Tuesday, 3/22

The book almost seems too strange not to read.

Loraine was glancing through one of those weird book catalogs that we get 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-)

(jim@wmqt.com), waiting (with bated breath) to see if winter returns to us today and tomorrow after teasing us with a week of Spring-like conditions...)