Hello, I’m Jaeylin…. I love your books and so does my 6 year old baby sister. I was wondering if you ever wrote a story based on your animals or wife but with different characters….
Yes.
Hi, can you tell me who Larry is, noticed the “where are you Larry???” dedication in Bad Bears in the Big City, and liked Larry in Bad Bears Go Visiting. I love reading the bad bears books I’ve found so far to my three year old, and she also loves them.
Sure. Larry is the original polar bear, featured in our books At the Hotel Larry; Young Larry; Bongo Larry; Ice Cream Larry; and Dancing Larry. The Irving and Muktuk books, are about two bad polar bears, (Larry is a good polar bear), and are with a different publisher. The behind the scenes story of Larry, Roy, (Larry's brother), Irving and Muktuk is somewhat complicated, but there is no need to go into it here.
Hello. I’ve enjoyed your book reviews and commentary with Scott Simon on NPR for years. Having read the disclaimer above regarding specific literary questions, I have one very general one. A favorite family dog passed away last fall, and I decided to honor his memory with a children’s story. I have a finished manuscript and three illustrations and I’m not sure what to do next. What advice would you offer to a prospective children’s book author? Thank you.
My advice to prospective children's book authors is to make use of the vast resources of the internet, where much more current and apposite advice than any I might have to offer is to be found in profusion.
My sons and I love Larry, and your recommendation for Toestomper brought another great book into our lives. But my ten year old has autism and it’s become difficult to find
books that connect with him. He loves word play and
connects more with illustrated books (so long as the pictures
match the text).
I love the Neddiad, but I know he’s not ready for it yet.
Which of your books do you think would be a good fit?
And do you have any thoughts on reading and autism
that I could repost in autismreads.com?
Do you know if you have any other fans with autism
and which books they like?
Thanks, please keep writing forever.
I do have fans with autism and many with asperger's--but I really can't say what books of mine are specially suited to them--they have various tastes and preferences like any readers. A visit to the library, perhaps?
Hi Mr. Pinkwater! We are in Junior Great Books and will be discussing your story Blue Moose on Friday, March 11th. We have a couple of questions for you!
1. What was your inspiration for the main characters?
2. Have you ever met the blue moose or Mr. Breton?
3. Do you know the recipe for Mr. Breton’s clam chowder or gingerbread? We would love to try it!
4. Any words of wisdom or advice you’d like to share with us?
Thank you for taking the time to respond to us. We look forward to your answer!
Sincerely,
Westfield Elementary 2nd Graders
1. There was a real Mr. Breton! We wandered into his restaurant in the wilds of Maine.
2. See above. Met a moose too--but he was more blueish than blue.
3. Breton's recipes were secret--but you can look up some, and try them. Decide which ones are Bretonish.
4. Words of wisdom can be found in books, all you have to do is read them.
I can’t tell you how happy I am that
a) Lizard Music is back in print, so I can buy a nice hardcover copy for my library, and that
b) You’ve recorded “The Education of Robert Nifkin,” my second-favorite of your books, and that
c) I used “Dancing Larry” in storytime, and it was a big hit, which made my job way easier (they get REALLY grouchy when I read a book they don’t like).
Thank you (again) for bringing so much joy and awesomeness to the world!
Well, I just write the joy and awesomeness, you bring it to the world.
Who are your favorite musicians/bands?
–David Byrne, Talking Heads
This is strange--I've had a fair amount of anesthesia, (for completely legitimate and official reasons), and it is to that I attribute my loss of ability to connect names with music. I used to be one of these annoying people who can identify anything, and interfere with the pleasure of people listening with them to tell them the name, who wrote it, and who is playing. Now, I can recognize music, but I generally can't identify it. So...I don't know. (I am a better writer since being put under all those times--or I think I am, which is about as good).
I’m the person who made that Daniel Pinkwater song or audio art or whatever you may call it for your first podcast, a long long time ago (in my shortsighted eyes). I’ve grown into an almost-adult now, and I’m rereading Five Fantastic Novels, and I have to say that your young adult literature is wondrous. I look up to your characters, as something of a misfit myself, although I’ve come to function better in society as I’ve grown older. Is Hogboro based on Hoboken, or is it an amalgam of edge-of-New York City sorts of places, or something else altogether? Are you mocking Dada in Young Adult Novel, or mocking the Dada Ducks’ interpretation thereof? I have many other questions, but I will ask them some other time.
Hog Butcher for the World,
Tool Maker, Stacker of Wheat,
Player with Railroads and the Nation's Freight Handler;
Stormy, husky, brawling,
City of the Big Shoulders
Hoboken?
It is impossible to mock dada.
Dear Mr. Pinkwater,
I recently received an email from a 4th grade teacher whose students are reading your book Once Upon A Blue Moose. She was inquiring about a recipe for Apple Jacquette which is mentioned in the book. She wants to make it with her class. She contacted me because I own a bakery outside of Philadelphia,PA, and she thought I might be familiar with this dessert. Unfortunately, I am not. Is there such a dessert? Would you know where I might be able to get it, so I could forward it to her . And probably try it for myself also. Thanks in advance for any help you can give me.
I remember being served something referred to as apple jacquette in 1970 or thereabouts, also that it was pretty good, and that is how it came to be mentioned in Blue Moose...but I don't remember exactly what it was like. It had apple. It had a pastry component, maybe similar to strudel, maybe not. It might have had cream, or possibly some variety of pot cheese. I wouldn't be surprised if it had some cinnamon. It could have been a little like apple crisp. I did a quick google, as you probably did too, and found nothing. I think given your name you'd be within your rights to invent apple jacquette. There are only so many logical things to do with apple and pastry--and they all work! Maybe a few raspberries?
Dear Mr. Pinkwater,
I’m a high school English teacher and I wrote to you a couple of years back in regards to my wanting a copy of Lizard Music. It was a moral crossroads for me, as I considered stealing the book from the local library as it was then out of print.
I wanted to follow up and let you know that I did, in fact, follow your advice. I did NOT deprive any future readers from the pleasures of Pinkwater, and found the exact copy I wanted on eBay of all places.
I am also overjoyed to find out that as of 2011, Lizard Music is again in print!
You mentioned in response to my first letter that you made the film rights for Lizard Music available to movie producers for adaptation. I want you to know that while I can wholeheartedly support audio versions of this book and even a graphic novel, I think it would be a little tragic if this book became a motion picture.
I say this because of selfishness (a recurring theme with me), but I always want Lizard Music to remain perfect in my own imagination. I’d like that floating island to remain forever mysterious in my brain exactly the way I pictured it. I also want it to remain somewhat obscure, as its obscurity is part of its great allure. I’ll go ahead put Lizard Music up there with A Confederacy of Dunces and One Hundred Years of Solitude as one of those books that’s just unfilmable. I think Young Adult Novel would make a better movie.
Thanks, Mr. Pinkwater, for all of the greatest reading experiences of my youth.
I know from personal experience that when someone makes an inferior movie out of a book that movie is soon forgotten, and the book does not suffer--and should it be as good as the book, or better, or a work of art in its own way, then we are all richer for it. I have not heard whether the Lizard Music movie project will go forward, but I am all for it, notwithstanding that I will receive a check enabling me to order house repairs.
P.S. I would buy a ticket on the first day to see Confederacy of Dunces the Movie.
Hello, Mr. Pinkwater,
I wanted to let you know that my second-graders really enjoyed The Big Orange Splot and your great sense of humor! They’ve written to Mr. Plumbean (whose eccentricity they really appreciated) and I’m forwarding those on to you.
You are now becoming an author study during guided reading in my classroom. Just thought you’d like to know! Thanks for the great books!
Sincerely,
Jennifer Brown
2nd Grade Teacher, suburbs of Chicago
Thanks for the great teaching!
Hello Mr. Pinkwater,
I am an Elementary Education student at MSU-Northern in Great Falls, and we have the opportunity to take a wonderful class titled “Adolescent Reader”. Our instructor asked us to read “The Neddiad”, which all of us found entertaining. However, each of us felt differently about the ending. Personally, I was fine with the ending and not know “exactly” what happened, but I do have one question. Did Neddie actually turn into the turtle at the end? This is the impression I got, but other people seem to feel differently. Thanks for taking the time to read my post. I’m now hooked on your adolescent books and hope to use them in my classroom!
I would never take the liberty of telling a reader what to think. It's a book. You read it, you formed your own impressions. So did the others. You are right. They are right. The book isn't finished until someone reads it.
I know I’m late with this, but congratulations on having _Lizard Music_ back in print. I fondly recall finding and reading the work back in seventh grade (I’m in 34th grade now), and I hope that this new edition means that more seventh graders can get hold of it.
Thanks. I would rather have a book, especially this one, included in the New York Review of Books collection than win the Jo Osborne Award (which I also won).
Dear Mr. Pinkwater,
My husband and our three sons (ages 14, 10, and 5) so enjoyed reading Borgel recently that when my husband finished reading the book aloud, the boys begged him to start over again at the beginning. What a wonderful book. We have had lots of fascinating esoteric and silly conversations spin out from the evening’s chapter. Our youngest has listened to Frankenbagel, Wempires, and Woogie Norple almost daily for the last month. He’s drawn lots of illustrations to go along with Borgel and the rest.
I understand that the big ‘Four Novels’ book was a result of taking back publishing control of your work. As an independent publisher myself, I say bravo to that, especially when it keeps such exceptional books in print. Thanks for all the stories, may there be many more.
It took maybe 10 years to presuade publishers to bring out 5 NOVELS and 4 FANTASTIC NOVELS. They said things like ""That sounds hard to do,"" and ""We have never done that before,"" and ""I don't understand, you want us to publish a big cheap paperback with lots of novels in it? Why?"" I wonder if your kids would like THE NEDDIAD.
Dear Mr. Pinkwater,
One of my favorite books of all time is “Alan Mendelsohn, the Boy from Mars.” I still think of it whenever I eat chili or drink hot chocolate or find myself in an abandoned garden. I must have checked that book out from my local library a dozen times starting in the 4th grade through high school. I was very pleased to find it included in “Five Novels” recently, and I now look forwards to reading it to my own children so that they might develop their taste for things eccentric and surreal. And chili. Do you perchance have any thoughts on what is in Green Death Chili?
Of course I know exactly what is in Green Death Chili, and prepare it for friends on Bastille Day, the anniversary of the San Francisco earthquake, and during lunar eclipses--but I am forbidden by oath to post the recipe, or even write it down on paper. If you are a person of good character, and would care to meet me in the parking lot of the deserted muffler shop on a moonless night, I could administer the oath and tell you the ingredients.
