A Blog of Bosh

The kid in me is still alive
“Youth is such a wonderful thing; it’s a shame to waste it on the young!” This aphorism by George Bernard Shaw brilliantly exposes the ludicrous side of the romantic idealization of children, so characteristic of the 19th century.
For generations, religious leaders, educators and parents in the Western world had [...]

No Place for Absurdity
By Eric Gibson
J.K. Rowling famously negotiated ironclad agreements with Warner Bros. to make sure that her Harry Potter books made it to the screen in the right way. (What you saw was what you read.) The stewards of Beatrix Potter have kept a watchful eye, too, permitting animated versions of her stories [...]

The lord of misrule
By Nicola Shulman
The British response to Dr Seuss has not, so far, been suitable reading for Ms Dimond-Cates. It may be that we have an embarrassment of excellent children’s writers of our own, whom we may take seriously instead, if we are so inclined; or it may be another aspect of our [...]

There once was a wee humble ditty
By Shannon RoeToday being St. Patrick’s Day, the least we can do is doff our derbies to that bit of Irish doggerel called the limerick.
From its name, you might think this five-line verse form originated in the town of Limerick, Ireland. But not necessarily. No one knows for [...]

Hundreds attend ‘Seussentenial’ parties
The man who made the Grinch, Sam-I-Am and Bar-ba-loots household names was the inspiration for several local parties last week.
To celebrate the birthday of Theodor Seuss Geisel, better known as Dr. Seuss, hundreds of Rolling Meadows residents attended separate parties March 2 and Saturday. A similar party in Palatine drew more [...]

At Staten Island Academy, a reason for every rhyme
Seventy students took their turn in the spotlight yesterday at Staten Island Academy’s annual poetry recital, sharing the rhymes of their favorite poets…First-place eighth-grade winners were Carey Shuffman, reciting “Host House” by Robert Frost, and Joseph Konigsbert reciting “The Owl and the Pussy-Cat” by Edward Lear.silive | [...]

Music by women, but not for women only
In addition, the concert will include the works of Margaret Ruthven Lang whose life spanned the years 1867-1972. ‘Her “Nonsense Rhymes and Pictures” are short and easy, a perfect complement to the more complex work of Marion Bauer, who was composing around the same time, Held said, adding, [...]

Start with rhymes
By DAphne LeeAside from being easy on the ear, rhyming stories are also easy on the tongue although anyone who has grappled with Dr Seuss or Edward Lear’s deliciously madcap nonsense may beg to differ. My husband and I are forever arguing about the correct pronunciation of Lear’s Quangle Wangle Quee, but, as [...]

Neil Ardley
Neil Ardley, who died on February 23 aged 66, achieved distinction in two entirely separate professions, as a jazz composer and an author of informative books for young people; in the former role he wrote and recorded such acclaimed albums as Le Dejeuner Sur l’Herbe and Kaleidoscope Of Rainbows, while in the latter his [...]