Picture me this....
Note: All opinions in this post are mine and I'm snarky, so be ready. And please don't throw rotten fruit.
I've been reading a ton of picture books lately. One might wonder, "Why is a Master's student in English reading picture books?" and this one might answer, "Because I want to get a Ph.D. in children's/adolescent lit, so Picture Books is a great class to take."
And it is great. And I love it. I was afraid I might be bored by the whole thing before I started the class, but quite to the contrary, I'm intrigued. I'm seeing a lot of weird crap in picture books that I never noticed as a child.
For instance, this past week we read Curious George, The Story of Babar, and Where the Wild Things Are. All standard picture book classics, two of which I HATED as a child, and I really can't say I like them much more now.
I was especially anti-George when I was a child. I was a well-trained young'un I suppose because I just wanted to grab George by the shoulders, shake him until his brain rattled, and tell him, "Stop. STOP IT! Stop getting in trouble you freaky little monkey!" Now, as an adult, I still wanna do some shaking, but I'd rather shake the man in the yellow hat who snatches George from his home, pops him in a sack, and takes him to live in a nice zoo (oxymoron). The man with a yellow hat should have his gonads removed with a rusty nail and be thumped against a rubber tree until he passes out. Do I sound bitter? Some of you may be thinking, "Oh Andi...it's just a kid's book!" Yeah, well, it's creepy and is a little too slavery'esque for my tastes. I don't think kids will be damaged by reading it in any way, it's just yucky. I don't think parents are "bad" parents for reading it to their kiddos...I'll likely read it to mine someday (if I have some) and if they like it, that's fine. They can make up their own minds.
The Story of Babar is a drag, too. His mother gets shot, he runs away to the society from which the hunter who shot her came, he assimilates into this new culture, goes home, marries a child, and colonizes his people so they won't be so darned "uncivilized." Again, a winner for the kiddos...good pics, nice colors...as an adult....ICKY!!
Now, Maurice Sendak....Where the Wild Things Are and In the Night Kitchen. LOVE THEM! Love 'em both. I really like Sendak's ability to let the children in his stories experience their emotions honestly and take their imaginations for a ride. He's also really honest in his willingness to admit that parents don't have as much influence as they might think! Kids are inevitably going to rebel at some point, and I think it's necessary to their maturity. After all, while Max (Wild Things) rebels in his imagination, he internalizes many of his mother's ideals and uses those to discipline the wild things. Good stuff. More complicated than one might notice upon a first reading.
And my favorite...The Watertower by Gary Crew. This is an Australian picture book that we read in my Oral Tradition and Modern Fantasy for Children class last semester. It's a really cool, creepy, film noirish type book. An entire lonely, dusty town is in under some sort of influence by the Watertower. I don't have any definitive answers...read it yourself and let me know what you think. I plan to write a paper over the idea of the Other in the book and possibly issues of colonization. Complex, well-drawn book.
I've been reading a ton of picture books lately. One might wonder, "Why is a Master's student in English reading picture books?" and this one might answer, "Because I want to get a Ph.D. in children's/adolescent lit, so Picture Books is a great class to take."
And it is great. And I love it. I was afraid I might be bored by the whole thing before I started the class, but quite to the contrary, I'm intrigued. I'm seeing a lot of weird crap in picture books that I never noticed as a child.
For instance, this past week we read Curious George, The Story of Babar, and Where the Wild Things Are. All standard picture book classics, two of which I HATED as a child, and I really can't say I like them much more now.
I was especially anti-George when I was a child. I was a well-trained young'un I suppose because I just wanted to grab George by the shoulders, shake him until his brain rattled, and tell him, "Stop. STOP IT! Stop getting in trouble you freaky little monkey!" Now, as an adult, I still wanna do some shaking, but I'd rather shake the man in the yellow hat who snatches George from his home, pops him in a sack, and takes him to live in a nice zoo (oxymoron). The man with a yellow hat should have his gonads removed with a rusty nail and be thumped against a rubber tree until he passes out. Do I sound bitter? Some of you may be thinking, "Oh Andi...it's just a kid's book!" Yeah, well, it's creepy and is a little too slavery'esque for my tastes. I don't think kids will be damaged by reading it in any way, it's just yucky. I don't think parents are "bad" parents for reading it to their kiddos...I'll likely read it to mine someday (if I have some) and if they like it, that's fine. They can make up their own minds.
The Story of Babar is a drag, too. His mother gets shot, he runs away to the society from which the hunter who shot her came, he assimilates into this new culture, goes home, marries a child, and colonizes his people so they won't be so darned "uncivilized." Again, a winner for the kiddos...good pics, nice colors...as an adult....ICKY!!
Now, Maurice Sendak....Where the Wild Things Are and In the Night Kitchen. LOVE THEM! Love 'em both. I really like Sendak's ability to let the children in his stories experience their emotions honestly and take their imaginations for a ride. He's also really honest in his willingness to admit that parents don't have as much influence as they might think! Kids are inevitably going to rebel at some point, and I think it's necessary to their maturity. After all, while Max (Wild Things) rebels in his imagination, he internalizes many of his mother's ideals and uses those to discipline the wild things. Good stuff. More complicated than one might notice upon a first reading.
And my favorite...The Watertower by Gary Crew. This is an Australian picture book that we read in my Oral Tradition and Modern Fantasy for Children class last semester. It's a really cool, creepy, film noirish type book. An entire lonely, dusty town is in under some sort of influence by the Watertower. I don't have any definitive answers...read it yourself and let me know what you think. I plan to write a paper over the idea of the Other in the book and possibly issues of colonization. Complex, well-drawn book.Next week we're reading Rose Blanche, Cats of Krasinski Square, and one more that just left me. Anyone read them?
posted by Andi at 10:44 PM
3 Comments:
Oh I love Sendak. Especially Where the Wind Things Are. We *almost* decorated Ellie's nursery with those characters. Instead Aaron painted a big Cat in the Hat on the wall. He did a great job.
Anyway, I hate to admit it, but the first book I ever "read" on my own was Curious George. While it may be creepy now, it still holds a special place because my gran taught me how to read with it (as well as others of course).
I never really got into Babar. Like you, I thought it was strange. You don't exactly see Bambi running off with the hunters, do you?
I haven't read any of the ones you're reading next week. I'd like to know if they are any good. I'm trying my best to raise a reader myself.
I haven't read the books you are reading next week either. Sadly, I haven't even heard of them.
My fifth grader just finished a big project on Sendak though. They each picked an author's name out of a hat, and he lucked out.
I must confess though that I did love Barbar. Not so much the story, but the illustrations. My favorite picture is one on the first or second page that shows little baby Barbar in a hammock. I just thought he was the cutest little elephant, and I still like that illustration today.
I've heard of Curious George and Where the Wild Things Are but never seen either in any form.
And am only familar with Babar from the cartoons. Which didn't overly impress me :)
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