The Rustle of the Stage Curtain...

9:34 pm PST update: I'm live!

My Etsy shop officially opens tomorrow, and I still have a lot of work to do today to get ready for it. Unofficially, it opens sometime tonight (Pacific Standard Time), as I take it out of "Vacation Mode" to create listings for my dolls. If you are at all interested in ways to help that don't require you to spend money, here they are:

1. Open an Etsy account. You'll need a credit card on file, and they may put on a 1.00 USD temporary charge, but then they'll take it off again.

2. Once you open an Etsy account, you can use the "Add to Favorites" function. Add stories to favorites, add items to favorites-- enough of these "hearts" can alert the Etsy team that a seller is worth looking at, and then they put items on their front page.

3. Cheer me on. Times are hard for many people, and it's challenging enough to find the funds for basic necessities. I have tried to price my dolls so that I get a somewhat fair wage and yet make them obtainable for people.

I promise you that this blog is not going to turn into an advertising vehicle for my store. I'd like to have one feature per week, but it'll be more along the lines of "Look what I've made!" Each of my listings ends with, "I care about each doll that I sew, and hope that you will find a doll in the shop that you feel is yours."

Here is a sneak peak of what (or rather, who!) is showing up in the shop tomorrow:


Many thanks,
Farida

The Garden Maiden on my Etsy Wishlist

Photo by Nushkie

This Garden Maiden was created by Nushkie, one of my favorite sellers on Etsy. Nushkie's King Winter and Earth Angel are part of our Winter nature table, and if you follow the link, you'll see that one of Nushkie's little angels hangs above our Nativity scene as well. Recently, Lucia received one of Nushkie's blessing fairies to use as a marionette in her puppet-shows.

Times are hard for people, both financially and otherwise, and I've had to place a moratorium on any extra purchases while at the same time hoping that once my shop opens this Friday, others won't feel the same pinch. I learned years ago that just because I appreciated a thing of beauty, whether it be a shiny necklace or a cluster of flowers, it didn't mean I had to be in possession of it.

This mindset becomes more challenging with dolls, especially now that I have a daughter who actively plays, presents puppet-shows and tells stories with them. I think I've mentioned before how beloved dolls are alive, not in the way that people, animals and plants are alive, but in the way that we interact with them through storytelling and pretend play.

I wish the Garden Maiden could come to our home. I may stitch a "Lady Spring" doll for Lucia that's inspired by the Garden Maiden, but I'm confident that someone else who appreciates Nushkie's craftmanship will become smitten and bring the doll to his or her own nature table.

I can't believe that it's only three days until my own store opens! I am still stitching dolls in preparating for opening day. I'm pleased about the small elementals I've been coming up with. In addition to the basic four many people know (air, earth,fire,water), there is the fifth elemental of aether, I've come up with some specific interpretations: sand (earth), fog (water), bird child (air) and have been pondering the possible variations for fire. Foxfire is a possibility (though it's more related to earth, I suspect), as is smoke.

Contest Submissions Round-Up, Part II

As promised, here is Part 2 of the Unnecessary Children's Book sequels contest. Part 1 can be found here. You can find Minh Le's links to the graphics for the prizewinners here. Please send me a note if I inadvertently left your submission out of the round-up. I had a system going, but there were a lot of titles to keep track of! Just so you know, none of the submissions were disqualified due to being "overtly lewd and offensive". All I wanted to do was to avoid titles that would be better suited for the marquee of Seattle's Lusty Lady peep-show theatre.

Here's the roundup:

I. Eric Carle

Children's study of life cycles continues in Eric Carle's new The Very Hungry Bird (eats The Very Hungry Caterpillar).
--K.F.

The Very Hungry Dragonfly Nymph
"In the light of the moon, a little egg lay on a blob of algae."
--Schelle, Brand New Ending


The Very Bulimic Caterpillar
Caterpillars aren't supposed to be fat because fatness is unattractive, also it's unhealthy. One little caterpillar learns an important lesson in this colorful picture book about what to do if you feel waaaay too full!
--Kate Coombs, Book Aunt

The Very Constipated Caterpillar
In which the caterpillar eats too much and then feels rather uncomfortable.
--Jamie Michalak

II. Maurice Sendak

Chicken Soup with Organic Whole Grain Texmati Rice
Maurice Sendak's classic gets updated for the modern health-conscious era and loses something in the translation. Kid throws soup, soup gets everywhere, mom's finding grains of rice in the carpet months later, and nobody is happy.
--a.fortis, Finding Wonderland

Finally, after a long writing year, and a cross-country vacation with his eight grandchildren, wise New Yorker Maurice Sendak celebrates a new season of love and family togetherness with his newest picture book, that's a sure hit with Moms and Dads everywhere -- Oh, Yeah Once, Oh, Yeah Twice: Oh, Yeah, Bourbon Neat, No Ice.
--Tanita Davis, Finding Wonderland

III. Kevin Henkes

Lilly's Purple Plastic Hearse
In this emotional tale of loss, the irresistible heroine of several domestic mouse dramas is mourned by friends and family after a devastating marker-sniffing incident in the famed Lightbulb Lab. Having sentenced herself to yet another time-out in a self-made Uncooperative Chair in Mr. Slinger's classroom after being scolded for a bit too enthusiastically wanting to interrupt sharing time with her positively peachy purple plastic marker, complete with interchangeable nibs, Lilly's endless curiosity leads to tragedy. Don't miss this opportunity to talk to your children about the irreversible dangers of Inhalant Abuse.
--Jules, Seven Impossible Things Before Breakfast

Lilly's Louis Vuitton Bag with Little Fluffy Dog Inside
Lilly always knew she'd be famous, and now she really is, only she's not into plastic these days. (Except for credit cards. Obviously.) Check out this story of starlet Lilly with her designer bag--she carries Biffycakes everywhere she goes!
--Kate Coombs, Book Aunt

IV. Robert McCloskey

One Afternoon in Akron
Sadly, the beloved Robert McCloskey missed the mark on this collector’s rarity, in which young Sal goes along with her father on a visit to the accountant. Not McCloskey’s finest.
-- Hannah Mahoney
Copy Manager
Candlewick Press

Genetically Modified Blueberries for Sal
No bears were harmed in the making of this book, which introduces a little girl named Sal to the wonders of modern agricultural hybrids. (If you want to see a bear, you should go to the zoo! It's much safer that way.)
--Kate Coombs, Book Aunt

V. Dr. Seuss

Would You Like Trichinosis? by Dr. Seuss
In this very special sequel, Sam-I-Am reveals the downside to eating green eggs and ham.
--Adrienne Furness, What Adrienne Thinks About That

The Fish was Right
Sally and her older brother are grounded for allowing strange things and cats into the house. Sequel to The Cat in the Hat
--Greg W.

How the Grinch Only Borrowed Christmas
The hopeful tale of a legal case involving a green guy. In an early attempt at a plea bargain, local defense attorney Q. Smork Egglemore asserted that the Grinch did not in fact steal Christmas, as had been alleged in an earlier book, but rather merely borrowed it. The return of hundreds of missing gifts seems to bode well for the Grinch's defense, as does the character witness of a Miss Cindy Lou Who, despite the girl's eyes having been Bambified by the notorious Chuck Jones. Local legal commentators feel the outcome will be probation and community service for the reclusive mountain man. (Er, mountain creature.)
--Kate Coombs, Book Aunt


The Chlorax
Recently discovered in a trunk of manuscripts buried in the garden of Dr Seuss's nanny, this unexpected sequel to The Lorax chronicles the effects of unrestrained Truffula Tree planting:

they grew in the fields,
they grew in the roads,
they grew upon houses,
they grew upon toads,
and however you faced it,
looking up, looking down,
those Truffula Trees
simply smothered the town!

In desperation, the citizens march en masse to the Street of the Lifted Lorax and plead with the Once-ler to invent a solution. From his stockpile of industrial sludge, he produces The Chlorax - but is it what they really need?
--Schelle, Brand New Ending

VI. Laura Numeroff

Laura Numeroff salutes activism in her sequel, If You Give a Pig a Pamphlet, telling the story of how just one pig really can make a difference.
-- Jason

If You Give a Mouse a Prune
It's a very short book.
--Jamie Michalak

If You Give a Tapeworm a Cookie
Up till now, Numeroff and Bond have focused on what happens outside the tummy of adorable creatures like a little mouse, a medium-size cat, and a nice big moose. Now they take us inside someone's tummy to follow the adventures of a nameless, yet equally darling young tapeworm. His adventures are more twisty than circular, but once again, the author-illustrator team works their magic.
--Kate Coombs, Book Aunt

VII. Virginia Lee Burton

Michelle Mulligan and the Steam Shovel
Unbeknownst to most, Mike Mulligan owed most of his knowledge of large earth moving shovels to his older sister Michelle. While the other girls were playing under trees with dolls and their brothers, Michelle was teaching Mike the fine intricacies of cellar digging on a small scale for the forest animals of Popperville to store their winter food. Recently dug up from the archives her story is now known in Michelle Mulligan and the Steam Shovel- she went on to be a ground shaker in women's liberation!
--Mamaroots

The Little House is Razed
After being saved from demolition in the 1940's, the Little House falls victim to subprime mortgages and MacMansion development.
-- Rocco Staino and Cynthia Sandler

Mike Mulligan and his Ethanol-Powered Plow
Mike Mulligan decides to go "green" and builds a plow that runs on the ethanol he manufactures using a Depression-era still in an old shed on his farm in Iowa.
--Elaine Magliaro, Wild Rose Reader

VIII. A mix of authors

Leap, Pounce, Cha Cha Cha
A sequel to Sandra Boynton's incredibly successful MOO BAA LA LA LA, featuring the Philadelphia Chickens.
--Schelle, Brand New Ending

Follow the adventures of an aspiring calf from the meadow to the market in the sequel to the ever-popular Arlene the Sardine entitled Louise the Head Cheese.
--Jason

Miss Nelson Is Still Missing and Presumed Dead
A tragic picture book written in the aftermath of one of the country's most troubling news stories. Denver police have concluded that Miss Nelson, who went missing after a particularly virulent encounter with a group of schoolchildren, should be presumed dead. Apparently a little black dress with blood on it was found discarded in an alley. DNA tests are still being run, but things don't look good for the absent educator.
--Kate Coombs, Book Aunt

The charming and delightful sequel to Whistle for Willie, Ezra Jack Keat's Holla for Hadassah tells the story of a delightful six year old who wants to learn to mix it up with her Uncle Mordecai. Follow her through her neighborhood as she picks the neighbor's roses and experiences the power of a bellow, then hears a shout as she makes footprints on freshly laid concrete. Finally, after her mother puts her in time out, her own voice rises as she becomes a hollaback girl...
--Tanita Davis, Finding Wonderland

Polyester
In this sequel, Corduroy bear makes a new friend, a plastic puppy dressed in an ill-fitting purple polyester jumpsuit. Throughout the new friends’ adventures, poor Polyester is always rather grumpy. “This fabric just does not breathe in the heat!” is his endearingly cranky refrain.
--Hannah Mahoney
Copy Manager
Candlewick Press

Two titles by KF:
Officer Buckles In Gloria: A Seat Belt Safety Story
Ezra Jack Keats presents The Day It Didn't Snow At All.

Three titles from MamaKopp of Live'nLearn:

Rosie's Nap (Rosie’s Walk)
Daydream In The Classroom (Nightmare In My Closet)
Mole Sings The Blues (Mole’s Music by David McPhail)

That's the whole show! Thanks so much to everyone who shared their creative sparks.

Contest Submissions Round-Up, Part I

Here is Part 1 of the books submitted to the Unnecessary Children's Book Sequels That Never Were contest. I'll post part 2 on Monday, April 27. If only I had graphics! My meager Photoshop skills are not up to the task.

What do People Do All Evening?
Children were bitterly disappointed to find out that after working all day, Sergeant Murphy just watches TV, Lowly Worm goes to bed early and Bug Dozer molts his exoskeleton.
--Sam Riddleburger

The gritty and chilling sequel to Caps for Sale, this year's Hacks for Sale: A Tale of Celebrity, Some More Monkeys, And Their Typewriters laments the difficulties of celebrity children's book authors. Follow the empty days of such disparate authors as A-Rod, Maria Shriver, Katie Couric, and Lynne Cheney as they rail against a ceaselessly indifferent publishing world which just won't give them the undeserved attention they crave...
--Tanita Davis, Finding Wonderland

Angus and the Car
Following on from Angus and the Ducks, Angus and the Cat and Angus Lost. In this sequel, the curious little terrier adventures out on his own once too often.
--Schelle, Brand New Ending

Don't Let the Bus Drive Over the Pigeon.
--Candace Ryan, Book, Booker, Bookest

Pat the Porcupine
In this attempt to capitalize on the enormous popularity of Dorothy Kunhardt’s classic, her heirs have spiced things up a bit with this sequel, which includes such attention-getting features as a battery-powered “Touch the socket” — zzzap! — and “Is the stove hot?” — yowch! — as well as the titular porky (ably introducing the concept of sharp to even the youngest readers) and a shockingly realistic “Put your hand in the big croc’s mouth.” (Bandages are provided in a convenient pouch at the back of the book.)
--Hannah Mahoney
Copy Manager
Candlewick Press

Owl Rabies
Set three years after the happy ending of Owl Babies, Martin Waddell's eagerly awaited sequel shows the owl siblings again supporting each other through a time of stress and worry. Sarah and Percy have long since flown the nest but they are reunited by a cry in the night from Bill, who informs them that their owl mother has been bitten by a fox and is seriously ill. This book, with its strong message of family togetherness, is a must read for any child faced with the possibility of losing a loved one.
--Schelle, Brand New Ending

Harold And The Invisible Crayon ( following Harold and the Purple Crayon)
--MamaKopp’s family (Tobin), Live‘nLearn

Eloise is Evicted
After the sale of the famous Plaza Hotel and numerous reports to Child Protective Services, longtime resident, Eloise is evicted. Her mother must now take full responsibility for her child.
-- Rocco Staino and Cynthia Sandler

Frog and Toad Are Married
After years of hiding their true relationship, Frog and Toad come out of the closet and wed when the legislature passes a law in their state allowing same sex marriage.
---Elaine Magliaro, Wild Rose Reader

Just You and Me Too
In this sequel, Little Goosey is joined by her newly hatched brother, Baby Goosey. You'll love the hilarious antics of these sibling rivals as they compete for the attention of Gander Goose.
--Schelle, Brand New Ending

The Steadfast Tin Soldier II: Judgment Day
Having been melted down in the fireplace with his only love the paper ballerina, the one-legged soldier emerges from a heart-shaped puddle of molten tin to be regenerated as an army of one-legged soldiers who seek revenge against their tormenters.
--Lori, Goddess of Clarity

King, King, and Prince: When the two happily-ever-after kings throw a shindig at their palace and invite the artist formerly known as Prince, hilarity and outrageous costumes ensue. Unfortunately, everybody attending is temporary blinded by an unexpected glitter explosion.
--a. fortis, Finding Wonderland

Herman Parish honors his aunt's memory by telling a heartwarming story of love and friendship in the midst of the difficulties of growing old in Amelia Bedelia Forgets Who She Is and is Found Wandering on the Freeway Median With No Shoes and a Half-Eaten Chicken Drumstick.
--Jason

Click, Clack, Cluck: Chickens That Tap Dance
The chickens steal back the typewriter from Farmer Brown, write a screenplay for a song and dance musical, get financial backing from Gene Kelly's heirs, and produce a movie in which they star as a group of tap dancers at Radio City Music Hall called the Cluckettes.
---Elaine Magliaro, Wild Rose Reader

Alexander and the Wonderful, Blissful, Super Good, Extra Special Day
Because some days are like that, dontcha know? Even in Alaska, where patriotic young Alexander actually ends up. (Not Afghanistan, which is pretty much the most anti-American country ever besides maybe Buenos Aires.) Alexander gets a wonderful job working on Sarah Palin's 2012 presidential campaign as her personal shopper. Read all about his adventures in this beautifully illustrated sequel. Polar bears included.
--Kate Coombs, Book Aunt

Byron Barton employs his characteristic style of simple lines and bold colors in yet another tribute to the glories of the working world in I Want to Be An Accountant.
--Jason

SHRUG
The sweet baby chimp, Bobo, whom we all grew to know and love in Jez Alborough's HUG, is now a teenager. In this latest sequel, Bobo saunters through jungle and savannah monosyllabically expressing his complete indifference to all he surveys. (It is rumoured that negotiations are underway for a further sequel, possibly to be entitled THUG.)
--Schelle, Brand New Ending

Okay, I know you've been waiting for the potty humor. Here are the entires in a special section all their own.

No One Poops But You
The not so popular sequel to the book "Everyone Poops" by Taro Gomi.
--Stephanie, Adventures With the Kids

Walter the Farting Dog and Martha Speaks fall in love but discover that marital bliss is not so easy to achieve in Walter and Martha Get a Divorce Because He Smells Like an Outhouse and She Won't Ever Shut the %$&#@ Up. (Jason writes, “I don't know- maybe that's borderline, but I couldn't resist.”)
-- Jason

Poop-Oh!
In Peepo! Janet and Allen Ahlberg treated us to a baby's view of life through a cleverly designed series of cutout windows. In Poop-Oh! the Ahlbergs revisit this successful technique of partially revealed illustrations and charming rhyme to present the infant's adventures in potty training. A book that is guaranteed to hold your child captivated on the "throne"!
--Schelle, Brand New Ending

Finally, here are the chapter-book sequels that didn't qualify because they were supposed to be picture-books (and no, the rules I made up didn't even occur to me until just before the contest closed).

Chapter Book Sequels That Never Were

Charlotte's Web II: Revenge of the Spider Babies
Charlotte's many children discover their mother's past as an uncredited, unpaid author whose works were used to benefit a lowly pig. Unable to collect royalties and forced to live in poverty, they devise an evil plot to exact their revenge. Wilber and the Arable family start to get strange and threatening Web messages like "The itsy bitsy spider is watching you" and "Mmmm, bacon!"
Dawn, http://www.blogger.com/Field of Greens

Charlotte's Web 2.0
Charlotte's babies go off to save other piggies, leading to a severe ham shortage in the land.
--Yat-Yee

A Wrinkle in Rhyme
Plans for the development of an all-poetry version of Madeline L'Engle's A Wrinkle in Time were cut unceremoniously short when the ghost writer was unable to find words that rhyme with "tesseract," "Fortinbras," and "cherubim."
--a. fortis, Finding Wonderland

A Wrinkle in My Shirt
In which Meg and Charles Wallace start a dry cleaning business that uses tesseracts to send clothing to the two-dimensional planet to remove wrinkles.
--Greg W.

In the crossover sequel, Diary of a Wimpy Spider, Spider stays on his web all day, avoiding his bullying older sibling until his world-traveling grandfather comes home and gives him a piece of his mind.
--Jason

The depressing, but historically accurate companion to the Little House series called Little House on the Reservation, where we see how Native Americans were abused by the federal government to satisfy the settlers' needs for more land.
--Greg W.

James and the Merely Average-Sized Brussels Sprout
After his adventure with the peach, James settles down to a more ordinary life on a farm, raising vegetables. Sadly, his plans for prize-winning produce are thwarted by tFinding Wonderlandhe very same outsized insects that befriended him on his original journey.


The View From Sunday. The friends, now all grown up, get together every Sunday night for cocktails, lamenting the fact that most people still don't know the real meaning of the word "tips."
--Yat Yee

The Phantom Tollbooth 2: E-Z Pass
Mostly about gerunds.
--Sam Riddleburger

First Place Winner: Kate Coombs

Before I announce the winning entry to the Unnecessary Children's Book Sequels That Never Were contest, I would like to thank everyone who submitted entries. In case you were wondering, "Why are Minh and Farida running this contest?" the answer is that we wanted to have fun and be entertained by your wit and creativity. We've dreamt up quite a few Children's Books That Never Were, but we wanted fresh ideas. And you, you wonderful people of the blogsphere, you had them! In the following days, I'll be posting more of the contest entries as promised.

I also want to thank once more our judges Melangell and Phil. If it weren't for you, we would be handing out 10th, 11th... 17th place prizes.

But now, without further ado, I would like to present the winning entry: the sequel to Crockett Johnson's Harold and the Purple Crayon as envisioned by author and blogger Kate Coombs, Harry and the Purple Can of Spray Paint.

Whatever you do, don't call him Harold. He's a big boy now, and he wields a mean can of spray paint! Follow Harry up and down dirty alleys and streets, also beneath overpasses, in this touching sequel. Remember: when you see that magical purple tag, an H with a skull-handled dagger slashing through it, you know Harry's been there and left his mark. --Kate Coombs

The unnecessary sequel to Bill Martin Jr. et al's Chicka Chicka Boom Boom was one of Coombs' other entries the short-list and is a personal favorite:

Shrieka Shrieka Boom Boom
You've seen the action movie, now read the picture book. Deciding palm tree climbing is child's play, a gang of thieves disguised as letters of the alphabet pulls off the biggest heist of the new millennium, stealing a cool kazillion dollars from an impossible-to-get-into bank vault. Along the way, they blow up twenty-six cars, from an Acura to a Z-28.


Kate Coombs wins the butterfly herder doll plus the first blue donkey I made that was just too big for a Nativity set made by Beneath the Rowan Tree and purchased by a teacher for Lucia's Atrium class:


The larger blue donkey is just perfect for the butterfly herder to ride during his daily round up all of those wayward Celastrina ladon.

In case you were distracted by all of this extra information, Minh's illustration for Harry and the Purple Can of Spray Paint plus his blog post is here.

The Giving Taking Tree and Brie and Foie Gras for Frances

My blogging job has been so easy this past week. All I had to do was round up your contest entries, group them into various categories, and have the judges and Minh Le do the rest. Look what Minh has done now: more honorable mentions! Check out the covers for the other Giving Tree sequels with Finding Wonderland's a.fortis contribution of "The Taking Tree", plus Elaine Magliaro's "Brie and Foie Gras" for Frances. Minh has the graphics, but we both have the texts:

The Taking Tree: Shel Silverstein's sequel to The Giving Tree proves to be much less popular, as children everywhere shun trees for fear of grabby branches and thieving twigs, and parents complain about the bad morals being conveyed to their impressionable tots. Book rated highly with test audiences, but it was later revealed that test audience consisted mainly of rhododendrons. -a.fortis, Finding Wonderland

The Tree: Co-dependent No More!: A burst of insight leads the formerly Giving Tree to shed its unhealthy relationship with The Boy as it sprouts a new branch from the stump it has become. -MotherReader

Counting Rings: A Very Special Crime Scene Investigation of 'The Giving Tree': Using the current DSM-V (Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders), "Counting Rings: A Very Special Crime Scene Investigation of 'The Giving Tree'" breaks down, in a child-friendly counting-book way, the psychoses and delusions behind your child's first - and favorite - dysfunctional relationship. -Lee Wind

The Irate Stump: The Giving Tree has a few regrets . . . -Jamie Michalak

The Trading Tree: The story of a cunning tree which, starting with the offer of an apple for allowance, slowly trades a young boy out of his considerable inheritance over the course of his life, leaving him with nothing but a place to sit. -Tony Dowler (not an official entry, since he's a relation...)

And one more for good measure--the unnecessary sequel to Bread and Jam For Frances:

Brie and Foie Gras For Frances: After spending a month-long summer vacation in Paris with her parents and younger sister, Frances returns home and refuses to eat anything other than brie cheese and foie gras imported from France. -Elaine Magliaro

Second Place Winner: Elaine Magliaro

Second Place in the Unnecessary Children's Book Sequels That Never Were Contest goes to Elaine Magliaro of Wild Rose Reader with her unnecessary sequel to Eric Carle's The Very Hungry Caterpillar.

The Very Hungry Larva or Moth Madness: This is the tale of a "mad about plaid" caterpillar that eats his way through all the heirloom tartans in a Scottish castle. The larva is finally caught and "kilt" by a wild and woolly sheep shearer and his weaver wife who live on the banks of Loch Lamb. -Elaine Magliaro

Hmmm... perhaps this is a necessary sequel after all. In any case, you'll want to follow the link to see Minh Le's book cover. Elaine Magliaro wins a small painting of a random robot painted by Minh.

Contest judges were Melangell and Phil. Many thanks!

Elementals and Pegacorns

Yesterday was sunny, so I sat in the park and sewed while my daughter was in her Atrium class. At one point, a young boy with his father walked up to me and asked me what I was doing. I told him that I was making a "wind child" (an air elemental) and showed him the "fire child" with the salamander on the cape that I had already made.

"Who is that doll for?" he asked. I told him that it was for some child somewhere in the world.

"Will you make a doll for me?" he asked. I inquired what sort of a doll would I make for him, and he said, "A doll with wings, and a pegacorn. Do you know what a pegacorn is?" He described a flying unicorn with many colors and said the pegacorn would come with him to school.

I told him that I had always wondered what a flying unicorn was called, and wondered what they ate. The boy thought for a moment, and then said, "Hay!" He talked for a few more moments about the pegacorn (all the while I reassured the father that this was okay, that the boy was not bothering me, etc.), and then ran off to play in the park.

While I'm not unveiling the elementals for my Etsy shop until May 1, you may view the elementals I've already posted in my gallery here. I'm currently working on a number of elemental dolls: wind (bird themed), sand (i.e. earth), fog (i.e. water) and aether.

***
Minh Le has illustrated another honorable mention for our contest: Wet Dog, Wet Dog, What Do You Smell? submitted by Yat-Yee Chong.

Third Place Winner: Hannah Mahoney

Are you familiar with Susan Beth Pfeffer's Life as We Knew It and the dead and the gone? You in particular will appreciate the third place winner in the Unnecessary Children's Book Sequels Contest:

Kitty’s First Meteor Hurtling on a Terrifying Death Path Toward Earth

Henkes goes for the dark side in the sequel to Kitten’s First Full Moon. Please note that scenes of worldwide panic and of the apocalyptic destruction of the eastern seaboard may not be appropriate for the very youngest readers. -Hannah Mahoney (Copy Manager, Candlewick Press)

As a bonus, Minh Le has designed a poster for the movie adaptation.

Don't forget to take a look at the honorable mentions for all of the Wild Things adaptations plus I am Still a Bunny.

Thank you to Pipers athe Gates of Dawn and Pilcrow for their judging work.

Update: In addition to the DVD of Jim Henson's "The Storyteller" (season 1), Hannah is getting a small-handmade item from me. Even though I don't do as well with cloth animals as I do with cloth humans, I made Hannah a little white cat. In lieu of a meteor, here is the little white cat next to one of Bede's cats:

Unnecessary Sequel Honorable Mention: Where The Wild Things Aren't

Here is the schedule for announcing the Unnecessary Children's Book Sequels contest:

Third Place: Monday, April 20
Second Place: Wednesday, April 22
First Place: Friday, April 24

In the meantime, Minh Le of Bottom Shelf Books has illustrated a cover for sequels to Maurice Sendak's Where the Wild Things Are, called Where the Wild Things Aren't. Please visit Minh's blog for the book cover. Here are 5 entries for Wild Things sequels:

Where the Wild Things Aren't: a loving commentary on boredom and conformity. -Greg W.

Where the Wild Things Aren't: After seeing his pediatrician and a child psychologist, Max is prescribed medication for his anger management issues and night terrors. -Rocco Staino and Cynthia Sandler

Where the Wild Things Are Having a Bash: Max grows up and leaves home for Carousal State College--the biggest party school in the country. There, he meets other "wild things" and sails off with them into drunken oblivion every weekend. Of course, when he sobers up on Monday mornings, his Friday night dinners are always cold and moldy. -Elaine Magliaro

Where the Wild Things Aren't: Max grows up, becomes an accountant, marries the nice Jewish girl next door and spends the rest of his life in painful anonymity. -The Library Lady

Wild Things: A Tropical Theme Park: This picture book is a story about an important industry called tourism. In it, we welcome you to a tropical paradise reached by some pretty clever chronological sailing. See our monsters in their very specially designed habitat and later you can even watch a trained monster show while sipping on banana daiquiris as the sun sets over the ocean. Written and developed by Imperial Corporate, Inc. just for you. -Kate Coombs

Storytime Wrap-Up: Seattle Public Library

We finally have winners of the Children's Book Sequels contest! The fabulous Minh Le and I will announce them next week, along with honorable mentions and all the other entries as well.

Today, I performed at the Madrona-Sally Goldmark branch of Seattle Public Library. This was the performance that had been postponed from December due to snow.



We had a good turn-out (29 people) and there were a number of babies as well as toddlers and preschoolers. People seemed to have a good time. I know I did. I performed my new song, "May I Walk With You?" with felt-board pieces you can see here:



There's a daytime version of this song, and a nighttime version. Here is the main body of the daytime version:

I went for a walk in the fields one day,
And I met a duck who was going my way,
"Quack, quack," said the duck, "May I walk with you,
Quack, quack," said the duck, "May I walk with you?"

Repeat with different animals.

The final verse:

And when I stopped walking, I turned to see
A whole bunch of animals following me....

[call out all the animal sounds]

Then we sat in the meadow and we all had tea,
When the party was over, they said to me,
"So long, and thanks for your company,
So long and thanks for your company."

I plan to record it eventually so that you may hear what it sounds like.

In other news, storytelling student Jody Segal had kind things to say about my gig at Third Place Books yesterday, which you may read here.

Flowering-Red Currant

Earlier in the month, I posted photos of my currant bushes. Andromeda (a.k.a. Cloudscome) asked me if I planned to make jam with berries from the red-flowering currant bush. According to my research, the gorgeous currant bushes put forth beautiful flowers but the berries themselves are edible but "insipid." It's just as well. The farmer who sold me her currant jam at the farmer's market said that currant jam is even more labor-intensive than berry jam because one has to skin the berries. I am content to appreciate other people's jam-making. (By the way, I am quite willing to trade the fruits of my creativity for the jam-making fruits of yours.)

Sometimes I have a specific idea of what doll I'd like to make, while other times the felt inspires me. When I found a deep pink piece of felt at a local shop last week, I knew immediately that I wanted to make red-flowering currant doll. A friend had commissioned a doll for her daughter and gave me free rein to make what I wished, so I made this root child:



Here is the Red-Flowering Currant root child in her native habitat:



Our red-flowering currant shrub is a young plant. To view how it may look after a few years, visit here.

For those of you who are impatiently awaiting the results of the Unnecessary Children's Book Sequel contest, Minh Le has a new series to tide you over. He is reimagining picture-books as grown-up novels. In addition to Charlotte's Library's contribution of I am Still a Bunny, Minh has Goodnight Moon and The Paperback Princess for you to read.

"I Am Still a Bunny" from Charlotte's Library

From the wise, witty Charlotte of Charlotte's Library comes a contest entry that didn't make the judges' final lists, but amused Minh Le and me so much that Minh had to make a book cover for it: I am Still a Bunny. You may find Charlotte's original blog entry on the book here.

Come Again in the Spring

A month ago, I heard fellow storyteller Aarene Storms tell Richard Kennedy's "Come Again in the Spring" on her Global Griot Sunday morning radio program. As I listened, I knew I had read or heard the story sometime ago in my childhood, but I couldn't remember when or what context. It's a story about a man named Old Hark who has fed the birds ever since he was a little boy. One day in winter, a stranger comes to visit. The stranger is Death, and it's Old Hark's time to go, only Old Hark will have none of it. Old Hark tells Death,

Come again in the spring. I won't hinder you none then. But you see all these birds? Come winter time, they depend on me to feed them. They naturally ought to fly south in the fall but don't, reason I been feeding 'em all winter since I was no bigger 'an a skip bug. They'd die if I was gone-- they ain't real wintering birds. But you come back in the spring, and they'll know I won't be here next winter and have enough sense to go south.

Death offers a wager of three questions that involve memory, and Old Hark takes it. The birds are instrumental in the winning of the wager. I won't give away the ending, but I'll tell you that every time I read it, I have to take a deep breath and hold myself still. It's the literary equivalent of the "tenor rush."

You can find "Come Again in the Spring" and other stories in the book Richard Kennedy: Collected Stories, illustrated by Marcia Sewell. It's out-of-print, but I hope you can find it through your library system, through Interlibrary Loan, or inexpensively through a used bookstore.

Contest update: There's still no final word from our judges. They're slogging it out! I am glad other people are judging the entries. There are a lot of good submissions, and I wish we had more prizes. Really.

Happy Easter 2009

Happy Easter! Here is our Easter egg tree for 2009:



We went to Easter Mass this morning, and now are getting ready for two gatherings this afternoon. After church, Lucia put on a puppet-show with her new blessing fairy made by Nushkie Design:



Unncecessary Children's Book Sequels Contest update: the judges are working on narrowing down their choices, and we should have announcements and book covers within the next few days.

P.S. My wonderful husband set up the tree.

Last Day for Contest Entries

The Contest is now closed. Stay tuned for the results, including contest winners, Minh Le's illustrations of the winning entries, and more.


Today is the last day to submit your entries to the The Unnecessary Children's Book Sequels That Never Were contest. At midnight Eastern Standard Time (which is 9 PM where I live), the contest closes and my work begins. I will send the contest entries off to the judges and work on grouping the entries into blog posts that form cohesive wholes. After the judges make their final decisions (after wrangling, arguing, and shouting), my co-host Minh Le of Bottom Shelf Books gets to illustrate the winning entries. We hope to have the winning entries announced by the middle of next week. Regardless of who wins, be assured that there are so many good entries that I am glad I am not one of the judges. I appreciate the time you took to think up creative, whimsical fictitious titles and descriptions. I also appreciate the bloggers who wrote posts about the contest. Many thanks to: A Fuse Number 8 Production, Charlotte's Library, Finding Wonderland, Jen Robinson's Book Page, life or books?, Live'nLearn, Practically Paradise, and Seven Impossible Things Before Breakfast. Did I miss someone? If so, the Technorati search didn't pick up on it! If I inadvertently missed your blog post, please email me and I'll add you to the list of thanks.

Bat Child, Leaf and Fox

I've got three weeks and 2 days before May 1, the official opening of Alkelda, my Etsy.com online storefront. I've been stitching dolls large and small, working on drafts for the descriptive text, and vascillating between prices. Etsy.com takes a certain percentage of sales, and shipping materials cost money, too. I don't want to price my dolls out of people's reach, but I do want a fair wage for my work. I hope that the smaller dolls will be pleasing and financially accessible to people.

While I won't reveal the the dolls in the shop until opening day, I can show you some of the other dolls I've been working on. The first doll was created for a friend as part of the Handmade Meme (Note to self: If I ever do this again, I'm drawing five names out of a hat, not simply inviting the first five people to respond to the post). Even though the recipients aren't supposed to have a say in what they get, a friend asked me if I would create something that involved bats. Years ago, my friend made me a bat batik because I like bats. It seemed fitting that I make something bat-related as well. I thought for awhile, and this is what I came up with:



I've been struggling against the adage of "The shoemaker's children never wear shoes" by making dollies for Lucia as well as other people. I realized recently that I myself did not have a doll! And so, I made Leaf, a forest elemental:



Leaf's companion is a fox that I made from a WoolPets kit. If you're remotely interested in needle-felting but don't want to commit to buying materials for something that may not work for you, a WoolPets kit is a good way to go. Each kit has everything you need except for a pad upon which to work. I use one that looks like this. Here is the result:



Pssst.... The Unnecessary Children's Book Sequels That Never Were contest is still going on. It runs until midnight (Eastern Standard Time) of April 10, 2009.

Yes, you can write children's book sequels (or at least suggest them)

Minh Le (of Bottom Shelf Books) and I are enjoying reading the entries of the Unnecessary Children's Book Sequels That Never Were contest, but there are still quite a few of you from whom we hope to hear. Minh Le has one of his own unnecessary sequels he hopes will inspire you. It's "the follow up to Leo Lionni's heartwarming classic Alexander and the Wind-Up Mouse..."

Our in-house soprano: The Magic Flute

The Unnecessary Children's Book Sequels That Never Were contest runs until midnight (Eastern Standard Time) of April 10, 2009.


Lucia loves Mozart's Die Zauberflöte, i.e. "The Magic Flute." Her favorite aria is "Der Hölle Rache" from the second act. You may hear Erika Miklosa sing it here and Sumi Jo sing it here. You may also watch and listen to Lucia sing a snippet of it here:



The costume is one that I found a few weeks ago at a local toy-shop for half of its original price. The original price was outrageous for the quality of the material and stitching. At half the price, it's still an indulgence, but worth the money in terms of the play value. I'm glad that Lucia doesn't know what the aria actually means. For her, the aria is joyful.

Unnecessary Children's Book Sequels That Never Were: a Contest

The Contest is now closed. Stay tuned for the results, including contest winners, Minh Le's illustrations of the winning entries, and more.



When Millions of Cats was published in 1928, no one, least of all Wanda Gag, could have predicted how successful the story of an elderly couple in need of a feline companion would be. It became the 1929 recipient of the Newbery Honor award, and decades later, the Lewis Carroll Shelf Award in 1958. Gag posthumously won the 1977 Kerlan award for the body of her work, but that award did not include the ill-fated sequel to Millions of Cats, the recently discovered Millions of Rats:


Graphic modified by Minh Le

The book cover, as well as snippets of the proposed manuscript, came from the vaults of Garrulous MacKenzie, hapless editor of Sharper and Crow (whose collection of Children’s Books That Never Were may be found here and here). Notes from the editor read along the lines of “Millions of cats swarming over the countryside and gobbling up each other is wildly amusing. The idea of millions of rats doing the same thing makes my skin crawl.”

Minh Le of Bottom Shelf Books and I thought about some of wonderful picture-books we enjoyed that were followed by unnecessary sequels. such as Esphyr Slobodkina's Caps for Sale followed by Circus Caps for Sale, formerly known as Pezzo the Peddler and the Circus Elephant. We acknowledged that there were probably far more unnecessary movie sequels (i.e. Weekend at Bernies II). Then, we decided to host a children's book sequels contest that would call upon the creativity of our readers.

Between April 1—10, we invite you to submit your book titles and 2-3 sentence synopsizes to the Unnecessary Children’s Book Sequels That Never Were contest. For simplicity's sake, the books should be either picture books or early readers such as the "I Can Read" books. While Minh and I will have a say in terms of which entries we like best, we will have judges determine the winners in order to avoid even the hint of favoritism. The judges are Phil of Pilcrow and Melangell of Pipers at the Gate of Dawn.



The three prizes are a small painting of a random robot by Minh Le, a "butterfly herder" doll (i.e. "action figure") created by Farida Dowler, and a gently used DVD copy of Jim Henson's The Storyteller, series one. The first, second and third place winners get to choose their prizes based on their order. These winners will also have their submissions illustrated by Minh Le. All entries will grouped together in a blog post with links to your blogs if you have them.

Here are the rules:

1. You may submit entries as many times as you like before midnight on April 10, Eastern Standard Time.

2. You may submit your entries in the comments of this post, or if you want to keep your entries secret until after the contest, you’re welcome to send them directly to saintsandspinners [at] gmail [dot] com.

3. Immediate family members (Minh's and Farida's spouses and siblings) are welcome to submit entries; however, they will not be eligible for prizes.

4. You do not have to be an active blogger in order to participate. However, we ask that you be at least an active reader of blogs and have a viable commenter profile.

5. Please have a means for us to contact you so that we can get your prizes to you, should you win.

6. At the risk of fettering your wild and wonderful creativity, please refrain from overtly lewd and offensive submissions. This is a different contest altogether.

After the contest closes, the judges will have the weekend of April 11-12 to decide upon the top three entries. Then, Minh Le will illustrate them, and after he's done, we will post the winners and the rest of the entries.

By the way, Millions of Rats is an April Fool's joke. The contest itself is on for real!