Double Feature: Bob and Crenshaw

**This post originally appeared on the discussion board for my Children's Literature class**

Title: Bob
Authors: Wendy Mass and Rebecca Stead
Genre: juvenile fiction, fantasy

Bob takes place in rural, drought-ridden Australia (exact location never mentioned). Livy and her family are visiting Livy’s grandmother after their last visit 5 years ago. Poor Livy can’t remember any details from her last visit, when she was five, so everything is a surprise to her. The biggest surprise is when she finds Bob living in a closet. At first Bob thinks he is a zombie, and then a chicken, but as for what Bob IS, Bob can’t remember where he came from (what is it with the memory stuff around here?). As you can see from the sepia-toned illustration below, Bob is definitely NOT a chicken (if he were, he would be a huge chicken!).

As Livy spends more time with Bob, memories of her last visit return in sudden snatches:

“One chicken was not the other chickens…” (p.3).

“Did I ever bump down those stairs?” (p.6)

“But what I remember about the second floor is not a big bed with a canopy. I still don’t know what it is, but it is not that” (p.8).

Little memories like this eventually aid Livy and Bob in figuring out his identity. Eventually Livy and Bob figure out that Bob has a special ability: “If Livy’s mom doesn’t see me at all, and a kid like Danny, who doesn’t know me Livy knows me, sees a chicken, then maybe age is another clue to my magic” (Mass, 2018, p.100). Bob can also make people forget about him unless he gives them a “memory aid.” In Livy’s case, her memory aid is a black chess piece. Every time Livy was physically removed from Bob, she forgot about him, but once she touched the chess piece she remembered him again and their quest to find his home.

As an adult reading this, I thought at first that Bob was an invisible friend or a metaphor for Livy’s soon transition to teenagerhood (Livy is almost eleven during the events of the book). The drought is also mentioned several times throughout the book, so I thought that Livy’s memory was somehow magically tied to the drought. In the end, it’s Bob and his origins that are connected to the drought. I would classify this book as an animal fantasy with a touch of mystery. Even though Bob is not an animal in the traditional sense of the word, he is a creature (from somewhere) and he “experiences emotions, talks, and has the ability to reason” (Short et al., 2014, p.129). There are a lot of little clues sprinkled throughout the story that Bob, Livy, and the reader must use to restore Livy’s memory and assist Bob with his mission of finding his home.

Since Bob is not a scary creature, the mysterious elements are not scary, there are no violent events, and there is a happy ending, I think this would be a great book to introduce older elementary children to the fantasy and mystery genres. Since it is not scary, the book “can be read to very young children who enjoy the exciting but reassuring adventures in books” (Short et a;, 214, p.129).

 My read-alike suggestions are The Magic Tree House series by Mary Pope Osborne and Raining Sardines by Enrique Flores-Galbis. In TMH series, siblings Jack and Annie travel to other lands and times to fulfill magical missions for Merlin and Morgan le Fay (reimagined here as the librarian of Camelot). Magical elements are used sparingly, and only for good, while the evildoer is always stopped in the nick of time. In Raining Sardines, the setting is in rural, pre-Castro Cuba and a bit of magical realism is entwined into the story (hence the title). Enriquito and Ernestina are best friends with two secrets: they have befriended the island's wild Paso Fino population and have discovered buried golden treasure! When the town land baron destroys the mountain, the locals have used for centuries for crops and hunting, the ponies' way of life is threatened as well. Enriquito and Ernestina hatch a plan to keep their beloved ponies safe and use the treasure to help their downtrodden neighbors. 

Citations:

Flores-Galbris, E. (2007). Raining Sardines. New York: Roaring Books Press.

Mass, W., Stead R., Gannon, N. (2018). Bob. New York: Feiwel and Friends.

Osborne, M.P. 1992-2018. Magic tree house, book series. New York: Penguin RandomHouse.

Short, K.G., Lynch-Brown, C., Tomlinson, C.M. (2014). Essentials of children’s literature (8^th ed.). Boston: Pearson.

Title: Crenshaw

Author: Katherine Applegate

Genre: juvenile fiction, animal fantasy

Crenshaw is told from the point of view of Jackson, a fifth grader, who unfortunately knows what sudden illness, financial hardship, and homelessness can do to a family. Crenshaw first appears to Jackson when Jackson was in the first grade. Jackson’s family had just lost their home and had to live in their minivan for fourteen weeks before they could find affordable housing. Crenshaw brought comfort to Jackson who was mentally burdened by his family’s situation: “In any case, Crenshaw had excellent timing, He came into my life just when I needed him to. It was a good time to have a friend, even if he was imaginary” (Applegate, 2015, p.142). Crenshaw disappeared just as suddenly a few months later the same day that Jackson met his best friend Marisol.

Jackson has keen observation skills due to his desire to be an animal scientist when he grows up. Jackson uses these observation skills to eavesdrop on his parents who refuse to tell Jackson the truth of the situation. After a few years of hungry bellies and too-small clothes, Jackson recognizes the signs of more changes and instability: his parents fight more often and his parents use various coping mechanisms to hide the seriousness of the situation from Jackson and his sister, Robin. The last straw, in Jackson’s eyes is when the family sells off most of their possessions in a yard sale in a last-ditch effort to catch up on their overdue rent. At this point, Crenshaw pops into Jackson’s life again; he’s big, he’s back, and he’s got catitude! When Jackson argues with Crenshaw about the reality or unreality of Crenshaw’s appearance, Crenshaw assigns Jackson a mission:

“Meantime, you get to work.”

“…on what, exactly?”

“The facts. You need to tell the truth, my friend,”

“Which facts? Tell the truth to who?”

“To the person who matters most of all” (Applegate, 2015, 79).

I would classify this book as a mixture of realistic fiction and animal fantasy. Unfortunately, many children will be able to relate to Jackson’s perilous situation regarding food and shelter. Short et al., defines the animal fantasy as a genre where “the author will interpret the animal for the reader in human terms without destroying the animal’s integrity or removing it from membership in the animal world” (2014, p. 129). The fantasy aspect comes into play when Crenshaw shows up on the first page in a flashback scene. Although Crenshaw can walk, talk, take bubble baths, and do handstands, he still retains feline characteristics and sensibilities (chasing frogs and moths, referring to the family dog as an odorous beast, purring during times of contentment, etc).

This book contains themes of adversity (the family’s experience with homelessness, food insecurity, and lack of money), honesty (Jackson’s guilt for shoplifting food and his desire for his parents to be honest with him and Robin), and friendship (Jackson’s friendship with Crenshaw and Marisol). Crenshaw’s catitude and mild snark adds just enough humor and amusement to keep the story from being too depressing for young readers. The story is also more character driven so it would make a great bedtime, readaloud book or a book that a newly fluent reader could read on their own.

My readalike recommendations are Babe, The Gallant Pig by Dick King-Smith and Charlotte’s Web by E.B. White. Both books contain talking animals contained in a realistic, human setting. I have only seen the movie version of Babe, but I remember it to be a cute and wholesome movie, perfect for young children. Charlotte’s Web contains similar themes of adversity (Wilbur needs to be saved from the chopping block) and friendship (between Charlotte, Wilbur, and the other farm animals).

Citations:

King-Smith, D. (1983). Babe, the gallant pig. London, UK: Gollanz.

Short, K.G., Lynch-Brown, C., Tomlinson, C.M. (2014). Essentials of children’s literature (8^th ed.). Boston: Pearson.

White, E.B. (1952). Charlotte’s web. New York: Harper & Bros.

Ella Minnow Pea

Title: Ella Minnow Pea
Author: Mark Dunn
Genre: satire, humorous fiction, book club

The events of Ella Minnow Pea take place on the fictional tiny island nation of Nollop (located off of South Carolina). Due to their semi-isolation, Nollopians take great pride in educating their citizens and expounding their feelings and thoughts vociferously through the written word. Nollop was founded by Nevin Nollop, who the citizens hold in high regard. He is respected (and worshiped) so much within this island nation that he is the subject of a statue decorated with tiles that spell out “The quick brown fox jumps over the lazy dog.” When the letter “z” tile falls off the Nollop statue, the island council interprets this mini tragedy as a sign from beyond the grave: Nollop’s grave. The city council believes Nollop’s ghost wants the use of the letter z banished from all written and verbal communication on the island.

Losing the letter z isn’t difficult but communication becomes hampered when D,O, and K, and a lot of other letters fall from the statue. To keep the banishment of these letters from all communications, severe punishment is enforced for using forbidden letters: public humiliation/punishment via stocks or public lashing, banishment, and even death! Of course, such sudden authoritarian rules changes the idyllic and peaceful nature of the island. Neighbors turn against neighbors, the library is closed, the newspaper is shut down, food becomes scarce and is rationed due to the declining economy, some island citizens immigrate to the United States to start over, teachers resign since they can’t teach effectively (can’t speak and teach about past tense without the letter D), and an underground postal service is created to circumvent the state-sanctioned surveillance. Since communication is hampered, letters between friends and family become shorter, certain words are substituted for others (for example: school becomes “learny-place”), and some people resort to pointing in an effort not to accidentally use a forbidden letter.

The book is told through letters between various characters. At the beginning of the book, the letters are very verbose, almost reminiscent of the educated writing styles of the 19^th century. As the events in the novel progress, the letters become shorter as writing is hampered and people self-police the words they use. While this is a satire on authoritarianism, the book does spotlight the dangers of censorship, unneeded government surveillance, and the importance of the freedom to communicate.