Fuse 8 N' Kate

"50% of this book is just depressed donkeys." In lieu of Shrek, Betsy and Kate go with what is arguably the second most famous Steig picture book out there. You know. The one chock full of sadness and woe. Along the way they tackle grammar, fetlocks, sitting on children, and donkey boulders. Lots and lots of donkey boulders. Show Notes: - For more on Betsy's hatred of knitting needles that stick straight up, be sure to check out her previous blog post The Scourge of Upside Down Knitting: http://blogs.slj.com/afuse8production/2014/07/17/the-scourge-of-upside-down-knitting/ - Sylvester came in at #55 on the old Picture Book Poll: http://blogs.slj.com/afuse8production/2012/05/25/top-100-picture-books-55-sylvester-and-the-magic-pebble-by-william-steig/ - For the full Show Notes, please visit http://blogs.slj.com/afuse8production/2018/04/09/fuse-8-n-kate-sylvester-and-the-magic-pebble-by-william-steig

Kate and Betsy celebrate their episode yet! Both had a LOT to say about this book and along the way they learn some very important lessons about themselves. Like the fact that someone with a retainer may have a very hard time saying the words "pacifist" and "pacifism". Let's all say "passive pacifism" together now three times fast! Show Notes: - We able to find the Ferdinand balloon! In Wired Magazine you can find a piece called Amazing Old Pics of the Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade with lots of amazing images: https://www.wired.com/2013/11/the-macys-thanksgiving-parade-was-way-cooler-in-black-and-white/ -- Here's the 1938 Disney short: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UN62cxSs5Q8 - Here's the popular song about Ferdinand as sung, in this particular case, by The Lennon Sisters: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0Q1KmGMsLsk - And here was the most recent iteration: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HBXVM7oUPVk - On the picture book poll it showed up as #17: http://blogs.slj.com/afuse8production/2012/06/14/top

This week Betsy and Kate face down their greatest threat yet: Laptop snafus. This episode marks one of the rare instances where the laptop stopped recording the show right before the end of the podcast. Ah well. This particular week the duo takes on Crockett Johnson's best known work (sorry, Carrot Seed) and comes up with everything from arboreal semantics to Ursula Nordstrom as a hard knocks dame to . . . well . . . Genesis. Show Notes: - What truly was Simon in the Land of Chalk Drawings? Behold!: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KyrDS1UvCG8 - Here is what we do believe is the earliest Harold short created. It. Is. Charming: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mKhKyZgafU4 - And here is the HBO television show. You will note that everything Harold draws can move. This aligns the new Harold closer to Simon in the Land of Chalk Drawings more than anything else: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2mq4KbIkqpQ - Here's the Glam Rock Opera version. Very catchy: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HYc-k6MjS-M - Here is w

Our latest podcast marks a first. Yes what we have here is the first time that Betsy has ever discovered that she's been mispronouncing the title of a popular children's book for years and years and years. You might ask yourself, "How the heck do you mispronounce P.D. Eastman's most classic book?" It's all in the punctuation. In fact, we doubt anyone has ever picked apart the punctuation of this book as intensely as Kate and Betsy do on this episode. As it turns out, the female hat-wearing dog's use or lack of use when it comes to exclamation points practically warrants a conspiracy theory in and of itself. Show Notes: - After looking at this particular video of the show, Betsy is pretty sure the one she saw was just a case of poor direction. This looks MUCH livelier! https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=H_To7faUGBI - Be sure to check out the full text of The Ugly Volvo's An Open Letter to the Female Hat-Wearing Dog From "Go, Dog, Go". http://www.theuglyvolvo.com/an-open-letter-to-the-female-hat-wearing-dog-fro

After delving so deeply into problematic picture books in February, Kate and I deserve a bit of a rest. And what, I ask, could be more restful than carnivorous animals devouring small boys? Particularly when said lions are the product of the inimitable and never imitated Maurice Sendak. This marks Sendak's third appearance on the podcast, and the first time he's shown up with a book that wasn't associated with the Wild Things/In the Night Kitchen/Outside Over There triumvirate. In the course of things we uncover a conspiracy that involves Pierre's parents and the lion. I mean, this thing goes all the way to the top! We also debate whether or not the doctor is a vet or not. Feel free to chime in with thoughts on the matter. Show Notes: - Andrea won't take money from us for this, but she does suggest the charity Everytown for Gun Safety so in addition to that, I figured I'd promote it here: https://everytown.org/ - I kind of want to list all the Home Invasion By Felines books out there. This. The Cat in the

Not content to examine just Curious George and The Story of Babar, Kate and Betsy round out their look at colonial children's literature with a rather more serious examination of Helen Bannerman's Little Black Sambo. Not content to consider a single version, while their primary focus will be the Christopher Bing edition, with the original Helen Bannerman text, extensive consideration is given to the Julius Lester / Jerry Pinkney book Sam and the Tigers, with additional thoughts on The Story of Little Babaji with art by Fred Marcellino. Show Notes: - Here is the New York Times review of the play Spinning Into Butter: http://www.nytimes.com/2002/10/20/nyregion/theater-review-spinning-into-butter-raises-questions-without-answers.html - This is the Emily Nussbaum review that made Betsy want to be a better reviewer: https://www.newyorker.com/magazine/2018/02/26/how-to-make-a-weepy-family-drama - For the full Show Notes please visit http://blogs.slj.com/afuse8production/2018/02/26/fuse-8-n-kate-the-story-of-lit

Our theme of problematic picture books that deal indirectly with colonialism continue with this natural companion to Curious George. Today's book is notable if only because it is the first "classic" Betsy and Kate have discussed that Betsy read as a child. Will that make her more inclined to like the book or not? You'll just have to see. Prepare for a heartfelt discussion about Blast From the Past, the Babadook, the difference between bowler and derby hats, and the ultimate lesson in retail therapy: "You want to deal with your mom's death? Buy yourself some spats!" Show Notes: - A link to the interview with Jean de Brunhoff's son in the Wall Street Journal. Babar the Elephant Takes His Final Bow: https://www.wsj.com/articles/babar-the-elephant-takes-his-final-bow-1511560164 - Should We Burn Babar? Here's the Kirkus review that didn't find the book all that keen: https://www.kirkusreviews.com/book-reviews/herbert-kohl/should-we-burn-babar/ - Leslie Jones can be found here on Instagram. https://www.instag

About two weeks ago Kate and Betsy recorded a killer episode where they discussed the classic status (or lack thereof) of Curious George. Naturally, the computer ate the whole dang thing. This week they try it again. Kate’s already read the book so they're changing things up a little. Together, they get to use the phrase, “predicated on a lie”, discuss Zul’s hair, 1940s sailor twerking, and the ultimate lesson that white men get to do anything they want. Interestingly it makes for a much more succinct episode. Show Notes: - The real Betsy Bird: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7pjU_WuA7pY - Where George showed up on the Top 100 Picture Books Poll: http://blogs.slj.com/afuse8production/2012/05/29/top-100-picture-books-41-curious-george-by-h-a-rey/ -Werner Herzog reads Curious George: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7T8y5EPv6Y8 - And for the full Show Notes please visit: http://blogs.slj.com/afuse8production/2018/02/12/fuse-8-n-kate-curious-george-by-margret-and-h-a-rey/

We're so excited! Kate and Betsy take a little break from their usual schtick this week because a week from today is the most exciting day of the year. You know the one we mean. It's a week until the ALA Youth Media Awards where they'll be announcing the Newbery and Caldecott Awards!!! To celebrate, Kate and Betsy find three top contenders for this year's Medal. Three top contenders that all feature light blue skies on their covers, apparently. Show Notes: - The link to the live feed of the ALA Youth Media Awards on Monday, February 12th can be found here: http://ala.unikron.com/2018/index_home.php - The hashtag for the Awards on Twitter will be #alayma -If you would like to see the full Show Notes for this episode, just go to: http://blogs.slj.com/afuse8production/2018/02/05/fuse-8-n-kate-super-special-caldecott-contender-edition/

This week Betsy pokes her head out of the metaphorical dirt and realizes that there's a great big, wonderful world out there. A world filled with movies based on picture books. Movies like the upcoming Peter Rabbit film. So to honor (slash counteract) its debut in theaters, the sisters consider the original Beatrix Potter in all its teeny tiny glory. Kate in turn, manages to find things about it that Betsy has never really considered, like the book's inherent ageism and the Beatrix Potter/Harry Potter connection (warning: it's a stretch). Source Notes: - You'll find Beatrix's description of Dr. Seuss's works here: https://theconversation.com/its-not-obtuse-to-deduce-theres-a-new-dr-seuss-on-the-loose-37970 - As I mentioned, this book came in at #19 on the Top 100 Picture Books poll: http://blogs.slj.com/afuse8production/2012/06/14/top-100-picture-books-19-the-tale-of-peter-rabbit-by-beatrix-potter/ -Here's where I did my research on whether or not Beatrix Potter terrorized little Roald Dahl. Read the art

At long last Betsy moves Kate from the standard "classic picture books" into the far stranger "cult classic picture books" territory. But don't they deserve love as well? That's the question the sisters set out to answer. Along the way Betsy discusses her most successful Halloween costume of all time, and Kate suffers through her third day on the Whole30. Show Notes: - I wasn't making that up. Famke Janssen really did have a home invasion and this book really was left behind: https://www.vanityfair.com/news/2013/09/famke-janssen-creepy-book-saga-weirdest-gossip-story-of-year - By the way, they don't mention it in the episode but back in 2016 it was reported that Naomi Watts and Jessica Lange were slated to star in The Secret Life of the Lonely Doll: http://www.indiewire.com/2016/03/naomi-watts-jessica-lange-to-star-in-gia-coppolas-the-secret-life-of-the-lonely-doll-259556/ - For the full Show Notes please visit us here: http://blogs.slj.com/afuse8production/2018/01/15/fuse-8-n-kate-the-lonely-doll-by-dare

The crummy weather has determined the subject of this week's particular podcast. And there are few picture books out there snowier than this old Keats classic. Easily considered one of the Top 5 picture books in the nation in terms of fame and popularity, Kate had nevertheless not really even heard of it. Betsy sets about to do some serious sis-splaining. Source Notes: - Here are The Snowy Day stamps: https://store.usps.com/store/product/buy-stamps/the-snowy-day-S_676104 -Here's the Snowy Day Christmas special with Boyz II Men: https://www.themarysue.com/snowy-day-animated/ - If you're curious about this book, you should certain read Betsy's post when it hit #5 in her Top 100 Picture Book Poll: http://blogs.slj.com/afuse8production/2012/06/21/top-100-picture-books-5-the-snowy-day-by-ezra-jack-keats/ -Further information! Here's the link to The Ezra Jack Keats Foundation: http://www.ezra-jack-keats.org/ -And here's the link to the Ezra Jack Keats Award: http://www.ezra-jack-keats.org/section/ezra-jack-ke

Happy New Year! It's another edition of Fuse 8 n' Kate which, at this rate, may be soon renamed The Random Facts About Koalas Show. With today's book Betsy sought out a classic with a strong female protagonist. Kate (and some of you out there) may contest whether or not this engine is, indeed, is the real deal. Or (and here the sisters butt heads) even female at all. Source Notes: - Koalas Fighting a.k.a. The sound of the devil. Wait for it, though. You don't hear the hellspawn that is the sound Kate was referring to until near the end of the vid: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=x8oLu7znwQ0 -All the info Betsy conjures up about this book can be linked to #54 on the Top 100 Poll: http://blogs.slj.com/afuse8production/2009/04/11/top-100-picture-books-poll-results-55-51/ - Interested in this book? We suggest that you read Roy E. Plotnick's In Search of Watty Piper: A Brief History of the "Little Engine" Story published at The University of Illinois at Chicago: http://tigger.uic.edu/~plotnick/littleng.htm -

In honor of the holiday season, the sisters tackle a Christmassy classic. Betsy creates a name drop jar, produces a weirdly Yoda/Elmo-like elf voice, and explains why her blog is called A Fuse #8 Production. Kate, meanwhile, compares this book to Hunger Games (and it makes sense)and creates a connection between The Polar Express and Love Actually (which makes no sense but still works). Show Notes: - In case you'd like to hear Liam Neeson read this book you can do so here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Dfd8uoaSZ2M - Adding fuel to Kate's fire, Josh Hutcherson's first major role was "The Polar Express" and he went on to star in "The Hunger Games." Apparently he's drawn to trains. Here's an interview he did about working with Tom Hanks: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ix_KKbdZU_o - #56 on the Top 100 Picture Books poll: http://blogs.slj.com/afuse8production/2012/05/25/top-100-picture-books-56-the-polar-express-by-chris-van-allsburg/ -The Polar Express Train Ride from St. Louis Union Station can be seen he

Kate asks for a Hanukkah book this week so Betsy turns to an old reliable: Caldecott Honor books. Today's has been performed by and read to children for years. You might debate the degree to which this book is part of the cultural zeitgeist, but that shiny silver sticker on the cover means that it is certainly one of the only (THE only?) Hanukkah books to win a Caldecott anything. Christmas books win all the time. Jewish holidays? Not so much. Here then is a sickly Kate and a very well Betsy talking up the book of the season. - Curious listeners should check out Marjorie Ingall's piece in Tablet Magazine Judah Maccabee Versus the Anti-Vaxxers: How a Hanukkah-themed children’s book became the target of conspiracy theorists online: http://www.tabletmag.com/scroll/249658/judah-maccabee-versus-the-anti-vaxxers - Read the Publishers Weekly piece A Haunting Anniversary 'Hershel and the Hanukkah Goblins' Turns 25 to get the true inside peek into the book: https://www.publishersweekly.com/pw/by-topic/childrens/chil

If you've ever found yourself thinking, "You know, I like the Fuse 8 n' Kate podcast, but would it kill them to occasionally do terrible French accents for long periods of time?" then have we got a show for you!! This week Kate's sick, but the sisters plod onward and upward. In the course of things the episode turns out to be a momentous one. We doubt you'll see where this conversation will turn. It's a shocker. Show Notes: - In case you missed it you can check out this 9-second Vine of Nickelback called "Look At This Graph". Full explanation here: https://www.buzzfeed.com/craigsilverman/people-cant-stop-watching-this-hilarious-nine-sec?utm_term=.pu8lKjz8r#.dwN8j51nP - Actually, the book came out in 1939. So that whole "Post-WWII" bit . . . um . . . yeah. - No. They visit her after Day Ten. Betsy says it's between 1-10 days. Nope. It's post ten. - In the first Top 100 Picture Books poll, Madeline was at #8: http://blogs.slj.com/afuse8production/2009/05/06/top-100-picture-books-poll-results-8/ - When t

Betsy and Kate welcome in the holiday season with a bit of copious consumption. Show Notes: - This episode was brought to you by . . . Viola Davis. http://www.chicagotribune.com/lifestyles/books/ct-viola-davis-corduroy-children-s-story-20171010-story.html - I am so right. There is no comic duo like Strega Nona and Anthony. NO ONE! - I am very interested in your evidence as to whether or not Corduroy really does have agency, or if this is just in the girl's head. - The two sequels to Corduroy are Don Freeman created a sequel, A Pocket for Corduroy, in 1978. In 2006, B. G. Hennessy created Corduroy Lost and Found as a sequel. And I don't mention it but there were lots of unofficial Corduroy sequels, but I didn't feel they were worth mentioning. - #22 on the picture book poll was Corduroy! http://blogs.slj.com/afuse8production/2012/06/11/top-100-picture-books-22-corduroy-by-donald-freeman/ - The wikipedia page for Corduroy. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Corduroy_(book) - Woohoo! Today's Special. This on

In this episode the sisters make it clear that Strega Nona has committed a cardinal sin. Not the creation of magic (the priest and nuns seem a-okay with her on that point). No we're talking about the moment she snatches away a pregnant woman's fork. What's up with that? Amidst Italian draculas and injured space monkeys, Kate and Betsy attempt to ascertain if Strega Nona really does deserve to be considered a classic of children's literature. Show Notes: - To know more about the life of Big Anthony, check out Big Anthony: His Story : https://www.publishersweekly.com/978-0-399-23189-6 - For the sequel with Strega Amelia, you'll want Strega Nona Meets Her Match : https://www.publishersweekly.com/978-0-399-22421-8 -Minh Le's bit on Strega Nona can be found here but its brilliance belongs to the masses: http://www.bottomshelfbooks.com/2007/06/strega-nona.html - Can you crack The dePaola Code? It's a doozy: http://discomermaids.blogspot.com/2006/05/depaola-code-nana.html -You can find Handsome Big Anthony in

Today Betsy and Kate decide to class up the joint. Leo Dillon was the first African-American Caldecott Award winner and it was for this book in 1976. The era of the folktale has long since passed and yet, for all that, this book endures. Why? The sisters decide to get to the bottom of the matter. Show Notes: - For the record we highly recommend the CDs of LuAnn Adams, who is a truly magnificent storyteller: http://www.luannadamsstoryteller.com/ - In case you're curious, here's the link to NYPL's 100 Great Books, 100 Years: https://www.nypl.org/childrens100 - And yeah. She wasn't wrong. Koalas can give you chlamydia. Ugh. https://io9.gizmodo.com/5920738/you-can-accidentally-get-an-std-from-a-koala - For the record, here's what CNN had to say about The Polar Express: "The mouth action is also less than overwhelming, since the characters' tongues look like slabs of meat when they speak their lines." - Kate confirmed later that yes, it was a ferret and not a marmot, in the bathtub in The Big Lebowski. htt

In lieu of a famous Thanksgiving picture book (which does not exist) Betsy and Kate decide a good way to go would be to do something food-related. And what's more foodie than food falling from the sky? This one is easy since it had a film of the same name. It's remembered . . . sorta. Due to its length it isn't really performed in storytimes, and affection for it has more to do with nostalgia than anything else. Or is it fantastic? A little gem we've all ignored? The sisters tackle the book head on and find some surprising results. - This Minh Le post on Cloudy With a Chance of Meatballs may be 10 years old, but it's just as fresh and clear as it was back in the day: http://www.bottomshelfbooks.com/2007/02/cloudy-with-chance-of-meatballs_11.html - Giant Jam Sandwich! Betsy says "mosquitoes" but it was flies, right? Or was it wasps? https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Iiv4AbrRsww -Read the #75 post on the Top 100 Picture Books Poll: http://blogs.slj.com/afuse8production/2012/05/21/top-100-picture-books-75-cloud