I read E. T. A. Hoffmann’s The Sandman for a class this year. It is a kind of disturbing and thrilling fairy tale that I had previously only known through Freud’s interpretation in The Uncanny. While reading it, I faintly recalled that this was the same man who authored The Nutcracker, which also always seemed disturbing, what with that seven-headed mouse and all.

So, I went in my xmas-book-archives and found the fabulous edition shown above. I am obsessed, and anyone who has come to my house in the past three weeks has been forced to look at it. It is a translation of the original text, not some dumbed-down and docile version “for children.” Not only that, but it is illustrated by Maurice Sendak, author of the children’s classic Where the Wild Things Are! He apparently drew the illustrations for the book to accompany the set and costume design for a ballet production.

Detailed illustrations occur throughout the text:

“She is overwhelmed with growing up and has no knowledge of what this means. I think the ballet is all about a strong emotional sense of something happening to her, which is bewildering.” — Maurice Sendak, NPR interview

There are also full-page illustrations, or, best of all, full-page spreads:

During the adventure to the magical capital, there are four beautiful full-page spreads in a row (oh, and a wild thing peeks his head out in one of them!):

Anyway, now that I’ve shown you all that, here’s the bad news: it’s out of print. Here’s the good news: it looks like there are still some old copies for sale on amazon.com in paperback and hardcover.

Chris Van Allsburg is up there on my list of favorite children’s author/illustrators. You will certainly recognize some of his books which include Jumanji and The Polar Express.

Chris’s books give readers that happy/sad feeling akin to nostalgia, and are almost always insist on awesome feats of the imagination, but The Stranger, one of his more melancholy books, is simply about a mysterious man who arrives at a farm after losing his memory. The tale has hints of fantasy, but they are more subtle than jungle apes and trips to the north pole.

As usual, the illustrations are perhaps the most beautiful part of Van Allsburg’s tales:

Roxaboxen is about a town that children make out of rocks and boxes:

My favorite thing about the book is that neither the author (Alice McLerran) or the illustrator (Barbara Cooney — a very famous children’s book illustrator, you’ll probably recognize some of the books she’s done) ever go into the children’s book cliche of showing the world of Roxaboxen “as the children see it.” No, the children still live in an ugly, barren land, and their town is literally of rocks and boxes. And no, they do not have random fabulous supplies, their jails are the bushes and their cars are old stearing wheels:

The children make up rules on a whim (you can’t speed in a car, but you can go as fast as you want by horse). I think it really encourages children to have their own fun with whatever supplies they have. In fact, that is exactly what I did as a child, forcing my friends to build little rock houses by my dead, hollow apple tree. I insisted on being Mayor. Their acquiescence, I later discovered, occured because they thought I wanted to be “The Mare” (though they couldn’t figure out why).

One of my favorite artists is Frida Kahlo. I even visited her exhibition in Philidelphia last year! Frida had a tragic life, but remained strong and confident nonethless. So, it’s no surprise I’m in love with this children’s book aptly called Frida (somehow I managed to own the Spanish Language Edition, along with the adorable Frida plush doll).

The book describes Frida’s life loosley, poetically, and non-didactically, but the most dashing aspect is the beautiful paintings by Ana Juan. I love her take on Frida as a child, and especially love Frida’s skull-stuffed doll (I wish they had that for sale!):

The book is by Jonah Winter, who has written a plethora of  other children’s books about famous people (I really want to read The 39 Apartments of Ludwig Van Beethoven).

My mom always found a way to teach her children about famous artists in a way that would make sense to us and we would understand, and I think this is a great way to be introduced to one of the most famous female artists in the world. Of course, I’m not a child anymore, and have read much on the history of Frida, and still find it a wonderful book!

So I’ve been MIA because I took a visit home, & now I am sick : (. But while I was home, I went through some of my favorite children’s books, taking lots of pictures!, so I could post them here.

This week I thought I’d feature an out of print book called My Head is Full of Colors by Catherine Friend. (If you want a copy, you should troll half.com, amazon.com, and the like.) (more…)

In my effort to see more “New York City things” before I leave NYC (sniff, sniff), I finally went up the beckoning steps of the New York Public Library.

“Where are the books?” my friend and I asked when we entered. It looked like a museum with all of its marble and stodgy portraits and professional exhibits (AND I did not know the Gutenburg Bible was there! I will have to go back!). Eventually, we found the books, as well as the secret reason I wanted to visit in the first place:

YES. That is the REAL, original Winnie-the-Pooh (aka Edward Bear) and his friends, Eeyore, Kanga, Piglet (now we know why he is so small!), and Tiger. These are the actual toys Christopher Robin Milne were given as a gift from his father, A.A. Milne. The only lost friend is Roo (in an Apple Orchard), since Rabbit and Owl were invented. They were apparently well-played with, both by Christopher and the family dog.

Of course, since I was IN the children’s section, I had to take a quick look around. It’s not the children’s book area of my dreams (or the library of my dreams), but it’s still pretty cool. The murals were superb, and after a million years of internet research, I discovered the artist is Susy Pilgrim Waters (whose style reminds me a lot of Miroslav Sasek — unless that’s just because they are drawings of New York). Tucked away into her web-site, I found an image of all the mural panels:

I happen to really like the Guggenheim (not always the art inside of it, but the shape, which I feel as if I should be allowed to rollerskate down):

Anyway, The New York Public Library (this is the Stephen A. Schwarzman Building, which is on 42nd and 5th next to Bryant Park) is *free* and open to the public, and also a good set of steps to sit down and eat lunch on : ). Check the hours before taking a trip!

I have no time for witticisms and preambles! This is going to be short + sweet! I’m a woman on a mission! (If you see less of me this week, it’s all because of Number Five.)

(1) Jack Kerouac’s Invented Game of Fantasy Sports: Read the NY Time article (GO!). This is especially interesting if you are a writer or other creative-type who has an active imagination, even as an adult.

(2) Cute Outfit: Of all of the things I have seen on the internet lately, this outfit has been on my desktop waiting for me to do something with it. All I could do with it was stick it here. I found it on NYLON (which generally does a shitty job of linking to anything helpful, and which I will follow suit in in the interest of time).

(3) Twitter & Threadless: They have teamed up to turn your Tweets into Twats. Er. I mean, shirts. Just link up your twitter account with the Twitter/Threadless conglomerate, and you can nominate the tweets of yourself or your friends for T-shirt fame.

(4) Free Coldplay CD: Ahhh, I was skeptical as to the quality of something so audaciously free, but I actually like some of the live versions better than the studios. My favorite song is “Death Will Never Conquer” (in a rare change of events, the drummer, Will Champion, sings this folksy ditty). Literally, I have been playing through this + Tricia’s Lilly Allen recommendation for three days straight.

(5) The Dictionary: I am reading it. For real. Cover to cover. Six+ hours a day. And taking notes. It is exhausting. (I am scheduled to finish in one month if I continue at this rate.)

(6) The Little Prince: It’s true, as a lover of children’s books I probably should have read The Little Prince sometime long before last week. You’ll be happy to know that now that I have read it, I understand why everyone is obsessed! Such a lovely, deep story. (Go flip through it on Google Books if you haven’t read it!) A little internet research lead to the discovery that James Dean (I heart him also, btw) also loved the book, and had many passages memorized.

Alright, so this post will contain several sections, possibly including but not limited to: introduction, children’s books, candy store.

Introduction

You heard it here first (unless you read my personal blog. or are my facebook friend. or follow me personally on Twitter.): I am moving. Yes, I am abandoning NYC, my home, my lovely lovely home, and making my way southward, all the way down to Virginia, where I am going to become a Writer of Stories and Novels.

But before I become said Famous Writer of Stories and Novels (I just added famous), I am trying to get my few-month, pre-departure fill of NYC. This, by the way, is impossible, but in my travels I have seen many things (Brooklyn Bridge! Purple Rice! Shelves of candy! Pastel-colored malls! Grassy knolls in the middle of city streets!). So here I begin “Places & Spaces,” one of the many columns Stickers & Donuts can never hope to keep up with on any kind of regular basis.

Childhood Memories of (Not Real) Candy Stores
(which then leads to childhood memories of other foods)

So, my Place & Space is a fantastic candy store which I’ll get to, but walking into it reminded me of the days of old when they seemed to have candy stores — no not pharmacies where you could purchase candy, but actual stores devoted exclusively to the selling of candy to children for a nickle — on every corner.

And if you are thinking, “Maria, you weren’t alive for that era” then you may or may not be right, but I was alive for the era where everyone from that era started making movies and writing books where said candy stores existed. I have always dreamed of going into a candy store with candies piled high to the sky. YOU MUST WATCH THE FOLLOWING PIPI LONGSTOCKING CLIP to get a full understanding of what I mean by the quintessential 1950s Candy Store:

Now, if you also read the same books and watched the same movies as I did in your childhood, you may not remember the candy stores and the food (but, come on, you would remember that scene, right? those bright flowery bags? all that candy?! the kid stuffing the frosted thing in his mouth?!!!). That is because, apparently, ALL OF MY MEMORIES OF CHILDHOOD ARE ASSOCIATED WITH FOOD.

Examples:

The first and most obvious book I remember from my childhood is Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs. I have a particular memory of the pancake over the school because it combined the joy of both food and a school closing. Unfortunately, I could only locate a picture of the glistening jello in the forest:

I had a lot of Berenstain Bear books. The only one I can remember is the one where they ate Too Much Junk Food. Suffice to say the point really passed over my head and my main memory concerns the double page spread of a table filled with the most delicious junk food you can imagine.

Then, of course, there is The Lion The Witch and The Wardrobe. Yes, Turkish Delight sounds delightful, but as I prepared for this post, I desperately searched for an illustration of what I had apparently deemed a memorable tea party at the beginning of the book. These were the only specific details I remember from the entire book which I read ten years ago. And here is the passage my brain chose to remember:

Great. Then of course there is Alice in Wonderland teas and I know I would be remiss without mentioning Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, and even as an adultish creature my greatest memory of the movie Chocolat is this rich, creamy cup of steaming hot chocolate that looked like it was just a cup of melted chocolate bars. Oh, and Matlida. I know you are supposed to be grossed out by that giant chocolate cake. Me, not so much.

In Conclusion: Economy Candy is a Fantastic Store in Manhattan

The above tangential section leads me to my ideal place of joy, and yes, all of the above was required to explain just how wonderous it is. It’s not fancy, but it is stackedddd to the ceiling with candy and fruits and nuts and chocolates and CHOCOLATE COVERED S’MORES.

It’s called Economy Candy and it’s on 108 Rivington Street on the Lower East Side. Usually opened 9-6 (Saturdays 10-5). Check out some of these fab images I snitched off Yelp:

And that is the short story long, my friends. Now go to bed or back to work, either way, be sure those sugarplums dance in your head.

This week’s book, My Friend Is Sad, is actually part of a series: Elephant and Piggie by Mo Willems.  A best-friend-duo as glorious as Frog and Toad, Elephant (Gerald!) is a womper with intellect-exuding glasses, and Piggie (…err Piggie!) is a brazen optimist.  Willems is an exceptional storyteller; the series blends both wit and engaging plots that are powerful enough to captivate a 22-year old (me).  Minimalist and expressive illustrations complement his strong story lines extremely well.

Although the title may suggest a narrative ridden with despondency, My Friend Is Sad is far from cut-your-wrist melodrama.  The book chronicles Piggie’s attempt to cheer up a very morose Gerald.  Baffled by Gerald’s depression, Piggie even tries to dress up as a robot (note picture above!).  I mean, if I was depressed and someone dressed up as a robot for me, I’d instantaneously become happy.  Like every other Elephant and Piggie book, the ending has an unexpected twist.  No, Gerald doesn’t choke himself with his trunk.

Note: The picture of Mo above is from The Brooklyn Paper.  Yep.  He’s from Park Slope!

When I’m feeling down, looking at pictures of critters (and sometimes people…Suri Cruise? CUTE) is oddly pacifying.  For me, wombats are on the adorable critter list.  I wish I could obtain two wombats (so they could keep each other company), and keep them as pets.  I would train them to attack pidgeons, and chase away squirrels.  I think I’d name one “Fluffer,” and the other one “Nutter.”  AND TOGETHER THEY WOULD BE “FLUFFERNUTTER.”  (Yes, I checked.  It is one-word.)  Obviously, I devoted much thought to this wombat plan.  I should, however, probably get two stuffed animal wombats instead.  Stuffed wombats won’t chew my sneakers.

Anyways, I’d like to welcome the weekend with something positive and try something new.  CHILDREN’S BOOK OF THE WEEK! This week’s pick is one of my favorite children’s books:  “Diary of a Wombat” by Jackie French, illustrations by Bruce Whatley.  The title does not lie; the book follows the life of a little Australian wombat.  The diary is funny and poignant, and the illustrations are wonderful.

Finally, although I have never met a real wombat, I trust the authenticity of Diary of a Wombat.  During her life, Jackie French has cared for 48 wombats.  Good grief!