Rounding One’s Ups
I’ve too much stuff to put up. Here’s what my brain-dead fingers managed to collect before I dropped to the floor in a mildly comatose state.
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Leila confesses affection for the monkey. I sympathize. I don’t understand it, but I sympathize.
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Whether you pronounce the word "controversy" as "CON-tro-ver-see" or "con-TRAW-ver-see" (if the latter, you are British and should seek out the nearest pub) there’s one thing we can all agree on. Naked people in children’s books are good for a bit of a giggle. There’s the whole let’s-paint-shorts-on-Mikey problem that happened at a library once regarding In the Night Kitchen. Ryan Heshka’s amazing Ryan Heshka’s ABC Spookshow had a couple ladies au naturel within its pages. And there there was that little incident regarding a Ms. Rotraut Susanne Berner. Back in July there was all this talk about a German book of hers that Boyd Mills Press was slated to publish. Boyd Mills allegedly asked Ms. Berner to remove some boobs and a teeny penis from an illustration and all hell broke loose. I say "allegedly" only because I couldn’t find a single article that talked to any representatives from Boyd Mills, getting their side of the story. In any case, the Chronicle Books Blog (all together now: "There’s a Chronicle Books Blog?") has a post up right now saying that they themselves have purchased it. I’ll be interested to see how it is, though I suspect that if they were looking for good press, going the they-tried-to-take-away-my-book’s-boobs route is a pretty savvy way to fly.
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I wasn’t gonna do it, but then I felt curious. I’m pretty sure I’m the only person I know who got THIS answer from the Harry Potter Personality Quiz :
I’m a "big boned" giantess. And I’m French. How awesome is that?
- Ever have days when your font goes funky for no good reason? This is one of those days.
- I live in Manhattan, which is weird for a librarian. Most librarians can’t afford to live in Manhattan (I get cheapo rent via Columbia University, but that’s a story for another day). Most librarians live in Brooklyn where it’s hip and cool and no one in Williamsburg is under the age of 35 (this is both true, and very frightening). As such, I find myself insanely defending Manhattan against the Brooklynites that pooh-pooh her. I even find myself resisting the urge to promote cool events in that burg. Still, I’m not completely insane. There’s a cool series at the Cobble Hill Cinema, promoted on the blog Big Movies for Little Kids where Mo Willems’ Knuffle Bunny will be shown alongside the very very cool The Adventures of Prince Achmed. Prince Achmed is the "first feature-length animated film" and is done entirely via silhouettes. I saw it once when my brother-in-law managed to Tivo it on the side. A very cool pairing, showing on December 17th at 4:00 p.m.
- MotherReader took me to task yesterday for failing to note that she too has done not one, not two, but three holiday postings on pairing books with fun matching items for the kiddies. You should go and check them out if’n you have a chance.
- And for kicks, let’s end with a little game of Spot the Library. On the count of three. One…. two…. three….
SPOT THE LIBRARY!
Library #1
Library #2
Go to deputydog for more information on where these libraries are. I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again, that is how it is DONE, people!
Filed under: Uncategorized
About Betsy Bird
Betsy Bird is currently the Collection Development Manager of the Evanston Public Library system and a former Materials Specialist for New York Public Library. She has served on Newbery, written for Horn Book, and has done other lovely little things that she'd love to tell you about but that she's sure you'd find more interesting to hear of in person. Her opinions are her own and do not reflect those of EPL, SLJ, or any of the other acronyms you might be able to name. Follow her on Twitter: @fuseeight.
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Regarding nudity in children’s books: My ESTELLE TAKES A BATH (’06, illus by Mary Newell DePalma) has one shot of a naked heinie. At three of the school visits I’ve done since its release, schools have refused to offer it for sale, for fear of parents’ reactions. At a visit just yesterday, the media specialist told me that one teacher had a fit over the book’s “graphic nature,” so when sending home a pre-order form with the kids, they added a line of warning next to that book to give parents a heads-up. Disheartening, because the kids I read the book to go hysterical over Mary’s hilarious illustrations. Too bad many will miss out because they might, God forbid, get a glimpse of a butt crack.
Let’s not forget The Dirty Cowboy…or do all those discreet frogs and pheasants and boots and dust clouds mean it’s not real nudity?
Dude! I got Olympe Maxime too, although I wasn’t as flattered by the “big-boned giantess” part. (Keep in mind that I’m 5’11”, and still hauling around a bit of flub from baby #3.) But the natural teacher and leader part was good.
Okay, you got me to cave in and take the quiz, too. (But how could I resist taking a quiz written by Pirate Monkeys?) Evidently I am Remus Lupin. I’ll remember that next time I get the urge to howl at the moon…
It’s Friday afternoon and I’m catching up on my blog reading. I took the quiz and came out an ENTJ. I think that the last time I took a Myers/Briggs I was an ENFJ. I wonder if 15 years of being a library administrator has changed me!
If being a library administrator in New York City doesn’t change a person, I don’t know what would! I’ve forgotten what the test made me. I took it back in library school. The only thing that I’m sure of is that it began with an “I”. So I’ve gone from “I” to “E” in my years as a librarian. Most odd.