Today, more about books. Specifically,
a book almost seems too strange to read.
Loraine was glancing through one of
those weird book catalogs we get from a book re-seller on a seemingly
daily basis, and one of the titles popped out at her. It's a book
that's over 100 years old, and was described in the catalog as a
“cautionary tale for children aged 8 and up with an ironic sense of
humor”. I'm certainly a child aged 8 and up, and I certainly have
quite the ironic sense of humor, so why shouldn't the book appeal to
me? Well, maybe it's the title--
“Jim, Who Ran Away From His Nurse And
Was Eaten By A Lion”.
Seriously; that's the title of the
book. It was written by Hilaire Belloc in 1907, and was supposed to
teach children the importance of listening to their elders. However,
Mr. Belloc didn't take his assignment totally seriously, which is why
the book is recommended for kids with an ironic sense of humor (you
know; kids that grow up to be like me). Apparently, young Jim does
NOT follow the advice he's given, wanders into a zoo, and (spoiler
alert) does get eaten by a lion, with only his head remaining as
evidence.
Yup. They had some really good methods
of teaching kids lessons back then, didn't they? And is it just me,
or does that book sounds like a movie Tim Burton's been waiting his
entire life to direct?
Like I said, I have no idea if I'll buy
the book and check it out. It's a mere 22 pages, most of them filled
with Edward Gorey-inspired drawings, and I'm sure it would be a fun &
quick read. But still...
It's a about a boy named Jim who
sometime has trouble with authority and gets eaten by a lion because
of it. You don't think THAT would cause nightmares???????
8-)
I'll spend a few seconds this evening
thinking about it. And I'll also spend a few minutes thinking about
how they don't seem to make a certain type of puzzle book that I used
to love when I was younger.
But more on that tomorrow!
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