I want to read "Curious George and the Ebola Virus"
January 11, 2010 3:51 PM Subscribe
Curious Pages bills itself as "recommended inappropriate books for kids." Perhaps you want to know what to do with a Dead Bird. Or find A Head for Happy. And did you know that Andy Warhol wrote a children's book? via
WEIRD. Splunge, I read that one too when I was a kid. Can't recall when or where, but those illustrations are kind of unforgettable.
Thanks, chihiro, this is supa-cool.
posted by Knicke at 4:26 PM on January 11, 2010
Thanks, chihiro, this is supa-cool.
posted by Knicke at 4:26 PM on January 11, 2010
Now, you seem to have a bit of artistic ability, don’t let this failure deter you from trying again. By now you probably have a nice safe day job, but keep drawing. If nothing else it’s a worthwhile hobby! Not everyone is meant to be famous, after all.
Nice advice for Andy!
posted by kozad at 5:05 PM on January 11, 2010 [1 favorite]
Nice advice for Andy!
posted by kozad at 5:05 PM on January 11, 2010 [1 favorite]
I read the Dead Bird book as a teenager -- I thought it was hilarious.
posted by ClaudiaCenter at 5:06 PM on January 11, 2010
posted by ClaudiaCenter at 5:06 PM on January 11, 2010
You know, I could have done with that Tab advice when I was a kid. Envy is a weird thing I never really learned how to deal with in my kiddie days, but at least I could have thought "No matter how rich or talented anyone else is, Tab will always taste the same."
posted by mccarty.tim at 5:24 PM on January 11, 2010
posted by mccarty.tim at 5:24 PM on January 11, 2010
When I was reviewing books for a kids magazine, I got a lot of review copies in the mail, unasked for. Don't Make Me Go Back, Mommy: A Child's Book About Satanic Ritual Abuse was probably the worst picture book I ever saw.
posted by verb at 5:29 PM on January 11, 2010
posted by verb at 5:29 PM on January 11, 2010
That Satanic Abuse book was described on Awful Library Books. Make sure you read part 2, as well. It's ultimately depressing and disturbing, and pointless since it turns out satanic abuse was pretty much made up.
posted by mccarty.tim at 5:42 PM on January 11, 2010
posted by mccarty.tim at 5:42 PM on January 11, 2010
I like some of the old Christmas illustrations: 1, 2, 3.
posted by shothotbot at 6:13 PM on January 11, 2010
posted by shothotbot at 6:13 PM on January 11, 2010
Wow. I remember being enthralled by my dad reading a library copy of Gateway to Storyland to me at the laundromat back in the late '80s. The librarians conveniently got rid of it when they decided that "you don't want your kids reading musty old books, do you?". What a treasure, and they threw it away.
posted by dunkadunc at 7:46 PM on January 11, 2010
posted by dunkadunc at 7:46 PM on January 11, 2010
That satanic abuse picture book that verb and mccarty.tim linked to is just mindbogglingly bad. Whoa.
As for the original link...lovely. I recognize a lot of the older books from my elementary school library--such beautiful illustrations.
posted by hurdy gurdy girl at 7:50 PM on January 11, 2010
As for the original link...lovely. I recognize a lot of the older books from my elementary school library--such beautiful illustrations.
posted by hurdy gurdy girl at 7:50 PM on January 11, 2010
I read this story to my kids when they were first learning to read. Unfortunately I can't remember the title. It starts out with the kids in the house smashing everything in the house. "Bangity Bangity BANG BANG BANG!!" It is fun to shout this out, or let the kids yell out the last three words.
Eventually everything in the house is smashed to bits. And they can't make any more noise by banging things and are sad. So they realize that the only solution is to build everything back together again. So they do this: "Fixity Fixity FIX FIX FIX!" Eventually everything in the house is rebuilt and as good as new.
The book quickly went out of print and I can see parents horrified when they read the first few pages. But it is really an excellent moral tale. When you are a child it is fun to knock things down and break them. One of the first interactions a baby has with the world is to knock blocks down and watch them fall to great delight. The next stage in development is to build the block tower back up. Some people never grow out of the first stage, unfortunately. But in this book, they realize the problems of destroying everything, then work hard to rebuild it.
In this era where people think they are accomplishing something by blowing things up, and often no one wants to take on the hard work of rebuilding and creating new things, the book offers an excellent moral tale.
posted by eye of newt at 8:29 PM on January 11, 2010
Eventually everything in the house is smashed to bits. And they can't make any more noise by banging things and are sad. So they realize that the only solution is to build everything back together again. So they do this: "Fixity Fixity FIX FIX FIX!" Eventually everything in the house is rebuilt and as good as new.
The book quickly went out of print and I can see parents horrified when they read the first few pages. But it is really an excellent moral tale. When you are a child it is fun to knock things down and break them. One of the first interactions a baby has with the world is to knock blocks down and watch them fall to great delight. The next stage in development is to build the block tower back up. Some people never grow out of the first stage, unfortunately. But in this book, they realize the problems of destroying everything, then work hard to rebuild it.
In this era where people think they are accomplishing something by blowing things up, and often no one wants to take on the hard work of rebuilding and creating new things, the book offers an excellent moral tale.
posted by eye of newt at 8:29 PM on January 11, 2010
The Grammar Can Be Fun book has me completely charmed. I completely want my own copy now.
posted by 8dot3 at 8:36 PM on January 11, 2010
posted by 8dot3 at 8:36 PM on January 11, 2010
The Grammar Can Be Fun book has me completely charmed. I completely want my own copy now.
Looks better then his 1976 Metric can be Fun.
posted by shothotbot at 8:57 PM on January 11, 2010
Looks better then his 1976 Metric can be Fun.
posted by shothotbot at 8:57 PM on January 11, 2010
The book I mentioned is The Banging Book by Robert Zimmerman.
and did I mention too many times that it is an excellent moral tale?
posted by eye of newt at 9:03 PM on January 11, 2010
and did I mention too many times that it is an excellent moral tale?
posted by eye of newt at 9:03 PM on January 11, 2010
What a great blog! Excellent books. Really loved the entry about The Wizard of Oz with the Klee-like illustrations. Thanks for passing this on.
posted by h00py at 12:45 AM on January 12, 2010
posted by h00py at 12:45 AM on January 12, 2010
These are good, thanks. Related: Sweet Juniper has appeared on the blue several times before, but one of my favorite things about it is the series on terrifying Nixon-era childrens' books. Some liberties may have been taken with the original text...
posted by Ella Fynoe at 3:40 AM on January 12, 2010
posted by Ella Fynoe at 3:40 AM on January 12, 2010
You had me at boners.
This is amazing.
(I loved Struwwelpeter as a kid, and this might explain a lot about the weirdly morbid adult that I became.)
posted by grapefruitmoon at 9:09 AM on January 12, 2010
This is amazing.
(I loved Struwwelpeter as a kid, and this might explain a lot about the weirdly morbid adult that I became.)
posted by grapefruitmoon at 9:09 AM on January 12, 2010
I'm not really sure that Andy Warhol can be lectured, posthumously or not, about copyright law.
posted by cmoj at 10:16 AM on January 12, 2010
posted by cmoj at 10:16 AM on January 12, 2010
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I remember reading this in first grade. I am soooooooooo old.
Excuse me while I dissolve into a pile of dust and blow away.
posted by Splunge at 4:17 PM on January 11, 2010