Clarinda
Post #2431 – 20080726
July 26, 2008
I am a graduate student who wants to use your book The Big Orange Splot as a source for one of my assignments. I remember reading this book when I was in second grade. I was going through my sister’s library when I ran across this book. The pages are now yellowed. When our children saw the book they immediately begged me to read Mr. Plumbean to them. That is why I think it is important for me to use this book in my assignment on children’s literature. My professors’s stipulation is that we must use award winning authors. I could not find any information about The Big Orange Splot to see if it received an award. Could you tell me any awards some of your children’s books have received? Thank you for your time.
Clarinda
Daniel replies:
Your professor seems to be a fool. Please tell him or her I said so. Books that win awards are neither the best nor the worst, but the ones the individuals voting could all agree on. Books of mine have won awards, but so what? I don't even think about things like that. However, I will tell you that I myself received the Good Conduct Medal at the Black-Foxe Military Institute in 1952, which was an honor bestowed only on the deserving and the few.
Kelsey
Post #2430 – 20080724
July 24, 2008
First hello Daniel Pinkwater. I hope you are having a fun time writing stories because they are fun when you read them. I just want to tell you I don’t know how to read but my mommy reads your stories to me and they are really great. I like all your books, so hope I can hear another one of your books again.
Love your books!!
Kelsey
(transcribed by her mother because she doesn’t know how to write either just yet.)
Daniel replies:
Later, when you learn how, you can read to your mother, and explain also.
Wendy Chalmers
Post #2429 – 20080723
July 23, 2008
I’m a kindergarten teacher and love your book, The Big Orange Splot. My colleague and I had been looking to get additional copies without luck. However Scholastic now has 16,000 copies of it. Curiousity has gotten the better of me–did you recently publish a bunch more because we heard that title was out of print.
Thanks so much!
Daniel replies:
Ah, you think I have something to do with decisions Scholastic makes! Or any publisher. Actually it is an easy mistake to make. You are a human, equipped with a brain, and capable of rational thought. I am one too! Publishers are companies. Companies do what companies do. In this case I am very happy they did what you say they did. Now watch them decide to dump all 16,000 in the East River, or lose them in the warehouse, or send me a letter saying the book is being put out of print, and offering to let me buy up remaindered copies, and then when I order a couple hundred telling me they and sorry but they have all been shredded by mistake. I suggest you get as many as you can, while they can be gotten, store some, and sell the rest on Ebay the next time the book becomes unavailable.
Gypsy S
Post #2428 – 20080719
July 19, 2008
Around 22 years ago I wrote a letter to say that I’d discovered you’re books in the library in Dunedin, New Zealand and was very much in love with them. I just wanted to say nothing much changes… and I’m glad you are still around and writing I’m looking forward to reading your books to my own kids now. Gypsy
PS Thanks for the postcard you sent me way back then… I treasured it for a VERY long time!
Daniel replies:
I am still around and writing--and I checked recently, and found that New Zealand is still there! Hooray for the status quo!
Lisa Lewis
Post #2427 – 20080718
July 18, 2008
What does one need to do to invite you to visit an elementary school? I’d offer you my first born son, but he’s the reason I’d like to invite you.
His school is just a stone’s throw across the river from you. Would you consider visiting?
Daniel replies:
Does your firstborn son possess a large sum of money? That can be a factor--I like to charge a.) a lot, or b.) nothing--my choice. Other factors include geographical proximity, and whether there is some reason I would want to visit a particular school, library, woodland mushroom circle, prison, hardware store, etc.
Whistlepig
Post #2426 – 20080715
July 15, 2008
Mr. DP,
When I think “DP”, my mind automatically associates the initials with “death penalty”.
So, are you for or against the death penalty?
Daniel replies:
I am against answering questions from people whose minds make such unfortunate associations.
A fan
Post #2425 – 20080710
July 10, 2008
Dear Mr. Pinkwater,
I am very happy that you are finally writing a book with a girl as its main character (the Yggysey). The Snarkout Boys series did have Rat, but she was not the MAIN character. Likewise, Henrietta was female, but she was not human and couldn’t speak.
Thank you,
A fan
Daniel replies:
Actually, forthcoming are _two_ books with female main characters--one happens to be a chicken, but she speaks, and the other is someone you will recognize.
Rachel & Hannah
Post #2424 – 20080630
June 30, 2008
Dear Mr. Pinkwater,
Just a quick question regarding “Dancing Larry” and “Sleepover Larry” books.
Are Bear number one and Bear number three actualy Irving and Muktuck?
Thanks your friends
Rachel & Hannah
Daniel replies:
It would seem quite likely, would it not?
Jonathan Packman
Post #2423 – 20080627
June 27, 2008
Dear D.P.,
A while ago (like 8 years) I heard you and Scott Simon read parts of “Henry Hikes to Fitchburg,” and I liked it so much that I bought 2 copies: one for a friend’s child and one for a future child that I was confident my wife and I would one day have.
Well, Henry Hikes is now a part of our repertoire, as well as “Big Orange Splot” and “Two Bad Bears.” (We call our two boys Irving and Muktuk).
Thanks to you, our older son is convinced that our front yard would be perfect alligator habitat, and has started digging a moat in preparation for our trip to the zoo to collect our new reptile friend. We hate to disappoint him. Any advice?
Sincerely,
Dad of Muktuk
Daniel replies:
You should be able to find much information on the web about preparing suitable environments for crocodilians. More important are guidelines for selecting same. Temperament is the first consideration.
Dave King
Post #2422 – 20080624
June 24, 2008
Hi Daniel,
Thanks for playing my song on your podcast!
I have another cat related song on PMN called Pretty Kitty that you might like too!
Thanks, again.
Daniel replies:
I'll bet I do. You have Webmaster Ed to thank for playing your very excellent song on the podcast. Bravo! Bravo! Great stuff.
Bill Hildebrandt
Post #2421 – 20080623
June 23, 2008
I have searched high, low, and elsewhere for the words to a song (or a skit) by Jimmy Durante, the only excerpt of which I remember is:
…”one tooth, a half-a tooth, no tooth, a whole tooth…”
I play banjo and guitar (one at a time) and have a small skiffle band. I have been invited to the retirement party of our dentist of many years, and I’d like to sing, recite or otherwise vocalize that number at the affair.
Your help will be appreciated.
…Bill Hildebrandt
Daniel replies:
Sorry not to be of any help--I don't know the song. How about Bridge Over Troubled Waters?
Dayna DiPreta
Post #2420 – 20080622
June 22, 2008
Dear Mr. Pinkwater:
I just wanted to take a moment to tell you as a child growing up my favorite book was “The Big Orange Splot” I have great admiration for you as a writer and as a teacher i try to find time to read your literature to my students every chance i get.
Thank YOu,
Dayna M. DiPreta
Daniel replies:
Occasionally we hear from great teachers here--as in this instance.
Howard Cowan
Post #2418 – 20080611
June 11, 2008
Here I am, trying to express my regard for your existence by possibly enlightening you to the existence of “The Rabbi’s Cat,” a strangely wonderful graphic novel by Joann Sfarr (and its sequel)and do you read it? No. You use the excuse that you are writing books, training dogs, writing to fans, messing around on NPR, and generally overachieving. Aren’t you ashamed?
Howard Cowan
Daniel replies:
Two emotions I never feel are shame and guilt--this may be because I am defective and a monster, or because I am careful not to do anything to be ashamed or guilty about. I do sometimes feel embarrassment, very often for others, such as ones who try to use this forum for purposes of promotion.
Daniel replies:
Readers who travel with bears should note this establishment's enlightened policy.
Alex Szatmary
Post #2417 – 20080610
June 10, 2008
I heard your reading of “A Visitor for Bear” on NPR, and your theory that bears are proxies for adults in childrens’ books. I would like to mention Blueberries for Sal, in which a girl, Sal, mistakes a bear for her mother, and a baby bear mistakes Sal’s mother for the mother bear. This corroborates your theory, and suggests that books written for bear cubs feature humans as proxies for fully-grown bears.
Daniel replies:
Bears and humans, humans and bears--it's so complicated.
