Thank you for all the wonderful stuff!
I discovered Pinkwater with Alan Mendelson, and went on from there, with my four children happily inhaling it all.
Now my oldest son has rediscovered P. for his kids, and all the books that have come along since.
Wow, am I old!
Dear Mr. Pinkwater,
Have you ever read the Moomin series of children’s books by Finnish author Tove Jansson? I read them as a child and also read them to my children. We all love them. The characters are a family of trolls and their assorted friends. What makes the books so unique is that the characters are real individuals, quite unlike characters in most children’s books that I find so patronizing to adults and children alike. If you do happen to read them, don’t read the latest English translations, which are awful. The best English translations are from the 40s, 50s, and 60s.
Yours,
Joe Doniach
Yes. Moomins are classics. Thanks for posting.
You commented once that the standards for adult books are much lower than for children’s books. You are absolutely right. In evidence, I present my own experience: Two years of trying to break into picture books, with nary a sale, although I receive very friendly rejection letters. My first attempt at writing for adults sold like a flash, with flash being defined as less than a year.
Love your work.
I didn't say that. I said that I respect children as readers more than I do adults. Congratulations on getting published!
Hi, Daniel,
Being rather a large person myself I have long appreciated your attempts to add “gravitas” to the attack on “thin” culture, your endorsement of the new VW Beetle to Tom and Ray, and, of course your efforts to raise literary standards for children and adults. My grandson’s favorite book (he’s 2 today, living a bit north and west of you in the Schoharie Valley) is BRAVE POTATOES bought more than a year ago on your recommendation. He also has GERSHON’S MONSTER to which you and your partner in rhyme, Scott Simon introduced me. And, yes, I do follow Chinwag Theatre as much for the music as the stories.
The encomium over (I thought you’d like that word) I LOVED your commentary about the dubious Jewish Museum exhibit. Sometimes I too lose sight of how sharp a knife humor can be, but I try not to. For example, my current cause is a kind of “Hands Across America” thing in which I’m trying to recruit people to send pretzels to the White House. Even a small bag sent by a good percentage of the 260,000,000+ of us might be effective and those who are more enthusiastic about the project are always free to visit their local BJ’s or Sam’s Club to get one of those industrial size boxes.
But politics aside, you’re clearly right. Making fun of the dolts is more effective and fun as well as more vicious.
When my oldest daughter, Sharon, mother of the aforementioned grandson was a Freshman at Brandeis she picked up a turkey sandwich in the cafeteria one lunchtime and went to join a group of 3 fellow students, all women, at a table. She didn’t know them but figured she might make some new friends. She’d only partially unwrapped her sandwich when one of these women, leader of the clique, exclaimed, “She’s eating MEAT!” At that all 3 rose and moved to a distant table.
That got me to thinking about militant vegetarianism. I concluded that they don’t go far enough in sticking to their principles. If they respect living things with their rejection of carnivorousness (carnivority?) what about our green and growing friends? Just because they aren’t cute and furry and don’t have big, brown eyes, should they be subject to slaughter?
Out of that I formed my organization PPOD, the Plant Protectors’ Organized Defense. We picket vegetarian restaurants carrying signs that read, “THE GREEN GIANT IS A GRIM REAPER!”, “USE YOUR HEADS, NOT THEIRS!(above pictures of horribly slaughtered lettuces and Brussels sprouts)”, and my personal favorite, “EATING BEANS STINKS!” We’re still trying to get detailed pictures of what must be a horrendous torture device that squeezes milk out of poor, defenseless soy beans.
Of course, respect for ALL living things, like freedom, doesn’t come cheap. There’s the question of what does one eat if you reject everything animal and vegetable? We have consensus that McDonald’s shakes are O.k. along with Pop Tarts, Cheetos and Twinkies. Most accept that Wonder Bread is o.k., but a few are still convinced that there’s wheat lurking in there somewhere.
Most members wear polyester although there is a small cadre of nudists. They’re motivated but hard to get out for demonstrations between October and April in this area. We do outreach too. You can find members in parks around the Boston area doing there best to proselytize amongst human beings and even trying to get squirrels to swear off nuts.
Keep up the good work, Daniel.
Rob Astyk,
eating balanced meals of meat, grains and vegetables in Salem, Massachusetts.
P.S. the name is pronounced like a tongue depressor: AHH-stick.
The President doesn't need your pretzels. Sending them to the White House is an empty gesture. Impoverished people in Third World countries have to use twigs and bits of cardboard to choke on. Better to send your pretzels where they're needed.
Shucks Daniel, you started sounding just like one of the grownups, in your excellent NPR comments on the subject of art today (14 MAR 2002). Then all was forgiven, when you said you wanted to throw the first Lego. Welcome back into the fold of we elder kids.
I really do understand about art, which is why you can be sure I am not going to turn grown-up about it.
hi,
i have a 13 year old son that no one would ever suspect to be a “serious reader”. he reads mammoth works (like yours) and now it appears he has completely exhausted the entire universe of pinkwater published material. he really devours your books and stories.
but now what?? i am wondering who do you admire like to read and can you recommend another author that perhaps would appeal to one of your greatest fans.
my genuine thanks and kindest regards,
curtis griffin
Very few have actually exhausted the ""entire universe"" of my works. There's always that pesky ""Education of Robert Nifkin"" or some other title to locate. But, I s uppose it's possible. He might like Kurt Vonnegut Jr., Mark Twain, and Charles Dickens.
I am in 5th grade and I have chosen the great Daniel Pinkwater for my author report and I wondered if you could fill in some blanks for me. Could you tell me where you went to elementary school and high school, and do you have any siblings? Thank you very much
I went to the Louis B. Nettlehorst Elementary School in Chicago, and the Lake View High School, also in Chicago and so did two of my siblings.
hi, i did see my email posted, thanks, but if mr. pinkwater ever needs an interesting evening in chicago (mr, pinkwater, I promise to pay) I would love to treat to an evening of dinner and fun.
thanks
Would this evening include Wienerschnitzel, miniature golf and an eastern European animation festival?
Dear Mr. Pinkwater:
Friends suggested I give you a “heads up” about my new book: “Feline Online: What Happens When a Smart Cat Surfs the Internet?” a fantasy-humor for ages 7-12. Many of the students who read it this year as part of their sixth grade language arts classes have posted very nice and clever (!) comments at Amazon.com. A team of teachers have designed a study guide around the book, which also includes elements of ancient Egypt. A second school district north of Boston ordered Feline Online for use in the fourth grade. It is featured in the April issue of Cat Fancy magazine on page 49 – Kids for Cats Bookshelf.
I’d be happy to send you “Feline Online” if you would consider it for review or feature coverage.
I’m a Media Specialist (they used to call us Librarians) in the Boston area. You can see more about me and reviews of the book at my web site www.felineonline.net
Thanking you for your consideration, I am
Yours sincerely,
Elyse Cregar
It sounds like a nice book. I only get to review around 12 books a year on the radio program, and there are many specific criteria that have to be met--so chances are slim. Meanwhile, maybe some people who visit here will click on your link.
Dear D.Manus Pinkwater,
I am a Zen Buddhist teacher, as is my husband, and we are long time fans of your books (we don’t listen to the radio much so have only heard you on NPR a few times). We are in the process of buying an old elementary school in the small town of Clatskanie, Oregon as the new site for our Zen monastery. In the library of the old school we found several DMP books, which we brought home to read to our Zen students in residence, having made the amazing discovery that they had never heard of you!
Our morning schedule includes 2 hours of meditation, followed by temple cleaning and breakfast, with a reading after ten minutes of silent eating meditation. Usually we read straight Zen/Buddhist stuff, but, needing something a little less severe in the midst of the chaos of the move, and with the serendipitous discovery of the books, this week we have switched to The Last Guru.
Here’s our question. Has anyone ever held a D. Manus Pinkwater festival?
We are interested in the idea of a D. Manus Pinkwater festival to be held (after we get moved and settled in) in Clatskanie, Oregon, to include a dramatic presentation of the Last Guru. We have miscellaneous skills among us and could assemble into a passable cast. We have several students who are good jugglers, one who is learning to ride the unicycle, one who won awards in Alaska in high school for twirling and we all play marimba some. We have lots of practice chanting.
We hope you will consider this possibility.
Thank you,
Jan Chozen Bays
(I am not kidding. You can look up our website at zendust.org )
Hello. I became a member of the First Zen Institute of America, in New York City, in 1963. In 1967 I went to Engaku-ji Monastery in Kyoto, and immediately ran away. This was the first time I experienced enlightenment. I took the Bullet Train to Tokyo. Another time I experienced enlightenment was at the defunct Suizen-ji Monastery, in Kamakura. And another time was on 30th Street, in New York, around Christmas of 1969.
The Last Guru has less to do with Zen than many other books of mine. Borgel, which can be found second-hand, or in the inexepensive paperback, 4 Fantastic Novels, might be more like a Zen book. In some respects. Young Adult Novel, which can be found in another paperback, 5 Novels, might be a Zen book too. I am sure people have had Pinkwater festivals. I know I have. I am very interested in silent eating meditation.
First, I want to start by thanking you for writing your books. I first came across Fat Men from Outer Space in 3rd grade in the early 1980s, and proceeded to read every one of your books that I could find. Alan Mendelsohn gave me a model for finding a way to be happy as a weirdo, and by high school I’d pretty much succeeded. While I’ve arguably gotten more boring as my childhood has progressed (I’m 30 but still like the Teletubbies), I still look forward to seeing more novels by you hit the shelves, and plan on communicating the mysteries of the faith to my niece and nephews as soon as they hit the “why?” phase.
Ok, let me get out of grovelling position before I go on; it’s tough on my knees…
Ah, much better. Anyway, cognizant of the fact that you’ve commented on prefering letters from kids because they ask questions, I’ve got one I’ve been thinking about for a couple of years: have you ever considered allowing or even encouraging an adaptation of your works for use as a roleplaying game setting?
I think that the combination of adventure, wonder and humor in your books would be wonderful material for roleplaying campaigns. While individuals have been adapting material from novels and films since roleplaying began, a company called Steve Jackson Games (www.sjgames.com) has produced extraordinary adaptations of the Diskworld and Callahan’s Crosstime Saloon settings for their GURPS system, and whenever I’ve mentioned the idea of GURPS Hoboken (my nickname for the notional sourcebook) on the company’s newsgroups, there’s clearly a lot of interest. From what the SJ Games writers’ guidelines indicate, they don’t generally accept proposals for adaptations if they don’t have a license, but if as the author you would be interested in seeing such a book produced, I imagine they’d be interested in talking to you.
Well, I know that I’ve just committed a major act of presumption, but I’d rather ask and have you say no than fail to bring up an idea that might have a chance of coming to fruition. If you want more information, let me know.
Actually, I have one more question: who is your favorite author? and do you read any magazines or other periodicals regularly? (ok, two questions…)
I think I'm probably not interested in game adaptations at this time. Is there a ton of money in it? Would I be given some? How much? Nah. Not enough. Not interested.
Dear Mr. Pinkwater,
I thought that a substance with the mythical powers ascribed to blue garlic was the stuff of fiction, but boy, was I wrong.
Please follow this link or refer to excised text below for real-life accounts of these cerulean nuggets of nuclear power:
www.foodtv.com/cooking101/qanda/0,3276,,00.html
Q&A with the Food Network Kitchen Experts
Q: I recently pressed fresh garlic onto a chicken breast and placed lemon slices on top. After baking, I peeled back the lemon to see that my garlic had turned blue! (I ate it and it was very good). Why does it turn blue?
A: That’s an interesting, and rather timely question, because I recently had a magical blue garlic occurrence myself. The phenomenon inspired me to do a little research on the subject, so thankfully I have a very simple answer for you. My blue garlic transformation happened to occur with vinegar – I was making a pickling mixture. The common thread with our two stories, however: acid. And that is the culprit. I learned that garlic contains anthocyanins, water-soluble pigments that turn blue or purple in an acid solution. While this color transformation tends to occur more often with immature garlic, it can differ among cloves within the same head of garlic. The bad news is that the acid-soaked garlic looks like something a Smurf might serve at their dinner table. The good news is that the garlic flavor remains unchanged (except for the flavor of the acid) and is totally edible without bodily harm.
Is this the secret of the blue garlic? Is this knowledge forbidden? Am I in danger?
Sincerely,
Byron Kerman
St. Louis
The polloi, the common throng, were never meant to know about this. I predict catastrophe. Meanwhile, plenty yummy good pizza!
Dear D.P.,
I am turning in the final draft of the biography I wrote on you in to my writing teacher tomorrow. I’m typing it right now. It just reminded me of this website. I just wanted to say hi. HI. 🙂
Good luck, 11 year old. I hope the bio has plenty of good stuff that you made up in it.
Dear Mr. Pinkwater,
You are my favorite author. I have read many of your books several times. The first book of yours I ever read was “Borgel.” I picked it off of a school library shelf just because it had a weird title. Ever since, I’ve been completely hooked. To the annoyance of my family, I often quote sections from your books–especially “Alan Mendelsohn, the Boy from Mars.”
I have noticed that over the past few years, you have been publishing collections of some of your older novels. First, in 1997, you published “5 Novels,” then you published “4 Fantastic Novels.” Are you counting down to the release of a new novel? Will your next release be “3 Amazing Novels?” When can we expect to see it? Whenever your next book comes out, you can be sure that I will be among the first to get my hands on it!
My next one will be 1 Amazing Novel.
dear daniel pinkwater,
the rest of my family and i are great fans of your books. i am wondering if captain shep nesterman is based on a real person. see, my father lived in chicago in the 60s, and he knew this guy, known as the chicken man of maxwell st. this man would set hit hat sown on the sidewalk, and the chicken would walk around and around the hat. he would tell people that as soon as there was enough money in the hat the chicken would do a trick…then he would say that there wasn’t quite enough….as soon as there was a considerable amount of money in the hat, he would put the hat on his head, the chicken would fly up on top of it, and he would walk away.
i also wanted to tell you about this guy that i met in central sq.(cambridge, mass), who really reminded me of someone out of one of your books. i was walking around with my photography teacher, looking for things to, well, photograph. we came across this house which had this huge purple fench, and on it were things like “The intergalactic it’s not what you look like but how you move that counts mostly restaurant” and “INSTRUCTION IN ELECTRO MAGNETIC MARTIAL ARTS TM. empowering and using your electro magnetic energy field. karma free”. i have some pictures of it, but they didn’t come out very good. anyway, we went over to the gate, so that we could take pictures of the house itself, which was also very interesting. i saw what looked like a pamphlet next to the door. i sneaked in through the gate and went up the front steps to grab it. just as i was going back down the stairs, the door opened, and the skinniest guy i have ever seen in my life stood in the doorway. “i was wondering when you two would come in,” he said. we sort of smiled nervously. then he said, “don’t you want to come in and see the inside? i’ll tell you the whole story.” so we went in. the inside of his house was really nice. it had rainbow waves and swirls on the walls, and couches everywhere. then he told us the story. he said that the house had been an old hotel at one time, but then went out of business. the owners decided to rent it out to people, and he was one of the residents. at that time, the house was a few blocks away. then a monster star market(which is still there now) wanted to build their new store there. one by one the houses either got tore down or moved, until he was the last person living around there. the city told him that he had to move, too, but he said he wouldn’t budge. then he told us that he forced them to move the house to another neighborhood by using his electro magnetic martial arts. we were actually done with the photography lesson at that point, and had to leave, but he showed us some pictures before we left. it was pretty easy to recognise the house, a few blocks away with no fence. there was also another picture of the house on wheels.
after we left, i looked at the pamphlet, and it turns out that he is offering a class in electro magnetic martial arts for 400 dollars. i wanted to take it, but my parents wouldn’t let me unless i paid for it with my own money.
thankyou for reading this, i hope it was interesting.
sincerely,
Tianli dunn-fyler
PS-i’m sorry i didn’t send this to your website email. it’s my computer’s fault.
pps-i REALLY love your books. thanks for writing them. when me and my friend isis get on the phone, we read eachother part of a sentence, amd the other has to finish the sentence and say which daniel pinkwater book it’s from. thanks again.
Yes, there was a real Chicken Man. I saw him many times, and have a photograph of him. The experience you recount, (and very well told too), is completely typical of my life, and apparently yours too. Don't worry about not actually taking the course. Sometimes simply knowing about a thing is sufficient, and a deeper study would only let you down.
