Book
09.13.
Encyclopedia Brown
Encyclopedia Brown is a series of books featuring the adventures of boy detective Leroy Brown, nicknamed “Encyclopedia” for his intelligence and range of knowledge. The first of the long series of children’s novels written by Donald J. Sobol was published in 1963. The series has also spawned a comic strip and a TV series.
2 Comments07.30.
The Adventures Of Super Pickle
The Adventures of Super Pickle is a pop-up book written in 1972 by Dean Walley, illustration by Mike Strouth, book design by Dick Dudley. This was printed as one of a series of Hallmark Pop-up books published by Hallmark Cards. It sells for up to $249, but experienced a bit of a pop culture resurgence in 1995 when Dick Dudley’s sister Courtney Dudley-Vantassel suggested in an Oprah interview that her brother had used pickles as a sexual metaphor. Some retailers removed the books from their shelves furthering the iconic books’ demand and sealing the legacy of “The Adventures of Super Pickle” as a timeless treasure for all ages. Sadly, Dick Dudley was never able to shake the stigma and died in seclusion in his self fabricated cottage in 2003.
The Adventures of Super Pickle chronicles the life of Dillbert, a mild-mannered pickle who lives in small town peopled with vegetables. Dillbert secretly pines for a lady pickle named Lilly. At the first sign of trouble (i.e. an evil cabbage, a baby pickle in distress) Dillert hops into a pickle jar and emerges as Super Pickle, borrowed directly from Superman. In the end Lilly realizes that Dillbert and Super Pickle are one and the same and the two pickles get married.
Super Pickle was the first pop-up book that Robert Sabuda read. Sabuda is the illustrator and paper engineer for the bestselling pop-up adaptations of Lewis Carroll’s Alice in Wonderland and L. Frank Baum’s The Wonderful Wizard of Oz.
No Comments06.13.
Amelia Bedelia
Amelia Bedelia is the protagonist and title character of a series of American children’s books written by Peggy Parish until her death in 1988, and by her nephew Herman Parish beginning in 1995. The books have been illustrated by Wallace Tripp, Fritz Siebel, and the two current illustrators, Lynn Sweat and Lynne Avril. In 1992 HarperCollins republished the three original Amelia Bedelia books: Amelia Bedelia, Amelia Bedelia and the Surprise Shower, and Thank You, Amelia Bedelia with illustrations by Barbara Siebel Thomas, daughter of the original illustrator Fritz Siebel.
“Amelia Bedelia” was based on a maid in Cameroon, where the author spent some time during her formative years. Her vast collection of hats, notorious for their extensive plumage, inspired her to write an assortment of tales based on her experiences in North Africa. Some of the stories involve Amelia repeatedly misunderstanding various commands of her employer by always taking figures of speech and various terminology literally, causing her to perform wrong actions with comical effect. However, she almost always manages to win everyone over at the end of the book by baking an (apparently delicious) pie or cake.
Beginning in 2009, Herman Parish is now writing books about Amelia Bedelia’s own childhood experiences, starting with Amelia Bedelia’s First Day of School.
There is a statue of Amelia Bedelia in Manning, South Carolina, the hometown of author Peggy Parish.
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