ReRelease Alert!: The New York Review Children’s Collection

Did you know that Russell Hoban is alive and well in England?  Yup.  Fine as fishhair, if reports are to be believed.  Best known alongside Lillian (1925-1998) for the Frances books (Bread and Jam for Frances, etc. etc.) the Hoban did more than just adorable badgers.  There were tons of other books, like Emmett Otter’s Jugband Christmas.  Less well remembered: The Sorely Trying Day.

Basic Premise: Father, wearing a pair of truly awesome spats (this is not important to the story… I just like spats), comes home to find his family up in arms.  Says he, "is this the sort of welcome I get after a sorely trying day?"  Oh, boo-hoo.  In any case, there is a reason for the domestic madness.  Each child in the family was put upon by someone else.  Frank hit Dora because she sat on his ship.  She sat on his ship because Emily splashed her with paint.  Emily splashed her with paint because the dog got in the way.  Eventually everyone decides it was originally the cat’s fault.  The cat, in turn, blames the mouse who is willing to take the blame.  That leads the cat to say, "Who do you think you are to put on such airs of nobility and unselfish heroism?"  The cat refuses to eat the mouse and give him a hero’s death.  Instead, he apologizes to the dog and so it goes in reverse.  Everyone apologizes and all is well.  Meanwhile, the mouse returns home to find his entire house in an uproar.  Says he, "is this the sort of welcome I get after a sorely trying day?"

I feel that similar narratives have happened in a manner none too different from this book.  There’s the old The Day Jimmy’s Boa Ate the Wash, which I’ve always seen as the picture book version of the film Memento.  There are accumulative tales like The Apple Pie That Papa Baked.  The nice thing about this book is that it goes in reverse then turns around and goes forward once again.  Originally published in 1964 it’s entirely in black and white.  Not ideal, but perfectly fine considering the circumstances.  Lillian Hoban also draws a darn good mouse. 

Apparently Tashlin disliked the cinematic version of his story.  It’s strange to consider since Tashlin was an animator in the 40s and even worked on the military’s Private Snafu series "created by Frank Capra and Theodor ‘Dr Seuss’ Geisel".  One reason for his unhappiness with the film was an early scene where the bear takes a cigarette and a cup of coffee.  Tashlin felt that this was a symbol of the bear accepting his role as a man far too early in the story and that it upset the whole premise.  A pity since I think Chuck Jones just knocked it out of the park with this one.