MR

We saw JFW read at the Lion's Lair in Denver. First, the dude is for real. Second, I haven't seen a lot of spoken word, but his reading was off the hook. If you get the chance, go!

I got his book. Really liked it. Couldn;t put it down, but it was a little intense and freaky for my personal taste. But still a great read. I recommend it for something different.

My friend recommended to me "Last Stand". I hadn't heard of it and I don't know why. (Actually, I do.) There hasn't been a book published like this in years. Sam could be George Bush. I'm so sick of mealy mouthed writers equivocating about their positions...This guy pulls no punches. This book is a vicious assault on dumb America. A litmus test for the kidn of person you are. Deal with it.

I found this book while I was living in England at Border's in Oxford. When I look for books I read the first page and if it catches my attention ill read it. When I picked up this book I read the first page and couldn't stop. But I couldn't read the whole book in the store so I bought it. I was also looking for a book because I was taking a week trip in the French Alps. I finished this book in four days. I was addicted. The writing in it was different from any other book I have read. It never got boring and you felt for the main character even though he was a pessimist, and I am the most optimistic person I know. When I was done I gave this book to my friend Paddy to read and he also thought it was great. I definately suggest this book to anyone who is looking for a different style of awesome reading!

I'm ordering the script because I just saw " ...Fabulous..." on stage at the Trustus Theatre in Columbia SC and haven't laughed so hard in ages -- gotta have the lines in front of me now. Maybe it's because I'm in the religion "business" that the lines fascinate me - I don't think Rudnick intends for us to get overly theological about all this - but his extraordinary wit pokes fun at, challenges, debases and denigrates, a plethora of idiotic crap we have to put up with everyday in the name of religion. Blasphemy and sacrilige are not subjects he can be called guilty of. Humor, rhythm and flow of language he's guilty of, and it makes super theatre.
GO SEE IT somewhere - or convince your local theatre enterprise to book it. It sold out a dozen or more performances here (yes, in the Bible belt...)

This book is completely readable and accessible as literature, even if you don't like theatre. Witty, funny, incisive and insightful, this is an excellent work that takes religion and turns it on its ear. While somewhat superficial, it's superficial in the same vein as Jeffrey (Rudnick's masterpiece). Rudnick takes the light and "flitty" stereotype of American homosexuality and uses it as a rapier to skewer his target--in this case, religion in all its forms.

While the subject matter makes it unlikely that the deeply faithful will read it (Adam and Steve? That's a homophobic bumper sticker for Heaven's sake), neither the premise nor the work itself is anti-faith or even anti-Christian. It does not answer the eternal Questions, but it will leave you with a different (and incredibly valuable) new framework in which to ask them.

A delightful read, and I'd love to see it on stage.

Paul Rudnick's amazing new play "The Most Fabulous Story Ever Told" pokes fun at anything and everything involved with religion. Covering everything from Buddhism to Judiasm to Catholicism to Mormonism to Atheism, Rudnick leaves no stone unturned and spares no expense with his humor.

Divided in two acts, the play covers quite a gamut in religious theology. The first act recounts the "true" Biblicial couple, Adam and Steve, their fall from grace because of Adam's curiosity, and eventually meeting another couple, Jane and Mabel. Together, they survive a hilarious recounting of the Great Flood, and an even more hilarious recounting of a rather effemiente Pharoah refusing to let his "people" go because of his infatuation with the Moses/Brad character. Brilliant.

The second act plucks these people out of the Old Testament, and places them in modern day New York City, at a Christmas party thrown by Adam and Steve. The transition is seemless, due to Rudnick's ability to make it funny and believable. Rudnick leaves no stereotype unturned, from gay Santas to go-go boy elves, to a Public Access wheelchair bound lesbian rabbi (I'm not kidding) who steals the act. I rarely laugh outloud when reading a book, but I had tears in my eyes reading the second act. Excellent comedic writing!

Sometimes reading plays is very difficult because you need to see the action before you to appreciate attemmpts at humor. Not with this story. With Rudnick's copious stage directions, the entire play was acted out in my imagination very easily.

Rudnick's introduction frames the play quite nicely, assuring us everything religious was up for being a target in his play. If you are easily offended by religious humor, I suggest you stay away from this play. But if you believe in a God with a rich sense of humor, or believe in reading a funny, funny play, I cannot recommend this play highly enough!

This book was fantastic! I love all the Mr. Men books! I wish I knew how to get copies of them of the internet!! I just Love Mr. Funny, Mr. Tinckle, Mr. Nonsense and all the rest!! You should have pictures that you can print out and color! Please keep making the Mr. Men books and shows!

We're so glad to have found Mr.Men on a US site!!Having been raised reading these great stories in England, my boys(Aged 3 and 5)now love these fun characters,We have the whole set!!

How can anyone *not* love these books? "Mr. Funny" is especially dear. In a few, short pages this character spreads the news that laughter cures all. Who needs to sit through 2 hours of "Patch Adams" when you can read this little book in under five minutes?

Lucky and Jack love each other. They just can't live with each other. And it doesn't look like the situation is about to get any better. In fact, it's getting worse. Lucky's pregnant.

Erin "Lucky" Cahill (photographer for small town paper) and her police captain husband, Jack, have been married less than a year and separated for most of the time. Except in bed, they have to be the most mis-matched pair I've ever seen and no wonder they're constantly on opposite sides of the discussion. They are trying to work things out except lust and Jack's secret past life always seem to get in the way. As soon as Jack finds out Lucky is pregnant he insists on moving back in with her. But is it because he loves her or is it only because of responsibility?

The story deals with the two of them coming to grips with Jack's past, Lucky's part in sending a man to prison for a murder he may not have committed, their impending parenthood and their love for each other as they work out their differences. The only thing that kept this from being a 5-star for me was the [in my opinion] unfair treatment Lucky gave Jack when she learned about his past, a minor point that many readers may not share. I am looking forward to reading Jack's sister's story, coming in Spring 2002.

Married less than a year, police captain Jack Cahill takes an apartment in town, separating from his photographer wife Erin. Better known as "Lucky", Erin and Jack obviously love each other, but cannot seem to live together as all they do is argue or make love.

However, their inability to keep a healthy distance leads to a slight complication, as Lucky is now pregnant. On top of that, Jack is embroiled in a homicide investigation that Lucky cannot seem to avoid staying out of the way. As they get closer to the truth about the who-done-it, the duo also begins to learn life's critical lesson that compromise and consensus enable love to guide the most bickering couple into forging a permanent relationship. Now if they can only live long enough to enjoy one another.

MR. AND MRS. WRONG is the right book for those readers who enjoy a strong romantic mystery that in many ways will remind readers of the Thin Man series. The story line contains sexual tension and a fabulous who-done-it, but belongs to the lead pair whose double entendres, sexual retorts, and witty comebacks add humor to a strong suspenseful thriller. Here's to you Ms. Robinson for cleverly mixing elements from two genres into quite an pleasurable happening for readers.

Harriet Klausner

Erin Cahill, nicknamed Lucky, and her husband of eleven months Jack just can't seem to work things out. They are crazy about each other, but with intensely different goals and values, they can't seem to resolve their differences. Nevertheless, they also can't seem to stay away from one another. When Jack returns yet again to the cabin along Alabama's Black Warrior River to supposedly look for something he'd left behind, the author remarks: "The only thing they found were the zippers to each other's pants." That single comment hooked this reviewer!

On one hand, Jack's reticence about revealing his past initially adds an element of danger and mystery. Eventually his silence simple irritates her. On the other hand, Jack doesn't like her job, her home and her lifestyle. It's always the same. He comes back, they sleep together, she cries, and he leaves for his apartment where he feels guilty for her tears. The only thing they have in common in overpowering passion for each other...soon a baby. Lucky fears that this pregnancy will destroy any chance they had of saving their marriage. When MR AND MRS WRONG seem at impasse, however, circumstances conspire to force Lucky and Jack to reevaluate their priorities. As an old mystery resurfaces, they are thrust into danger and intrigue.

These multifaceted characters meet their challenges with grace, demonstrating the transformational power of love. Indeed, Lucky's one of the most eccentric, powerful women I've met in romantic fiction. Her inability to complete a task because she's interrupted by watching a spider weave a web, for example, gives her a refreshing spontaneity, yet she never crosses the line into immature nor irresponsible. Further, the multi layered plot keeps the pages turning quickly, as does the witty dialogue and author's flair for the dramatic. A lovely, fun read, this one goes on the keeper shelf.

This book is about two long-time neighbors of forty-eight years, Miss Penny and Mr. Grubbs. Miss Penny is a nice lady that is an excellent gardener with a green thumb. She has won numerous prizes for her excellent vegetables. However, Mr. Grubbs is grumpy old man who doesn't share Miss Penny's talent of growing vegetables, and his vegetables are no where near her level. But like I said, he's a grumpy guy, so he plots revenge against Miss Penny by putting bunny rabbits in her backyard. I won't tell you the outcome of this story but it's a good book to read so you'll just have to find out for yourself!

The book starts with Mr. Grubb being mad at Mrs. Penny becasue her garden grew huge vegetables and his did not. He said that this year it would be different. He said that he was going to do every thing he could do to make his garden better then hers. He put rabbits in her garden. When she put up a fence Mr. Grubbs cut it and put more rabbits in her garden. While he was trying to destroy Mrs. Penny's garden he forgot to water and take care of his own garden. Now that all of the rabbits had eaten her vegetables she had no vegetable to enter in the fair. So instead of a vegetable she took the rabbits and ended up winning first prize.
A great book for teaching a lesson on doing bad things to others. Nothing good comes out of it.

This is a priceless story not only about being making lemonade but sharing it with the very person who was handing out the lemons! A great lesson for readers of all ages! Our six year old loves to read it and our six month old is captivated by the beautiful illustrations.

The first time I saw this book I thought nothing of it other than - it's a cute story about pigs victorious over the big bad wolf. A classic folktale theme. But then I read the book to a group of children in a storytime and got some suprising reactions. A few of the children were pretty disturbed by this story. I have to admit, it is troubling. The pigs vs big bad wolf theme works fine in a folklore context, but when you take the wolf and make her into a babysitter...
This book is about parents unknowingly hiring a bad person as a babysitter. They know nothing about her. "I don't like babysitters," said Benjamin. "Oh," said Mrs Pig, looking vague, "well, she's coming from the agency so I'm not sure what her name is, but you're sure to like her."
The babysitter turns out to have bad intentions towards the children. After Mr. and Mrs Pig leave the house she creeps up to the children's bedroom and snatches one of the children from the bed.
This story has very quickly lost its innocence. If you can see past its modern connotations, that's fine. It is a good adventure. But it is just a little too icky for me.

Just imagine if a pig hired a wolf to take care of her children. What would happen? The mother pig was so out of it that she didn't see that the babysitter had a long furry tail and sharp teeth. Children from the ages of 5 to 10 would like this book. The pictures are funny and detailed. I give this book 5 stars!

I was looking for some of my favorite picture books of all time, and I was SO saddened to see that this book is "out of print - limited availability"! My children are in their late teens and early 20's and this is probably one of the books they enjoyed the most when they were little! I really hope all the books in this series get reprinted!

If you can get hold of a copy of this book, buy it while you can! You'll love it!

Mr. and Mrs. Pig have their hands full with 10 young piglets and they decide to go out for the evening. They get a sitter from "the agency" and leave the house. The sitter is dressed up like a woman, but your children will see that she is indeed a WOLF! Yes, a wolf babysitting for the piglets! After she gets them to bed, she preheats the oven and decides to try to catch Garth, the youngest pig.

While this may sound like a very frightening book, your kids will love it! The antics of the pigs as they save their brother Garth and send the babysitter packing will keep you laughing.

Please also look for Garth Pig and the Ice Cream Lady where the pigs send Garth out to get ice cream from the ice cream vendor who - you guessed it - turns out to be a wolf! The story ends happily ever after, but not before Garth goes for a terrifying ride in the ice cream truck and the other pigs use their ingenuity to outsmart the Ice Cream Lady.

My class of first graders loved this story and they found the illustations adorable. The children fell as in love with Mr. Griggs as he was with his work. The illustrations helped the children invision Mr. Griggs' great love for his work, but also showed the humor in the story. This is a great story to use during a study of Cynthia Rylant in a primary classroom.

This is a very cute story about a postal worker who loves his job. He gets sick and has to miss a day of work and is very worried about his post office. He is so filled with joy upon his return to work that I just had to smile! It is refreshing to read about someone who loves the work that he does.

Mr. Griggs Work:

Mr. Griggs' Work, by Cynthia Rylant and illustrated by Julie Downing, is an example of "true literature." Within this story there are "ideas that go beyond the plot of a...picture-book story...but they are presented subtly and gently; good books do not preach; their ideas are wound into the substance of the book and are clearly a part of the life of the book itself" (Norton 111). Rylant gives a portrait of a man who finds so much passion and love in his work as a postman, that it becomes all he can think of, even if he's sick or is on his day off. Her story "provides the child with a visual experience...[and is] a collective unity of story-line, theme, or concept, developed through a series of pictures" (Caldecott). The combination of Rylant's storyline and Downing's pictures, creates this unity and takes children into the life of Mr. Griggs, where they realize his passion and love for his work.

Norton tells us that "children want a book to have a good plot: enough action, excitement, suspense, and conflict to develop interest" (113). In Mr. Griggs' Work, children are given a plot where excitement is created out of what seems a non-exciting profession. Rylant does this through her use of characterization. Mr. Griggs is describes as someone who "loves his job...[and who thinks] about it almost all the time" (Rylant 4). Downing's pictures draw us towards this man and we fall in love with his rosy cheeks and classic blue overalls. "Characterization is one of the most powerful of the literary elements...an author can achieve...a three dimensional character by describing their characters physical appearance, recording the conversations of the character, revealing the characters thoughts, revealing the perceptions of other characters and showing the character in action" (Norton 121). We see the warm reception of Mr. Griggs after his sick day, we hear his thoughts as he remises about times at work, we are shown his curly hair on his balding head and his sweet smile, and we watch him at work giving all he can to his profession as a postman. Rylant and Downing collaborate to do all of this, in order to create a character, which defines the plot, which makes the story that we fall in love with.

The setting of this picture book "create[s] moods that add credibility to characters and plot" (Norton 123). Its themes are interlaced with this setting and tie "the plot, characters, and setting together into a meaningful whole" (Norton 127). More importantly children can understand and relate to these themes. More so than adults, children have passion, passion to play, passion to love, and passion to live. Mr. Griggs has all of these things, and because of that, allows children to relate to him. For a child to see such respect and passion given to a profession leads them to what they love. Children may view jobs like being a postman as less than desirable. However, when authors like Cynthia Rylant put a face to the profession, children will be itching to do not what makes the most money or sounds the best, but instead what makes them happy. These kinds of life lessons, which are hidden underneath the story of a postman, are essential for all children to learn.

Mr. Griggs Work is written with the knowledge that "children are [its] potential audience" (Caldecott). Its writing is simplistic while its drawings are in-depth. The writing of Rylant leads us into the pictures of Downing, which span across the page and tell the story inside of the story. We see every detail in the post office where Mr. Griggs works. From his scale, to his cushy green chair, we are given the atmosphere which we grow to love as much as Mr. Griggs does. Norton reminds us that books must be accessible for all children to read them. With this accessibility they can "gain knowledge of their heritage, recognize and appreciate good literature, and understand themselves and others through literature" (Norton 133). This accessibility is not simply reached by providing a child with a book, but instead, providing them with a book that they can read without struggling, understand without searching, and enjoy without reservation. Mr. Griggs' Work accomplishes all of this and more with its vivid illustrations and fitting text.

It is said that "children are the ultimate critics of what they read" (Norton 137). The Caldecott Award steps away from that ideal and sets up criteria for adults to judge children's books by. However, it reminds those who judge that the children are the audience, and that for a book to be considered for such a prestigious award, it must "display respect for children's understanding, abilities, and appreciations" (Caldecott). Mr. Griggs' Work shows that respect and gives a story that children can not only understand but also learn from. Reading is only worthwhile if it teaches, in some cases it teaches us how to write, in others, how to read; in the case of Mr. Griggs it teaches us passion and love of profession.

This is the first book by Mr. Peake that I've read, and it's a good one. This story takes place on the island of Sark, where a certain Mr. Pye attempts to lead the people of Sark to salvation, essentially. Everything goes wrong and a true good vs. evil battle begins.

This book is a good read and I highly recommend it.

Mr Pye is a raging war between good and evil fought on the island of Sark. Peake's personal experience of living on the island brings the atmosphere to life, the suspicious islanders and the masterful comic icon that is Mr Pye himself. the story is funny and touching, it also gets quite exciting as well. The novel brings a faster movement to his writing. Where Gormenghast is a towering example of how rich the English language can be, Mr Pye creates a quick paced adventure on a small island bursting at the seams with many characters. Gormenghast had plenty of space to hold its characters, Sark doesn't and the addition of a humerous, chirpy and revolutionary missionry gives us even more enjoyment.

Mr. Pye is convinced that people are basically good. He sets out to the island of Sark with the intent to save every soul there - whether they are willing or not. What follows is a comic tour-de-force that will, more than likely, have you laughing out loud. Mervyn Peake, the brilliant author of the Gormenghast Trilogy, demonstrates in "Mr. Pye" what readers of the the trilogy will already know - that characters can be funny without sacrificing any plausibility. Mr. Pye is an unnervingly manic character with a mission. The extensive list of inhabitants of Sark encounter this mad little dervish with mixed emotions, and plenty of hilarity. But underneath the humor lurks a beautifully poignant tale of one man's journey to discovery. What a wonderful book!

Srinivas's ambition is to set up and run a weekly journal called "The Banner". After various mishaps, he engages the printer Mr Sampath to produce "The Banner" - thereafter Srinivas is drawn into a chaotic world of small-town Indian film making.

I thought that this was an enjoyable, essentially comic novel, satirising the Indian film industry of the time. It has more to it that merely than that however: I thought that Narayan was also interested in male obsessiveness - or single-mindedness if you will - in which the pursuit of single dreams are often carried out at the expense of cultivating relationships with loved ones/the family.

As ever, Narayan's prose is crisp, sharp and very easy to read. His eye for comedy is good, and the satire is gentle rather than bitter. And enjoyable for all that.

G Rodgers

I bought this in Madras and that same night Chandra brought up Narayan in conversation -- raised in Mysore, brother to RK Laxman. Malgudi is not Mysore, though, but smaller, provincial, in the orbit of Madras -- perhaps some place like Chenglepat, Seshadri's birthplace. This book has a loose, whimsical mood to it. The twin protagonists, the unworldly editor and the worldly yet also idealistic printer, are wonderful. But the story isn't very tight. Short as it is, it reads as if written in installments. Interesting that it was published in London several years before India. I think that this book influenced Naipaul's House for Mr. Biswas -- Naipaul recognized his own father in Narayan's thwarted editor.

Narayan's writing has immense natural charm and elegance: it is never less than an absolute delight. He often, I think, relies too much on these qualities, and skates over some of the more profound themes. But that is not the case here. The themes are dark indeed: grinding poverty, exploitation, primitive superstitions - indeed, human suffering in general. What can one do when surrounded on all sides by such horrors? Become indifferent to it - assume a philosophy that claims that such things are so, and must be so, as they are part of the eternal equilibrium. And meanwhile, the suffering continues.

All this makes the book sound tremendously heavy: it isn't. It is wonderfully witty and charming; at times, it is uproariously funny. I do not know of any other writer who can do justice to such serious themes with so light a touch. This seems to me one of the great underrated novels of this century.

Went and borrowed this from the library when I was recommended it from amazon.com.....I wish I had known how good it was beforehand, I would have purchased it for my son! It is a very good book to read to your kids, and because of the cute illustrations to go along with the wonderful story, it helps the adults who have to read it over and over again! lol

Mr. Carey is different. His garden is different. He looks at things just a little different. This book offers a wonderful message to young and old. We are different. We like different things. And we do things for different reasons. Come join the snails in Mr. Carey' Garden and find out just how different his garden of lace is.

This book was introduced to me during student teaching in kindergarten as part of a science kit on snails called "Snail Trails." I loved the book so much that I bought it myself (before it was at this great price!), and have been reading it to my 4th grade classes ever since. Although Mr. Carey and his neighbors don't directly agree on how to treat the gentle creatures in this book, they do agree on what beauty means, which, along with the lesson of letting all creatures live to perform what they were put on this earth to do, and their agreement blossoms into a ritualistic friendship that children will understand and appreciate. I recommend this book as an aid for children to see seemingly one-sided issues from a "different light," as Mr. Carey himself would say!