Fuse 8 N' Kate

Betsy actually went out and purchased a copy of today's book a year ago and has been holding onto it just for this time of year. Granted, it's not Hanukkah for a couple weeks now, but our schedule is a little sporadic this month so no time like the present! This week we consider what, in some ways, might be the flipside of another Hanukkah book we did a number of years ago, The Latke Who Couldn't Stop Screaming. Screaming or laughing, the real question here is this: Do you put applesauce or sour cream on your latkes? We tackle this very deep, very serious debate firsthand. Just wanted to let you know what you're getting into with this episode. Show Notes: For the full Show Notes please visit: https://afuse8production.slj.com/2022/12/12/fuse-8-n-kate-laughing-latkes-by-m-b-goffstein/

It's not every podcast episode where Kate is capable of turning me around, 360 degrees, on a title that I thought I had an opinion on. On paper a book by the guys that brought us Viola Swamp and that uses the term "Stupid" to great effect should be one of my favorite titles. What I didn't understand was that in spite of appearing on ALA's Banned List for a long time, it actually has a great number of problems. It's possible it really hasn't aged well... and not in the ways you might expect. For the full Show Notes please visit: https://afuse8production.slj.com/2022/12/05/fuse-8-n-kate-the-stupids-step-out-by-harry-allard-ill-james-marshall/

It's our 250th Episode!! You know, when we first started this podcast we didn't really have a plan in terms of how long it might go. Nor did I lay out a carefully considered explanation from the start of which books we would do, and in what order. All we had was the premise, a catchy theme song, and an unending supply of titles to choose from. Case In Point: We have never done a Richard Scarry book before. Can you believe it? It's true though. You see Richard Scarry's best known books are (how shall I put this) incredibly long. We're talking, Moby Dick-long equivalent tomes. But 250 is a special number so we're dedicating it to a very special guy. Come for the turkey. Stay for the odd changes made between different editions of this book. Show Notes: For full Show Notes please visit: https://afuse8production.slj.com/2022/11/21/fuse-8-n-kate-our-250th-episode-richard-scarrys-best-word-book-ever/

If you looked at the title of this week's podcast book and thought to yourself, "I've never even heard of that one before" then you may know what time it is . . . IT'S CULT CLASSIC TIME! With periodic regularity Kate and Betsy will discuss on Fuse 8 n' Kate those picture books that are, as they like to call them, "cult classics". That means that they are popular with some segment of the audience, if not the entire world. Today that "segment of the audience is" [checks notes] Germany. Yup. Germany once again. We've already talked about illustrator Wolf Erlbruch in our episode on Death, Duck and the Tulip. Germans aren't afraid to tackle death in picture books. Nor are they afraid of excrement. This book is ample proof of that (though it's the English that are the true fans). Bonus: By the end, we discover the International Rule of Anuses in Picture Books. It's the line the Europeans will not cross! Listen to find out why! Show Notes: And now, two videos that may be of particular note in this case. First, a

We heard the call and we have responded! It was noted by more than one reader that we've done very few nonfiction picture books on our podcast. We did do So You Want to Be President earlier this year back in February but that was pretty much it. So today, we consider a book produced back in 2001. We know that the standards to which we hold nonfiction picture books has changed in the intervening 21 years. So how does this particular title stand up today? Spoiler Alert: Surprisingly well! Betsy told the story of the goose puppet and Brian Selznick on her blog here back in 2011: https://afuse8production.slj.com/2011/05/18/saracen-selznick-and-the-goose-that-almost-wasnt/ And you can find information on the upcoming celebration at The Rabbit Hole in Kansas City on November 18th here: https://www.rabbitholekc.org/thisisnotarabbit For the full Show Notes please visit: https://afuse8production.slj.com/2022/11/07/fuse-8-n-kate-the-dinosaurs-of-waterhouse-hawkins-by-barbara-kerley-ill-brian-selznick/

Happy Halloween! It's the last day of October and that means a final spooky scary picture book is up for discussion. Hat tip to Stephanie Lucianovic for suggesting today's title. Kate and Betsy learn that apparently Judith Viorst is a big time fan of extra long titles (something that was hinted at when she created Alexander and the Terrible, Horrible, No Good, Very Bad Day). In today's book they see some seriously fashion forward footwear and hats, the true horror of cream cheese sandwiches, and why this book should actually be called MY MOM IS GASLIGHTING ME. Show Notes: Kate Recommends: Halloween Deviled Eggs, seen here: https://www.instagram.com/p/Ci-81rHAUXT/ Betsy Recommends: Everything Everywhere All At Once which, in turn, has inspired her favorite Halloween costume of the year: Raccacoonie (note the bagel with everything purse): https://twitter.com/GeneHa/status/1566871379923943425 For the full Show Notes please visit: https://afuse8production.slj.com/2022/10/31/review-of-the-day-may-mama-says-th

"It's like Candyman if instead of saying his name three times you just called into existence each of his bodyparts." Man. Insult upon injury, today's book. Does the reader really have to call Big Green Monster's hair "scraggly"? That's just wrong, dude. Today Betsy introduces Kate to her very first Ed Emberley book. Sure, it's not terribly Halloween-ish, but it's not NOT Halloweenish, amiright? They consider the ways in which Emberley both invokes a scary monster without making it too scary along the way. So he'll follow up sharp white teeth with "little squiggly ears". It's a fascinating duality. They also talk paper texture, hair shaming, and why the cartilage in monsters tends to be a different color than skin. Show Notes: Here's the Grinch horror movie Kate references. And we didn't even DISCUSS the upcoming horror film Winnie-the-Pooh: Blood and Honey. See what happens when books enter the public domain? https://www.digitalspy.com/movies/a41597592/the-grinch-horror-movie-first-look/ For the full Show

As Halloween draws closer and closer, we delve deeper and deeper into the macabre. We kicked off the month of October with Edward Gorey. Now we're following him up with his spiritual cousin, none other than Hilaire Belloc himself. We're looking at two different editions of the Struwwelpeter-inspired (surely) poem Matilda, Who Told Lies and Was Burned to Death. One edition, illustrated by Steven Kellogg, was produced in 1970. The other, created in 1991 (and originally published in Great Britain), illustrated by Posy Simmonds, is the far tamer titled picture book Matilda: Who told such Dreadful Lies . . . (note that the original title is on the title page, not the cover). A lot can change in the intervening 20 years, and so we compare the two editions, their oddities and similarities, and come to the almost certain conclusion that Hilaire Belloc was . . . quite the interesting fella. But are these good books? That is the real question. Show Notes: Here's where Betsy will be interviewing Tom Felton. If you'd l

Proof positive that not everything found in a trunk is gold. Kate's on the hunt for books for Halloween so we took a suggestion and delved into this "lost treasure" from the trunk o' manuscripts of the late Margaret Wise Brown. Betsy will confess to you right here and now that she's kinda out of good Halloween titles to do, so if you have ANY suggestions of other picture book Halloween classics, please oh please suggest them now. We discuss a gender-bent version of Wizard of Oz, why Margaret Wise Brown missed out on calling the mom "Scarecrone", why all these scarecrows are white, and more. Show Notes: You can read the L.A. Times article A Treasure-Trove of Children's Stories here, if you like: https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-1991-09-26-vw-4107-story.html Kate Recommends: Hocus Pocus 2 - https://www.disneyplus.com/welcome/hocus-pocus-2?cid=DSS-Search-Google-71700000100365913-&s_kwcid=AL!8468!3!625379239143!e!!g!!hocus%20pocus%202&gclid=Cj0KCQjw4omaBhDqARIsADXULuVAZaA8xjqRXbgtKtbBt8LRjhKcwPJRoqskch

"I'm Benjamin Buttoning over here!" When they're not talking about crystal flutes and harmoniums, Kate and Betsy discuss their very first Halloween-seasoned title on this week's episode of Fuse 8 n' Kate. Betsy was charged with coming up with another potential classic for the Halloween season, and now she has located an illustrator who may honestly be called "the granddaddy of haunted books". He didn't do many picture books . . . for children. But occasionally he did one or two when someone else was doing the writing and today's title, The Shrinking of Treehorn is an exemplary example. The sisters talk about what it takes to name your kid "Treehorn", what to do when you're caught in a Jumanji-type situation, and why this book made Betsy think of Jeffrey Dahmer. Show Notes: For the full Show Notes please visit: https://afuse8production.slj.com/2022/10/03/fuse-8-n-kate-the-shrinking-of-treehorn-by-florence-parry-heide-ill-edward-gorey/

Banned Books Week may have happened last week, but sadly that doesn't mean that the nationwide scourge of banning has ended. Far from it. As such, we felt like consideration of this, "the granddaddy of the book banned", was long overdue. Interestingly, even though Kate hadn't seen the book before, she took one look at it and said it was "the gay penguins book". So it's clearly in the cultural zeitgeist. We talk Happy Feet, whether or not Tango was actually named after Tango & Cash ("if she'd been a boy, he totally would have named her Cash"), and why baby penguins that break the 4th wall are unspeakably awesome. Show Notes: Betsy talks about this on the show, but in April of 2022 she conducted an interview with the authors of this book in a piece called And Tango Gets Banned Again? Book Banning Perspectives from Peter Parnell and Justin Richardson. There's a lot of good history information about the book there, so feel free to check it out: https://afuse8production.slj.com/2022/04/26/and-tango-gets-banned-a

Though normally we limit ourselves on the Fuse 8 n' Kate podcast to books that were published at least 20 years ago, we look at a book today that is (restrain your gasps) 19 years old. Worth it. I mean, who could possibly fault us? Ashley Bryan was a living saint of children's literature. Kate points out that with the current racist responses to the Black Little Mermaid, our choice of book today is timely in its cry of "Black is beautiful!" We get into a discussion of what can be considered assimilation or cultural appropriation and things get interesting. Give it a listen! Show Notes: Betsy Recommends: Bluey - https://www.bluey.tv/watch/ Kate Recommends: Harley Quinn - https://www.imdb.com/title/tt7658402/ For the full Show Notes please visit: https://afuse8production.slj.com/2022/09/19/fuse-8-n-kate-beautiful-blackbird-by-ashley-bryan/

Having failed to secure a THIRD strawberry-related picture book this week (not for lack of trying) we turn to a heroine we've only seen once before in our previous Olivia episode. The first time Betsy introduced Kate to Olivia shje was shocked by how much Kate liked the little pig. Recall, if you will, that Kate has a tendency to dislike bratty heroines. Olivia, by some unexpected roll of the dice, apparently passes muster. Today's book includes one of our favorite exchanges between a student and a teacher in the picture book form, and is filled with small details you may have missed back in the day when the book was first published. Things like why, precisely, the cover image was significantly changed from its interior original. Or why Olivia is like Moira Rose/Meg White! Show Notes: Hat tip to Lark for bringing us to the Independent article, Animal discovered with ‘transient anus’ that only appears when it is needed. This may explain a lot about how anuses appear in European picture books but seemingly di

We promised you additional strawberries and additional strawberries you shall have! We start off with a bang on the podcast this week with a fun quiz: Who would you cast in the live action version of three different picture books? Then, we go back to this great work of Don and Audrey Wood, last seen on this podcast in episodes about The Napping House and King Bidgood’s in the Bathtub. Today’s post features a strawberry book that isn’t quite as strange as The Grey Lady and the Strawberry Snatcher, but clocks in at a close second. Show Notes: Betsy admits that she utterly forgot that she interviewed Don and Audrey Wood about this book a mere TWO years ago! In her defense, 2020 was a bit of a lost-COVID year. The post, however, is quite fascinating. It relates a tale about the British-to-American rights process like nothing you’ve seen before. Imagine if you did nine books and they were out of your reach after that BUT their loss allowed you to make The Napping House. Curious? Find the interview here. Betsy R

"It's Catch Me If You Can only with an old woman and a weird blue creature." Full credit today to Lisa Straubinger for today's suggestion. Though we'd done the better known Molly Bang title When Sophie Gets Angry... Really, Really Angry on this podcast, we'd not done any other Molly Bang books. This was Molly's first book that she'd written and illustrated herself and it's a doozy. This is very much like nothing you've ever seen before. It's use of negative space alone is worth its weight in gold. Plus, who exactly is the trickster here? There is much to discuss. Show Notes: Here is where Molly Bang recounts the incredible, name-dropping ridden story of how The Grey Lady and the Strawberry Snatcher came to be. It involves Ursula Nordstrom and Susan Hirschman and OH! It's just a crazy series of events: https://web.archive.org/web/20081212220001/http://www.mollybang.com/strawberries.html Kate Recommends: Transfigure Print Company and this t-shirt: https://transfigureprintco.com/shop/protect-trans-kids-shirt

Author/illustrators aren't supposed to have favorites but what do you want to bet that there's a special place in Bryan Collier's heart for his award-winning Uptown? Since Betsy lived in Harlem for 11 years, it seemed fitting for her to go through the book with Kate, 22 years after its initial publication. In the course of things Kate finds a prominent male member (if you know what I mean), copious chocolate squares, and a love of golf that surprises everybody. Show Notes: this spread there's a lot of discussion of James Van Der Zee. If you're interesting in reading a picture book biography of him, please check out Take a Picture of Me, James Van Der Zee by Andrea Loney, illustrated by Keith Mallett. It provides a delightful encapsulation of the man's life: https://www.leeandlow.com/books/take-a-picture-of-me-james-van-der-zee For the complete Show Notes please visit: https://afuse8production.slj.com/2022/08/15/fuse-8-n-kate-uptown-by-bryan-collier/

"It's like Freaky Friday but they're both perfectly aware of what's going on." If you were hoping that this episode of the podcast would begin with Betsy doing a variation on the Counting Crows song "Mr. Jones" then BOY do you know us well! In honor of its brand new republication (all thanks to its 40th anniversary) we're tackling this Amy Schwartz classic about finding happiness in a bureaucratic society. How does this book stand up after all this time? Is it still memorable? Does it still have something to say to kids today? We take a deep dive into 1980s Wall Street and all that that entails. Mad Men meets Big! Who could resist? Show Notes: Here's the Reading Rainbow episode of this book, as alluded to in the episode. Very fun, as long as you don't mind the constant whir of what sounds like a standing fan the whole time: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0P7Z1kYFKnE Betsy Recommends: Nope - https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nope_(film) Kate Recommends: Watch Out for Big Grrrls - https://en.wikipedia.org/wik

The New Yorker recently featured rather impressive article called What Should a Queer Children's Book Do? In it K.T. Horning, "who recently retired as the director of the Cooperative Children’s Book Center of the School of Education at the University of Wisconsin-Madison" mentioned something in her discussion with writer Jessica Winter that today's book was a favorite for years by lesbian families before they had adequate books to turn to. Today we talk mosquitoes, this book, mosquitoes, how Canadian Geese are the worst, and ... mosquitoes. Enjoy! Here's the Reading Rainbow sequence of the reading of this book. What's interesting about this is how they chose to adapt the book. Due to its length, a straight reading would not have been ideal. So we were impressed how they incorporated live action into the mix. It also, if we might say so, kind of backs up what K.T. was saying about its subversive nature: https://youtu.be/TloBLRxH2Fw Kate Recommends: The Rehearsal: https://www.hbo.com/the-rehearsal Betsy Reco

Betsy was in her library's children's room the other day and a staff member saw her looking perturbed in the easy book section. When she asked what Betsy was looking for, she confessed that what she really needed was a copy of Robert the Rose Horse. Though in the business for many years, Betsy's fellow librarian had not heard of that particular P.D. Eastman collaboration with Joan Heilbroner, and could you blame her? Betsy would have probably have missed it too if (A) She hadn't had children that she read to and (B) She hadn't stumbled on the mighty useful "Big" beginner books from Random House that combined many of Seuss's "I Can Read" titles into a single volume. Today's title comes to us via The Big Red Book of Beginner Books, and it truly lives up to expectations. Betsy promised Kate they'd do a goofy book. She may have actually overdelivered. Show Notes: Betsy got all her thymus and T-Cell information from this information from Radiolab and its episode My Thymus, Myself: https://radiolab.org/episodes/m

Goofy is fun. Goofy is great. But seems to us that sometimes you just gotta slow everything down and do a picture book that's a little more serious. We had to go meaningful this week and what could be more meaningful than a little drop of Allen Say?. That doesn't mean we don't have time to also talk about a yard full of 12-foot-skeletons, of course. We contain multitudes. Show Notes: - You can read Betsy's 100 Picture Books for Kids Poll write-up of this title (at #46) here: https://afuse8production.slj.com/2012/05/29/top-100-picture-books-46-grandfathers-journey-by-allen-say/ - For the record, Allan Say as a child ran into Lois Lowry though they never exchanged a word. It was only years later that they discovered that they'd seen one another all those years ago. Read more about it here: https://www.bookpage.com/reviews/25028-lois-lowry-horizon-childrens/ - Here's Halfway Home by Christine Inzer. If you need a comic about feeling torn between Japan and America, this is ideal. Bonus: Actually made by a te