and chip at the crust.”  It’s a very simple rap and drum song about Geologists (of course).  The middle section gives a nice alphabetic breakdown of the letters of the word.

But the best part of the song is clearly the chorus which is very very catchy.

The problems (such as they are) with the song are these: it’s very very short (under two minutes) and it could use some extra kind of musical sound to it–maybe a five minute version with guitars is  in order.  But, even without the guitars, the song is fun to sing along to:

[READ: January 21, 2013] The ElseWhere Chronicles Book Three

Had I known that the series would come to a major halt with book three (and then resume a year later) I would have included Book Three with 1 & 2.  As it stands, Book Three gives what would be a decent but unsatisfying conclusion to the story, although since it ends with The End…? readers may have been not too upset by the conclusion.

The book opens with Rebecca, Max, Noah, and Theo are reunited and taking pictures of themselves in their elsewhere location (although the one just shows them on a beach–not really proof of anything otherworldly (other photos do show otherworldly scenes).  They find a boat and sail across the sea.  But in the process their mynah bird (the one who alerts them to t he presence of danger) is killed by a seagull.

They land in a village where thy are given gifts (we later see a statue that looks a lot like Rebecca o their grounds).  They find their way to a cave where Grandpa Gabe had a lot of his supplies (and which was currently inhabited by a very large and scary creature.  They find a map and instructions about how to jump between worlds.  But that night they are attacked by the Shadow Creatures and even see the Master of Shadows himself.  During the confrontation Doleann returns to assist but Ilvanna, recognizing someone in the shadow spirit, embraces it, which kills her instantly.  Doleann says that Minervale the dragon is about to give birth to two dragons, which will help in their fight against the Master of Shadows.   (more…)

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Roddy Doyle–Her Mother’s Face (2012)

Posted in All Songs Considered, Babies, Children's Books, Death, Dublin, Ireland, Fiona Apple, Freya Blackwood, Irish Writer, Roddy Doyle, Short Books on February 2, 2013| Leave a Comment »

hermotherSOUNDTRACK: FIONA APPLE-The Idler Wheel is Wiser than the Driver of the Screw and Whipping Cords will Serve You More than Ropes Will Ever Do [bonus DVD] (2012).

idlerThe deluxe package of The Idler Wheel comes with a bonus DVD.  It also comes with a ton of idle scratchings from Fiona–lyrics, artwork (which is weird but good), postcards and all manner of things.  I wasn’t particularly interested in that stuff, although I am pleasantly surprised by her drawing skills.  Mostly I wanted to check out the DVD.

So the DVD is actually a five song concert excerpt from SXSW filmed by NPR.  I have to assume that the show was more than these five songs (because there are breaks in the video and because there’s no way she would do just five songs).  Also, the NPR page for the show says she played a few different songs from Idler Wheel.  There’s audio for the show on the site (three of the five songs) which kind of makes the DVD extraneous, except that you get to watch her perform.

When Fiona was younger there was much talk of her videos being too sexualized.  And I suppose “Criminal” fit that bill.  As such, she has become something of a visual artist by virtue of her body.  I’d always thought that she was too skinny, but she seems even more so now.  And yet for all the waifiness of her (are you still a waif when you’re 35?), her voice is till strong and powerful and she can belt the hell out of a song (perhaps with a little too much forced vibrato at times).

She seems a little at a loss when she’s in that awkward frontwoman space (my guitarist is playing a rocking solo–what do I do?).  She dances somewhat (which NPR describes as confidently but I read as awkwardly, huh).

In this live setting the songs take on a new, looser feel.  As I mentioned, the guitarist  really lets loose (and he sounds great–there’s even one moment when Fiona walks over to the piano and leans on it to watch the guitarist jam).  The band sounds great together and yes Fiona sounds great too.

I actually saw Fiona live in Boston on the tour for her debut album.  Unfortunately, the place was mobbed with tweeny girls (was that her target market?) who screamed and shrieked through the whole set.  It was one of the worst shows I’d ever seen, through no fault of the performer, who I honestly don’t remember at all.  I’ll bet without the devoted screamers the show would have been as interesting as this one seems like it was.

Tracks on the DVD include “Fast As You Can,” “A Mistake,” “Anything We Want,” “Sleep To Dream” and “Every Single Night.”  On the NPR page you can hear “Fast As You Can,” “A Mistake,” and “Every Single Night” as well as “Extraordinary Machine” (on which she hits some amazing high notes!).  There’s no “Sleep to Dream” (which has a very different style than on the record–I almost didn’t recognize it) or “Anything We Want” which sounds great live, especially since she (presumably) plays the introductory percussion (which I assume is looped?) on some strange object.  This was the first time most of us had heard “Every Single Night” and I remember thinking it sounded good but so uncomplicated that I was worried that the album would be a little…flat.  Boy was I wrong.  And now hearing it again, I can hear just how subtle and complex the song is.

[READ: January 28, 2013] Her Mother’s Face

This was Roddy Doyle’s first picture book (you can see that once I found out that he had written children’s books I had to get them all from the library).  I read this after Greyhound of Girl, and assumed that it was a slimmed down version of Greyhound.  But now that I see that this came first I’m inclined to believe that this book was the inspiration for Greyhound.

Many of the basic details are the same as Greyhound–a girl whose mother died when she was three years old; a ghost visits her and gives her solace.  That may not seem like a lot of similarity but in terms of plot that’s really all both books have (it’s the details that really make both stories).

But they are very different books meant for different audiences.  Face is a picture book and the illustrations by Freya Blackwood are simply gorgeous.  Really they are quite mesmerizing in their beauty.  I read it to myself and decided that it’s not really meant for my kids.  Neither of them are really old enough to get it (and the death of the mom at age three might lead to more questions than I need to answer at the moment).

It’s wordy for a picture book and it doesn’t have much of Doyle’s humor in it.  This is serious book. (more…)

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Roddy Doyle–The Giggler Treatment (2000)

Posted in Babies, C., Children's Books, Funny (ha ha), Nicholson Baker, Poo, Roddy Doyle, Scrubs, Short Books, Trilogy, Yuck! on January 31, 2013| Leave a Comment »

gigglerSOUNDTRACK: SCRUBS-“Everything Comes Down to Poo” (2007).

Iscrubsn season 7 of Scrubs, they created a musical episode (trendy yes, but pretty much always funny) called “My Musical.”  One of the highlights was the song “Everything Comes Down to Poo” in which Turk and JD sing to a patient that they need a stool sample.  The song is full of a ton of different terms for poo and where it comes out (and it’s all rated PG).

It’s very funny and quite clever, given the subject.  Who doesn’t love seeing a chorus of doctors and nurses high kicking down a hospital corridor singing “Everything comes down to poo.”

Enjoy:

[READ: January 30, 2013] The Giggler Treatment

Who knew that Roddy Doyle, humorist of Barrytown and very serious chronicler of women’s pain would write an outrageously silly children’s book about dog poo?  I don’t know what prompted him to write this book (he has written several children’s books since), but he manages the chapter book format with aplomb and a slight (hilarious) disrespect for the genre.

So The Giggler Treatment is structured in a manner not unlike Nicholson Baker’s early novels in that pretty much all of the action takes place over the span of about a minute.  Mister Mack is about to step in a huge pile of dog poo.  And  the story flashes around to different pieces of information as we watch with bated breath for his shoe to inch its way closer to fate.

Mister Mack is a decent bloke, a good father, a hardworking biscuit taster (a different biscuit every day from the factory where he works).  [Incidentally, I assume that these details are extra for the American edition, but Doyle includes a warning that explains that biscuits are what they call cookies in Ireland. There’s also a hilarious glossary which translate rudies, bums, knickers and other things for young U.S readers.]  Mister Mack is on his way to work, but is distracted by a talking seagull (who hates fish) and while his head is turned his foot is headed right Rover’s poo. (more…)

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Dav Pilkey–Captain Underpants and the Invasion of the Incredibly Naughty Cafeteria Ladies from Outer Space (And the Subsequent Assault of the Equally Evil Lunchroom Zombie Nerds) (1999)

Posted in Children's Books, Dav Pilkey, Funny (ha ha), Sara Hickman, Yuck! on January 30, 2013| 1 Comment »

capn3SOUNDTRACK: SARA HICKMAN-Radiation Man (1997).

Tmisfitshis is a bouncy song from Sara Hickman  a folkie who I saw open for Natalie Griffith many years ago.  I liked her enough to get a couple of her CDs back in the 90s (Her song “500X (The Train Song)” blew me away.  And one of those CDs was Misfits, from which this song comes.  It’s a collection of oddities which is why a silly song like this is on it.  Interestingly, I know Hickman more recently as a children’s music maker. W e have her CDs Newborn and Toddler.

So this song is about Radiation Man. He’s having a bad day.  He landed his spaceship on the planet and when he waved to everyone he radiated everything in sight.  Oops.  There’s no real redemption for Radiation Man, but the song does try to mak e you feel better about your mistakes.  It’s also got some fun backing vocals and comments from the other musicians.  It’s a bit of fun.

The end of the song encourages everyone to  take off their clothes and mingle naked.  And to send your clothes to her so she knows you bought the CD.    It’s not too late to still do so.

[READ: January 22, 2013] Captain Underpants and the Invasion of the Incredibly Naughty Cafeteria Ladies from Outer Space (And the Subsequent Assault of the Equally Evil Lunchroom Zombie Nerds)

I admit that one of the things that I really like about Captain Underpants is the really absurdly long titles that Pilkey gives the books.  And it is quite accurate as well.  Like the previous book, this one opens with a summary of the life of Captain Underpants so far.  We see all of the details and learn that a snap of a finger turns Principal Krupp back into Captain Underpants.

The book opens with George and Harold learning about adding vinegar to baking soda and making a volcano.  They decide to play a great prank by creating a recipe for Principal Krupp’s birthday  cupcakes that contain baking soda and vinegar.  The lunch ladies make a batch that is ten times the size and it floods the halls with the fizzy lava.  And then the lunch ladies quit.

As it turns out, three aliens named Zorx, Klax and Jennifer landed on the roof of George and Harold’s school.  They intend to take over the world, and with the lunch ladies having left, they apply for the jobs.  That day they serve  a hilariously awful menu to the kids (a menu that George and Harold marvel at because it sounds like something they would change the menu board to say).  The highlight is Zombie Nerd Milkshakes.

George and Harold did not have the milkshakes and are thus unaffected.  When they see that the lunch ladies are really aliens, they investigate.  They discover the evil growth serum and pour it out a window.  Right on a dandelion (uh oh). (more…)

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Roddy Doyle–A Greyhound of a Girl (2012)

Posted in Babies, Big Bang Boom, Children's Books, Death, Dublin, Ireland, Irish Writer, Roddy Doyle, Short Books on January 28, 2013| Leave a Comment »

greyhoundSOUNDTRACK: BIG BANG BOOM-“Hippie Mom” (2012).

big bangThis song is a loving tribute to crunchy, loving hippie moms (“granola making yoga taking,”  “I love to watch her twirl and sing.  She loves me more than anything.”)  While the song definitely teases some of the clichés of a hippie mom, it is a sweet, happy song.

It’s got a kind of rockabilly sound that makes you want to tap your feet and sing along.  I’d not hear of Big Bang Boom before, but I need to hear more from them.

[READ: January 28, 2013] A Greyhound of a Girl

After reading Doyle’s story in McSweeney’s recently I checked out to see what he had been up to.  I had no idea he had written a series of children’s books.  And this one was the most recent (and the library had it!), so I had to see what Mr Doyle could do for kids.

Well, this is an extremely heartwarming and sad story about four generations of Irish women.  It’s delightfully simple with very few characters.  And for that, it packs a wallop.

Mary is a twelve-year-old girl living in Dublin.  She has two brothers, who don’t really enter the story but I mention them since their names are Killer and Dommo.  Mary’s best friend, Ava, has just moved away and she is devastated.  On the way home from school–the way she usually walks with Ava, an old woman–well, she’s actually young, like a young adult, but she is dressed old and talks like her granny–asks about her gran.  Her gran, Emer, is in the hospital.  She’s very old and is clearly not long for the world.

Mary tells her mother, Scarlett, about the old woman and how the old woman seemed to know her gran.  She’d said her name was Tansey.  Scarlett is taken aback.  She explains that Emer’s mother was named Tansey, and isn’t that a weird coincidence.  Then, we flashback and learn the history of this family.  Tansey died when Emer was but  three years old.  Tansey’s mother helped to raise Emer and her baby brother with their father.  Later, Emer gave birth to Scarlett, and 12 years ago Scarlett had Mary.  We learn about the farm that Emer grew up on and how she hated the greyhounds that her father raised for racing–they were too skinny and pointy. (more…)

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Bannister & Nykko–The ElseWhere Chronicles Book One: The Shadow Door & Book Two: The Shadow Spies (2007) [translated 2009]

Posted in Bannister, Boredom, Carol Klio Burrell, Children's Books, Fantasy, Fears, Nykko, Short Books, Supernatural, The Board of Education on January 25, 2013| Leave a Comment »

elsewhere1SOUNDTRACK: THE BOARD OF EDUCATION-“Know Your Inventors, Part I” (2008).

boardI enjoyed yesterday’s Board of Education song so much I wanted to listen to more.  So I went back to their first album for this song whose title intrigued me.  To my surprise, the song is very slow, a languid kid’s song?  Of course, this being a kid’s song, it does run through a series of styles.  The song picks up the pace some, then throws in a waltz, a little disco and a mildly catchy chorus (all in three minutes).

The song is about the inventor of pavement (“nobody knows his name”): William W. Averell, and it’s informative and kind of funny.

It’s not nearly as catchy as yesterday’s song, but it has moments of joy.  I now wonder if this is a different sound for the band on their first album or if all of their songs sound different.

You can hear it here.

[READ: January 21, 2013] The ElseWhere Chronicles Books One & Two

I found this series at the library–Book One was prominently displayed and it looked really interesting.  The artwork on the cover (and inside, it turns out) was really compelling–simple lines (little white circles for eyes for some of the characters) and a bunch of kids looking scared–what more could you want?

So it turns out that Book One is cool, but Book Two is amazing.

In Book One, Max Theo and Noah are watching a funeral (well, they are sitting in a graveyard) for Old Man Gabe, a local eccentric who lives in a haunted house.  Meanwhile, a young girl, Rebecca, is with her family watching them bury her Grandpa Gabe.  (I don’t know if this is significant, but Rebecca is black and her parents/guardians are white with two white children, but nothing is made of this in book one except that someone points out that she is black.  She says she was adopted, and that’s that).  She never met Gabe (and neither did her father–who has a hip soul patch).

Rebecca wants to explore Gabe’s house–she is not afraid of it being haunted (there’s wonderful surprises as they tread through the building).  But all of the rooms are strangely empty.  Except the library which is full of books, including some written by Gabe.  There is talk of demolishing the house, and Rebecca is now determined to save the books.  But the kids also discover a kind of movie projector.  And when they turn it on it opens a kind of portal.  And Rebecca gets sucked into it.

The boys eventually get her out–she says it was locked from her side and she looks awful.  But before they can lock it again, she is grabbed by something from the other world and dragged back in.  Max jumps through the portal to save her and they are both trapped in this new world.  The reason I said book 1 wasn’t as good as 2 is because the world they go into is dark with lots of shadows and hard to see things.  It’s scary (but not really) but not very easy to figure out what’s happening.

Then they run into an old man (who speaks English and a young girl (who doesn’t) .  They assume he is Grandpa Gabe, but he later claims he is not, he is Norgavol and he explains this world to them.  A little. (more…)

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Hergé–Tintin: Cigars of the Pharoah (1934) [translated 1971]

Posted in Adventure, Africa, Ben Folds, Children's Books, Culture Shock, Egyptology, Funny (ha ha), Funny (strange), Gangsters, Hergé, Kids Corner, Leslie Lonsdale-Cooper, Michael Turner, Ralph's World, Star Wars, The Board of Education, Travel, WXPN 88.5 FM--Philadelphia, PA on January 24, 2013| Leave a Comment »

cigarsSOUNDTRACK: THE BOARD OF EDUCATION-“Why is Dad So Mad?” (2012).

dadI heard this song on Kids Corner and I am frankly shocked that it didn’t make the top ten songs of the year (kids have no taste).  Why is dad so mad?  Because of what George Lucas has done to the Star Wars movies!   “Why does dad get so mad about Star Wars.  Mr Lucas what have you done?”

 The lyrics are so good I didn’t even really notice the music at first (check out: “and I wonder why it’s so bad that Greedo shoots first at Han.”  “He’s always excited when those yellow words come on, but by the end he’s mad about that new Ewok song.”

But the music is great too.  It has a kind of Ben Folds vibe (in the slow piano section) mixed with a little Ralph’s World, but the whole package is a wee bit heavier–the guitars are a  little distorted (but not very) and the pace is brisk and fun.

The song is also full of cool spacey sound effects (and a nice nod to the soundtrack).  The chorus is catchy and poppy.   A wonderful song.  I’m going to investigate The Board of Education a bit more.  In the meantime, check out Why is Dad So Mad?.

[READ: January 19, 2013] Cigars of the Pharoah

This second (technically fourth) Tintin book was a lot more focused than In America, which, although excellent, tended to ramble all over the country.

This book sees Tintin in the Mediterranean Sea on a cruise.  The action starts right away when a bumbling man named Dr Sarcophagus, an Egyptologist, crashes into Tintin saying that he lost his valuable papyrus.  The papyrus blows out to sea, but the Dr says, that indeed it wasn’t the valuable papyrus at all, which is safely in his coat.  It’s a weird moment, but we slowly learn that the Dr is more than a little absent minded.  Nevertheless, the papyrus has a map on it that he believes will lead to the undiscovered tomb of the Pharaoh Kih-Oskh (nice joke there).

I said that the last Tintin book wasn’t quite for kids and the same is true here.  Two men, Thompson and Thompson (more on them) accuse Tintin of smuggling opium and cocaine (again, did kids read this in the 30s?).  Thompson and Thompson are funny in that they look alike and when one says something the other twists the words slightly to radically alter their meaning while using most of the same words.  Anyhow, they “arrest” Tintin, but as in America, he escapes in an unlikely way and meets up with Dr Sarcophagus.

Tintin, Snowy and Sr Sarcophagus escape some violent deaths in a number of funny ways (like when the sheik who hates Westerners recognizes Tintin from his adventures (he even has a book–although in this later edition it is actually a book that came out after this one.

In another scene, Tintin rescues a woman who is being beaten, only to find out that he is actually on a film set.  Later, he winds up on a ship of smugglers, is forced to enlist in the Arabian army and is eventually made to face a firing squad. (more…)

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Dav Pilkey–Captain Underpants and the Attack of the Talking Toilets (1999)

Posted in Captain Bogg and Salty, Children's Books, Dav Pilkey, Funny (ha ha), Jake and the Never Land Pirates, The Dead Milkmen, Yuck! on January 21, 2013| Leave a Comment »

toiletsSOUNDTRACK: CAPTAIN BOGG & SALTY-“Scurvy” (1999).

saltyFor the first Captain Underpants book I used “The Puking Song” as a soundtrack.  Turns out that would have been better suited for this book as the are a lot of puking  toilets in this story.

Captain Bogg & Salty scored the number 4 slot in this year’s WXPN/Kid’s Corner vote for best song of the year.  I’m always confused when a song makes their Ton Ten list and I had never heard it (we listen a lot, but not all the time; however there are some songs that we hear constantly .

The song is thirteen years old and comes from their debut album.   But before I get into the song I need to copy this line from Wikipedia: Captain Bogg and Salty is a pirate-themed rock band from Portland, Oregon, and a representative member of the subgenre of pirate rock.

Subgenre of pirate rock.  I love it.

So “Scurvy” is a fast-paced shanty with the sensible lyrical precaution: “when there is scurvy on your pirate ship…eat a lime.  EAT A LIME!”  What else is on the pirate ship?  Cannonballs, peglegs, rum and er…rabbits?  This song is fun and rocking and very silly.    I really hope to hear it on the radio some night.

So the band performs for both children and adults.   And, amusingly they perform the same songs (in full costume) for both audiences

Turns out members of this band also write music for Jake and the Never Land Pirates, which my daughter loves.  A nice circle.   Now I’m off to uncover this pirate rock subgenre.

[READ: January 22, 2013] The Adventures of Captain Underpants

I enjoyed the first Captain Underpants book and Clark has been digesting them very quickly.  So I thought I’d check out the sequel.  And it does not disappoint.

The book opens with a recap of the first book, in hilarious comic book form (drawn by the kids).  The short book ends with the warning from George and Harold (who deny responsibility) not to snap your fingers around Principal Krupp because it will make him turn back into Captain Underpants (which was in the instructions for the HypnoRing that they discarded).

But before we even see the Captain, we see George and Harold in school.  They are very excited to read that the upcoming Invention Convention features a grand prize of being Principal for a Day.  They immediately decide to win it.  Then we get a flashback to last year’s convention where not only did they not wind, they put glue on everyone’s seat and got in huge trouble.  But this year, Krupp is ready for them and has not only banned then from submitting, he has banned them from even attending.

This doesn’t stop them of course, in fact, it just makes them sneak into the auditorium the night before to play tricks on everyone’s projects.  I have great respect for Pilkey for a) the crazy inventions he has the kids make and b) the clever way he pranks them.  But before they can do any damage they see that Melvin Sneedly has created the PATSY 2000 from a photocopier.  The boys mock the name until he explains that it’s an acronym for Photo-Atomic Trans-Somgobulating Yectofantriplutoniczanziptomiser.  Which is an absurd way of saying that it photocopies pictures and makes them come to life. (more…)

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Barry Deutsch–Hereville: How Mirka Got Her Sword (2010)

Posted in Barry Deutsch, Children's Books, Decadence, Demons, Graphic Novel, Matisyahu, Religion, Short Books on January 18, 2013| Leave a Comment »

mirkaSOUNDTRACK: MATISYAHU-“Chop ‘Em Down” (2004).

matisyaMatisyahu was something of a novelty when he appeared in 2004–a Hasid who performed dancehall reggae.  And yes, it does look very strange.  But he is quite adept at the style.  And lyrically it works really well.  Reggae is (often) a very spiritual music so Matisyahu’s own spiritualism works with the beats he lays down.  Instead of Jah, we hear about Egypt and Pharaoahs.  And the “scatting” that he does is like the scatting found in more typical reggae but it has a more Middle Eastern feel.  It’s a neat concept and well executed.

This is not a style of music that I like a lot (one song is usually enough for me), but I really like the sound he has conjured.  It’s clear that he transcends the novelty and is a genuine fan of the music.  It’s an interesting way to expand people’s horizons (on both sides).

Interestingly, in 2011, Matisyahu shaved off his beard and dropped his Orthodoxy.  He is still spiritual, but without the trappings of his faith.  Fascinating.  Here’s a before and after photo.

matismatisy

[READ: January 18, 2012] Hereville: How Mirka Got Her Sword

I enjoyed the second book in this series quite a lot.  So I found the first one to read too.  Who can pass up a book subtitled: Yet another troll-fighting 11 year-old Orthodox Jewish girl.  I had said that you didn’t need the first one to enjoy the second one.  And that’s true, although I now know that the first one would have laid down a foundation for me to enjoy the second one even more.

What is neat about this story is that there isn’t a lot of exposition up front.  We learn that Mirka is an 11-year-old Orthodox Jew living with her family (which contains many siblings).  She is a little wild and not interested in being “good.”  She’s not bad at all, just spirited–she really wants to fight a dragon.  It’s not until later in the story that we learn that she has a stepmother (unless that is obvious to Orthodox readers from the way Mirka addresses her) and that there may actually be dragons in this world.

The book presents Orthodox life and its day to day realities.  It doesn’t explain or justify the details, it just shows them (with occasional translations of Yiddish terms).  Although it must be admitted that Hereville, where the family lives, is a bit unlike other communities.  Everyone who lives there is Orthodox and non-Orthodox reading materials are not permitted.  And indeed, when a pig shows up, the children don’t know what it is. (more…)

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