Cloudy With a Chance of Meatballs

Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs
Written by Judi Barrett
Illustrated by Ron Barrett
1978

So since it’s raining cats and dogs today I thought I’d take the opportunity to introduce The Boog to a new book. I have been meaning to read it to her for quite some time; however, she really hasn’t shown any interest in the weather until just this past winter. Instead of raining cats and dogs, what if it rained food instead?

Illustrated in comic book style, we are introduced to the tiny town of Chewandswallow. As narrated by the children’s Grandfather, the town is just like any other town, except for the weather! See, in Chewandswallow everything that everyone ate came from the sky……

It never rained, it never snowed and it never blew just wind. It rained things like soup and juice. It snowed mashed potatoes and green peas. And sometimes the wind blew in storms of hamburgers. Instead of umbrellas, people walked around with utensils that way they would always be prepared for any kind of weather.



It’s a very silly book that caused The Boog to look at the weather quite differently and as a parent, that always gives me a sense of satisfaction. Being that she is now 3 going on 4, I thought the illustrations would be a bit sophisticated for her, but she didn’t miss a beat, pointing out all the indiscretions Barret imposes into his illustrations.

They did recreate Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs for the big screen and we enjoyed it quite a bit but nothing comes close to reading the book but in that aspect I remain very biased, as with most things vintage children's books related.

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The Magic Flute

The Magic Flute
Emanuele Luzzati
1978

Hey Kiddos! While fumbling around on youtube, which I usually do on lazy Sunday mornings before The Boog wakes up, I decided to listen to some Classical music. I cannot resist the Queen of the Night's "Der Hölle Rache kocht in meinem Herzen" (in english:The vengeance of Hell boils in my heart) which appears in what was to be Mozart’s last opera, The Magic Flute. To my surprise I came across a very interesting animation from an illustrator I was not familiar with.

Animated by Giulio Gianini and illustrated by Emanuele Luzzati, The Magic Flute comes to life. Luzzati was an Italian painter, production designer, illustrator, film director and animator. He was nominated for Academy Awards for two of his short films, La gazza ladra (The Thieving Magpie) (1965) and Pulcinella (1973), both animated by Giulio Gianini. Luzzati later published his designs from The Magic Flute; Images can be seen via NY animator/director Michael Sporn which he has split up into two very detailed posts.

Part ONE
Part TWO

The animated version is below.





Have a nice weekend all!

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Feelings

Feelings

Written and Illustrated by Aliki
1986

We all have feelings.... well, some of have feelings. This book goes through a range of emotions with such humbling appreciation. The cover says it all! Boy gets ice cream, boy is happy, boy drops ice cream, boy feels sad, boy gets new ice cream and boy is happy! The entire books reads like a manual of emotion ranging from elation to despair. I could try to explain but it's best just to show you.....

Not too long ago I sold one of her books called Green Grass and White Milk which briefly describes how a cow produces milk, how the milk is processed in a dairy, and how various other dairy products are made from milk. I had never heard of her before this title but now everytime I see her name on a book it soon becomes part of my library. I very much admire her work as a writer and as an illustrator. Her voice comes through the book so vividly that its hard not to get lost in their pages.

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So That's How I Was Born

So That’s How I Was Born!
By Dr. Robert Brooks
Pictures by Susan Perl
1983

Hello Kiddos! Just thought I’d share my current find. It’s a gem of a book about the Birds and the Bees illustrated by Susan Perl. Now, I have written about Susan Perl before and as you can see her illustrations are of classic 1970’s flair.

Only susan Perl can take on a subject as controversial as sex and make it whimsical!

Also By: A Flower Pot is Not a Hat

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