Runny Babbit - A Billy Sook

Author: Shel Silverstein
Ages: Anybody who can afford to be silly and have a good laugh!

Spoonerism: NOUN: a verbal error in which a speaker accidentally transposes the initial sounds or letters of two or more words, often to humorous effect, as in the sentence you have hissed the mystery lectures.Origin: early 20th century: named after the Revd W. A. Spooner (1844–1930), an English scholar who reputedly made such errors in speaking.

The New York Times called Shel "That rare adult who can still think like a child". If you read this book with your kids, you will get to know how true that statement is! 

To giggle at deliberately committed spoonerisms is a silly pastime of all children. I used to do it all the time with my sister, and my mum was quite an expert at it as well. To make a book out of the silliest lot of spoonerisms is just pure genius. How many books have you seen out there made of jumbled words, yet read and enjoyed by millions of people all over the world!

Now to the book, Runny Babbit is a Bunny Rabbit who has so fuch mun. Sorry, so much fun and hilarious adventures alongside Millie Woose, Snerry Jake, Toe Jurtle and other frilly siends. Okay sorry again, silly friends, I meant! And with him, you end up having so fuch mun as well! 

The collection of poems about Runny and his friends and their adventures will have your tongue (and brain) all muddled up and eyes extremely watery from all the giggling and chortling. I mean, you can let out your inner child and have the most wonderful family reading time with kids ever! Even the grumpiest child is bound to be in stitches after reading this. At least, that is what always happens in our house. Needless to say, we kind of monopolise this library book and borrow it the moment we spot it, again and again!

And it is this exact page that has entertained many a tea-time and bed-time in our house :o)

The boys sure love to "shake a tower" but not to "bake their med". What a hilarious set of reminders!

This book was completed prior to Shel's death in 1999, but published much later and bears testimony to the remarkable talent that Shel had in connecting with children instantly and making readers of all ages laugh a lot, and ponder a lot as well. 

And if you think all this word play is utter nonsense and waste of time, think again. Or read again. It takes quite a bit of rearranging and some sharp observation to order and read the words. Actually, the children would be exercising their brain and phonetics (or phonemes or phonics or whatever name that goes by these days- in olden days I suppose it was just called "reading") without even realising it, in fact thoroughly relishing it!

Runny Babbit. What a bovely look! Mot to be nissed at all :o)

The Spider and the Fly

Designed and Illustrated by : Tony DiTerlizzi
Based on an 170+ years old poem by Mary Howitt 
Ages: 4+ years

"Will you walk into my parlour?", 
said the Spider to the Fly

How many times would these eternal lines have been referred to and quoted! This is a poem that I learnt in childhood and adore even today. Seeing this as a picture book made me pick it up instantly. And I wasn't disappointed at all! For this book has all that thrill and caution of the classic poem even more enhanced by Tony DiTerlizzi's truly rich, dark, gothic illustrations. A visual treat, a tale of caution, a lesson that children of today truly need to bear in mind.

This is the story of an unassuming, innocent Fly that happens to pass by a hungry Spider who invites her to his web with sugar-coated, flattering description of his beautiful parlour. The Fly is all too cautious and keeps resisting all attempts until the Spider woos her by praising her beauty. The silly Fly falls for the flattery, and falls prey to the Spider by getting tangled in his web.

The illustrations must really be given a special mention, for they carry this already powerful poem to a whole new level - the sleek, sly gentleman Spider in his impeccable attire and a wicked grin, the innocent victorian damsel Fly with those big, cautious eyes,  the dangerously dark parlour, all in black and white are really very captivating.  And the ever so slight extra touches he has drawn, like those ghosts ( of flies) and the tombstone in the end with a word of caution make the story even more ominous.

And now, dear little children, who may this story read,
To idle, silly, flattering words I pray you ne'er give heed.

It's not just the children, it's that fly in all of us that should learn this lesson and remember it forever. Particularly in these times when the newspaper is so full of news about bad things done to children. It is our duty to educate children to be well wary of the wicked wide world.

Sometimes I've noticed that when children move to bigger chapter books, parents don't really give them a picture book, as they feel it is way too easy for them. Reading is not just about reading words or tackling tougher sentences. It is all about what you take back from the story, what you comprehend from the words, what you discover from the pictures and you might well see that sometimes fluent readers miss out on such delicate details. This is one book that is not to be missed like that. It is a very mature poem and something children of all ages would enjoy and understand at so many emotional levels.

Here's a Youtube version read by English Actress Emilia Fox.

"Be warned, little dears, and know that spiders are not the only hunters and bugs are not the only victims. Take what has transpired within these pages to heart, or you might well find yourself trapped in some schemer's web" - Spider.