Elizabeth Bird

Fusenews: Tempting Fate and Why Gene Wilder is Hot
April 23, 2008

• Author Pat Mora (who was clever and alerted several bloggers to the news) has started blogging on a site called Bookjoy.  She had a post up recently about Family Book Clubs that particularly caught my eye when she mentioned meeting the Public Library of Charlotte and Mecklenburg County's Director of Youth and Outreach Service, Tony Tallent.  Mr. Tallent (who has the BEST name for a library director ev-ah) was recently at my own branch when we hosted the remarkable little band Lunch Money.  I'm not entirely certain why he was here in conjunction with the band (road manager?) but it was nice to meet him just the same.

• There is such a thing in this world as attracting the evil eye.  Normally I don't truck with such folderol, but reading The Spoof's recent faux-news piece Heiress Paris Hilton to start children's book line causes me to start knocking on wood like there's no tomorrow.  For heavens sake, guys!  Don't give her any ideas!  Thanks to Big A little a for the link.

• I got four words for you. 3D Paper Deer Puzzle . 

Thanks for the link, Crooked House !

• Ms. Jules of Seven Impossible Things Before Breakfast has combined her efforts with Adrienne of What Adrienne Thinks About That to bring us the mother of all Slightly Demented Picture Book postings.  They even confront the goofy protagonist-gets-eaten trend that many of us have noticed over the years ( Tadpole's Promise , Ugly Fish , I'm the Biggest Thing in the Ocean , Wolves , and the mother of them all, Pierre .)  Then Monica Edinger over at her blog picked up the thread and ran with it herself bringing up some more Deliciously Demented Books (pointing out, logically, that The Cat and the Hat has its own mighty screwy logic as well).

• Alison Morris gives us the skinny on author Linda Urban's fabulous and oddly-wintery home.

• I used to work at the Jefferson Market branch of New York Public Library.  It is a castle.  There is no other word to describe it.  Castle.  And like many castles it hadn't been cleared out for years and years.  One day I found in the back room a book that can only be described as one of my more disgusting finds.  It was one of the original Margaret Wise Brown Little Fur Family stories.  I see some of you out there nodding your heads, knowing exactly what I mean.  Some genius in the marketing department (perhaps Ms. Brown herself) decided to cover the little tiny books in fur.  That's a cute enough idea in 1946. But fast forward 60 years and you can see how truly disgusting moldy rabbit fur can be.  Collecting Children's Books tackles the subject of furry titles, particularly those with tails.  Definitely worth reading.

• I have a crush on Gene Wilder.  Oh do not LOOK at me like that.  Yes, I know it's weird.  It's super weird.  But what can I say?  I like his voice.  I should specify that I like 1960s/1970s Gene Wilder and not so much really-bad-80s-hair Gene Wilder.  And, by extension, I love Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory.  Not that ghastly Tim Burton monstrosity (Michael Jackson + Willy Wonka = Not so hot), but the orginal, really odd concoction made to promote a candy that never came to exist (this is true... watch the documentary sometime).  Why do I bring this up?  Because Below the Bookshelf has created the ultimate reality show.  If you can resist the tagline "Five children with the opportunity of a lifetime. But only one can live," then you are made of stone.  Say, did anyone else see that awesome interview between Alec Baldwin and Gene Wilder on TCM the other night?  Suh-weet!

• I am currently campaigning for somebody ANYBODY to make a Mexican wrestler book for kids (Yuyi Morales, I'm looking at you).  In the interim I was pleased to see Matthew Holm, illustrator of the Babymouse books, put his own spin on the genre.  Voila!  Lucha Libre . Thanks to BookMoot for taking the pics at TLA.

• When I say the name "Syd Hoff" you may think of things like Danny and the Dinosaur or Arturo's Baton .  You'd be less inclined to think of this:

But that's exactly what Hoff's neice found at a place called Mimi's Cafe.  The entire story can be found on the Syd Hoff website under "The Mystery of the Mural".  Read through the news articles to discover how the mystery thickens and then gets resolved.  Thanks to Children's Illustration for the link.

Posted by Elizabeth Bird on April 23, 2008 | Comments (8)