Fuse 8 n’ Kate: The Three Robbers by Tomi Ungerer
Tomi Ungerer died just this past year on February 9th so it seemed logical to me that we should try to do one of his books on the show. This begs the inevitable question, which one should we do? I had so many to consider. Crictor? The Beast of Monsieur Racine? Moon Man? I decided to go with the only one I ever saw adapted by Weston Woods. In the course of our talk we discuss whether or not giving birth is an adequate excuse for saying you have a “connection” to someone, who invented the name “blunderbuss”, and why this book is like Mad Max Beyond Thunderdome. I just find it interesting that Kate pointed out that these kids may all be attending a robber school by the end of the book.
Listen to the whole show here on Soundcloud or download it through iTunes, Stitcher, Google Play, PlayerFM, or your preferred method of podcast selection.
– Just so you get a sense of it, this is the massive collection Phaidon produced of many of Mr. Ungerer’s out-of-print titles. It is one of my family’s most prized possessions. My son LOVES it.
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– Here’s the quote they added to the beginning of the book.
– “They’re not just three robbers. They are three FIERCE robbers.”
– See, this is why you don’t wear corsets, people. If Kate was shocked by this then she should be grateful I didn’t show her images from Tomi Ungerer’s Fornicon. I thought about putting some here in this post but, uh . . . yeah, no. NSFW indeed.
– Is a pepper blower actually a thing? I did a bit of research on my end, and I don’t think that it is. As far as I’m concerned, Ungerer made it up.
– Look at how the color makes the blunderpuss the focal point.
– “When is there ever a fun aunt?” Okay, people. Lay ’em on me. Who’s the coolest of them all? This was my vote:
– Our hero, ladies and germs: The Castle Real Estate Agent. “Now what can I do to get you fellas into this castle?”
– My theory is that the robbers only know how to sew one thing and that’s why the kids match them.
– Kate doesn’t remember this Weston Woods video but I sure as heck do. I think it’s probably my favorite Weston Woods video of all time. You’ll see why immediately:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dcbaDAtjCN0
– In terms of her easy-to-make baby blanket pattern, Kate writes, “I don’t have a link for the baby blanket but here are the instructions:
Filed under: Fuse 8 n' Kate
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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