Slate recently posted an article about the original Pinocchio story, which they claim is considerably creepier than the 1940s Disney version. Now, normally this wouldn't come as much of a surprise, but I've always found even Disney's take on that story to be totally disturbing, so I guess I was a little surprised to learn how much stuff they'd actually left out...
According to Publishers Weekly, Frederick Warne has announced that it will publish The Further Tale of Peter Rabbit, written by actress Emma Thompson, in September 2012. The book is the 24th tale starring Peter Rabbit, and will be the first time Warne has published an original addition to the series of books that Beatrix Potter wrote between 1902 and 1930.
I would be more excited about this news, but I once attended a college lecture about Beatrix Potter, and the speaker cheerfully informed us that Ms. Potter had rabbits shot and stuffed so she could draw them at her convenience. It sort of took the bloom off the rose, you know?
If we gave out awards for Most Misleading Cover Art, today would go down as the day Josh Berk's The Dark Days of Hamburger Halpin passed the torch: Andreas Steinhöfel's novel The Spaghetti Detectives might look like a PBS cartoon aimed at pre-schoolers, but it reads like a junior version of Mark Haddon's The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time.
Originally written in German and translated by Chantal Wright, The Spaghetti Detectives is told via the meandering narration of Rico Doretti, a boy with an unspecified learning disability that severely limits his ability to focus. While investigating the origins of a stray spaghetti noodle found outside his apartment, Rico meets a paranoid child genius named Oscar. The boys couldn't be more different, but they form an instant, oddball connection—and when Oscar becomes the latest victim of a notorious child kidnapper, Rico is determined to find his new friend.
The Spaghetti Detectives is endearingly weird, atmospheric, and frequently very funny, but that cheery cover and wholesome tagline (“They've got to use their noodles!”) is a total bait-and-switch. While children will probably find this story less disturbing than this adult reviewer, this is still a novel that boasts passages like the following:
"Mr. 2000 has been keeping everybody in Berlin on the edge of their seats for three months. On television they said he was probably the most cunning child kidnapper of all time. Some people call him the ALDI kidnapper, after the cut-price supermarket, because his ransoms are so low. He lures little boys and girls into his car and drives off with them, and afterward he writes their parents a letter:
DEAR PARENTS: IF YOU WOULD LIKE LITTLE CLAUDIA BACK, IT WILL COST YOU ONLY 2000 EUROS. THINK CAREFULLY BEFORE GETTING THE POLICE INVOLVED OVER SUCH A RIDICULOUSLY SMALL SUM, BECAUSE IF YOU DO, YOUR CHILD WILL COME BACK TO YOU PIECE BY PIECE.
Up until now none of the parents have told the police until after they had paid up and their child popped up safe. But everybody in Berlin is waiting for the day when some little Claudia or Alexander doesn't come home in one piece because their parents have messed up. Maybe some people would be secretly happy that their child had been kidnapped and wouldn't cough up a penny. Or they might be really poor and only have fifty euros to their name. If you only gave Mr. 2000 fifty euros, it's likely that the only piece left of your child would be a hand. It would be less noticeable. And a giant box for everything-minus-the-hand would cost fifty euros in postage all by itself."
See what I mean? That cover is doing this well-written, original mystery no favors: middle readers (and older kids) will be turned off by the cartoonish artwork, and little kids will be stuck reading a book they're too young to appreciate.
I've never read Michael Morpurgo's novel War Horse (I don't like wartime tearjerkers or sad animal stories, and this sucker manages to be both), and I am now 100% certain I won't be seeing the movie version, either:
Doom, gloom, and cute animals in pain? Noooo, thank you.
After years of finding Gwyneth Paltrow unbearably full of herself, I'm learning to appreciate her. I still think she's insane, but insane in a fun way, you know? But while reading her GOOP newsletter is usually like getting lifestyle tips from Marie Antoinette*, she recently posted a list of recommended children's books, and it's 100% normal and appropriate and sane.
...which is kind of a letdown, really.
*Like, she'll mention something normal, like socks, but in a completely out-of-touch-with-reality way. See: $45 cashmere socks.
Has everybody seen this awesome fake political ad for the upcoming City of Ember adaptation?
I like the idea of this spot, but I think Bill Murray is too smirky for the role. We like our politicians to at least fake sincerity, and he's sarcastic to the core.
Barnes and Noble currently has this 6-DVD set on sale for $35.99--not a bad price, considering the quality, entertainment value, and overwhelming wholesomeness of this collection, which includes readings of Where the Wild Things Are, Harold and the Purple Crayon, Chicka Chicka Boom Boom, Chrysanthemum, Pete's a Pizza, and Miss Nelson Has a Field Day, as well as several minor works by the featured authors.
Man convicted of killing 'Curious George' co-author
A jury convicted Vincent Puglisi on Tuesday of killing Alan Shalleck, the writer and director of dozens of short episodes of the Disney TV show Curious George and co-writer (with original creator Margret Rey) of several Curious George books. Shalleck was killed in a murder/robbery in February 2006. Puglisi was convicted of first-degree murder and robbery with a deadly weapon, while his co-defendant, Rex Ditto, pleaded guilty to first-degree murder and robbery with a weapon in 2007 and was sentenced to life in prison.
Hopefully this news brings some closure to members of Mr. Shalleck's family....
The NPR feature The Writer's Almanac informs me that today is Heidi author Johanna Spyri's birthday.
I haven't read Heidi in 15 years, but it's been lurking around in the background of my mind lately. My Austrian film student cousin mentioned that she's working on a show about the Austrian mountains, which--in a roundabout way--reminded me of Spyri's book. (I realize Heidi is set in Switzerland, but mountains are mountains, right?) I have vague memories of being irritated by the movie versions, but thinking the book was actually pretty good. I'll have to pick up a copy and see how the story has aged...
Slate is currently featuring an entertaining but much too short slide show about the evolution of children's book art from the dull "improving" stories of the mid-19th century to the weirder and more dynamic world of 20th-century children's classics. Unfortunately, such a tiny collection (only twelve images, and two of 'em are Sendak pictures) means that Slate's story covers less than one artist per decade*.
*We were sorry to see that images from author/illustrators Peter S. Newell, author of The Slant Book, and Norman Lindsay, author of The Magic Pudding, didn't make the cut.
Above image from "Goop Tales Alphabetically Told", by Gelett Burgess, 1904
Slate recently posted an article about the original Pinocchio story, which they claim is considerably creepier than the 1940s Disney version. Now, normally this wouldn't come as much of a surprise, but I've always found even Disney's take on that story to be totally disturbing, so I guess I was a little surprised to learn how much stuff they'd actually left out...
