Stereotypes

Aunt Twin is in the backseat with the kiddo, on the way home from dinner. It's late (for a 1.5 year old), and Kiddo is pretty slap happy.

AT: What does a tiger say?
Kiddo: RAWR.
AT: What does a frog say?
Kiddo: Bib-bit!
AT: What does Mommy say?
Kiddo: [kissing noises]
AT: What does Daddy say?
Kiddo: Ah-choo!
Uproarious laughter from grown-ups
Kiddo, indignantly: I love you, too!

Yes and no

Kiddo and I were hanging out in an exam room, waiting for the nurse to come back with a long shiny needle. To pass the time, we were practicing our twirling and jumping, and then I thought we could try out a new skill.

"Can you stand on one foot?"

She came and stood on my foot.

Misapprehension

Kiddo was combing her hair this morning, saying, "Ouch, ouch, ouch." I asked if she had found some tangles, a word we hadn't discussed before.

She thought about that for a few seconds, felt all over her head, and then said, "TANGLES! WEAH AAARE YUH?!"

Review: The Chronicles of Harris Burdick: Fourteen Amazing Authors Tell the Tales

The Chronicles of Harris Burdick: Fourteen Amazing Authors Tell the Tales by Chris Van Allsburg

My rating: 3 of 5 stars



I really wish I could rate all of the stories separately. Some are one-star, others are five-star. I think it's probably hard to tell a famous author "This is terrible, try again" when you've invited them to write for a collection like this, and it shows. Overall, it's a lot of fun to see what the authors do with Mr. Van Allsburg's intriguing illustrations.

Some of the better ones are "The Harp" (Linda Sue Park), "The Third-Floor Bedroom" (Kate DiCamillo), and "Just Desert" (M.T. Anderson). Lois Lowry's "The Seven Chairs" is good until the last paragraph when she takes out her moralizing two-by-four. Louis Sachar's "Captain Tory" is sweet. The very best is Stephen King's "The House on Maple Street."



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