My Favorite Children's Literature (Category: "Chapter Books") of the Twentieth Century

Here are my favorite kids' books from the 20th Century that have a high text-to-graphic ratio. In other words, this list excludes picture books and comics/cartoons. You will notice that I have a predilection for unrealistic stories, especially those that involve traveling to a fantasy world of some sort.  So, without further ado . . .

The Wonderful Wizard of Oz (1900)
written by L. Frank Baum, US
illustrated by W.W. Denslow, US

In Baum's breakout effort, a girl and her dog find themselves transported via tornado to a magical land. Oz was probably the second children's fantasy land to become famous after Lewis Carroll's Wonderland, but is much more structured than its predecessor. The girl, Dorothy, and her new companions, the Scarecrow, Tin Woodman, and Cowardly Lion, join a quest to beg favors from an all-powerful wizard, but are basically caught up in Oz's power struggle. The wild success of the book inspired thirteen sequels from Baum and his new illustrator, John R. Neill, plus imitators and many feature film adaptations, some directed by Baum himself.

See also: The Marvelous Land of Oz (Baum/Neill), Ozma of Oz (Baum/Neill), The Emerald City of Oz (Baum/Neill), The Patchwork Girl of Oz (Baum/Neill), The Scarecrow of Oz (Baum/Neill), The Tin Woodman of Oz (Baum/Neill), The Magic of Oz (Baum/Neill), Queen Zixi of Ix (Baum/Richardson), Sky Island (Baum/Neill)

The Wind in the Willows (1908)
written by Kenneth Grahame, UK

I think this book is frequently described as "pastoral." If not, it should be, even though it mostly takes place by a river and in a forest. Wind is a supremely charming story featuring the cozy loiterings of Mole, Rat, and Badger, offset by the wild antics of Toad. Wizard of Oz offers a magical, fantasy world, while Willows emphasizes the magic of the real world, especially in the chapter, "Piper at the Gates of Dawn." Grahame never wrote a follow-up, but several writers and filmmakers took it upon themselves to do so.

Peter and Wendy (1911)
written by J.M. Barrie, UK (based on his play, Peter Pan)
illustrated by F.D. Bedord, UK

The immortal Peter Pan takes a family's children to his Neverland island, populated by pirates, "Indians," fairies, and the Lost Boys. Those that have only seen the movie adaptations may be surprised by the level of violence and the deaths of several of the famous characters; however, the real power of the book is its ability to pull back the curtains on the innocence, forgetfulness, and cruelty of a child's mind. For true heartbreak, you should read Barrie's other Pan effort.

See also: Peter Pan in Kensington Gardens

The Magic Pudding (1918)
written and illustrated by Norman Lindsay, Australia

Lindsay's effort follows a crew of rapscallions and ruffians through a skewered version of Australia. The only thing these rascals have going for them is their possession of a bowl of pudding which can speak, ambulate, and replenish itself indefinitely. The heroes are constantly hounded by a similar group of ne'er-do-wells who want the pudding for themselves and almost seems like a parody of the TV cartoons that came about decades later.

The House at Pooh Corner (1928)
written by A.A. Milne, UK
illustrated by E.H. Shepard, UK

House is actually the second Winnie the Pooh book but it gets the nod over its predecessor because, like Peter and Wendy, its portrayal of childhood is so honest and lacks empty sentiment that it forces unintended tears from the adult reader. The whole story is essentially the imagined dramas of a boy's stuffed animals, which are typically empty-headed, charming, and nonsensical. Many movie and literary adaptations and sequels have been produced; even the Soviet Union's Soyuzmultfilm animation studio created a movie.

See also: Winnie the Pooh (Milne/Shepard)

The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe (1950)
written by C.S. Lewis, UK
illustrated by Pauline Baynes, UK

As in Peter and Wendy, all of the kids from one family make their way to a fantastic land, but this one, Narnia, is pretty menacing and is not exactly full of happy adventures. In this alternate world, the kids are forced to join a rebellion against a wicked witch. Unlike Oz and Wonderland, which are filled with random, wacky creations by their authors, Narnia is populated by talking animals and creatures taken from European folklore. Lion launched a whole series of sequels and has received several movie sequels.

See also: Prince Caspian (Lewis/Baynes), The Voyage of the Dawn Treader (Lewis/Baynes), The Silver Chair
(Lewis/Baynes), The Magician's Nephew (Lewis/Baynes), The Last Battle (Lewis/Baynes), The Hobbit (Tolkien)

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Charlie and the Chocolate Factory (1964)
written by Roald Dahl, UK
illustrated by Joseph Schindelman, US

Dahl's ingenious story taps into the desire to win a lottery contest, starring an underdog hero that deserves cheering. The impossible chocolate factory is like a fantasy world of its own, full of wild adventures and dark fates for several of the contest winners who are invited for a tour. I grew up in a middle class household and did not grow up dirt-poor like the hero, Charlie, but while reading this book I could imagine how sublime and revelatory the factory tour could be for such a child. The official illustrations have been changed a coupe of times, the most recent being provided by Quentin Blake, who has re-illustrated most of Dahl's children's work. Yes, there are movie adaptations.

See also: Charlie and the Great Glass Elevator, James and the Giant Peach, The BFG, Witches, Matilda (all by Dahl, currently published with illustrations by Blake)

Uncle (1964)
written by J.P. Martin, UK
illustrated by Quentin Blake, UK

Uncle is criminally obscure. I only know about it because the New York Book Review children's line republished it a few years ago. Uncle is an insanely rich elephant who owns a "castle", which seems much more like a town. This place is vast and is full of dwarf tenants, primarily, but also humans and badgers and others. Across from the castle is a dirty complex where Uncle's jealous archenemies, lead by Beaver Hateman, reside. In some ways, the endless war between Uncle's pals and Hateman's crew seems like the best story about gangs ever. An added bonus is Dahl favorite Quentin Blake handling the illustrations. There were five sequels, but only the original and the first sequel have been printed in the last few decades. I had to resort to illegal means to read the third book and I have not read books four through six yet.

See also: Uncle Cleans Up and Uncle and His Detective (both by Martin/Blake).

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The Neverending Story (originally Die unendliche Geschichte, 1979)
written and illustrated by Michael Ende, Germany

Ende's epic is the only book on this list that was not originally written in English. This proves that I am a Philistine, as there must be several more great children's books from the Twentieth Century that were not written in English. In any case, this is yet another book in which a kid leaves our world and makes his way to one full of fantasy. Fantastica, as the world is known, possesses the menace of Narnia as well as the malleable, unpredictable nature of Wonderland/Looking Glass Land. Neverending Story breaks the fourth wall with its protagonist before finally luring him in half-way through the book. The famous 1984 movie adaptation chose to adapt only the first half, as it does seem like an appropriate breaking point. The themes, including dealing with bullying and the death of a family member, are more intense than what one would find in the other books on this list.

Scary Stories to Tell in the Dark (1981)
written by Alvin Schwartz, US
illustrated by Stephen Gammell, US

Scary Stories is an anomaly within the context of this list. First, it is not a novel, but rather a collection of short stories, poems, and songs. Second, the prose is really not that breathtaking, but the ILLUSTRATIONS by Stephen Gammell pull the whole package together. These illustrations are full-on creepy and add a lot of power to the sometimes ho-hum stories, which are mostly collected from folklore and urban legends. Unfortunately, the versions with the original illustrations are out of print; the only version you can buy now contains fish-out-of-water, non-scary drawings by Brett Helquist.

See also: More Scary Stories to Tell in the Dark and Scary Stories 3: More Tales to Chill Your Bones (both by Schwartz/Gammell)

So, there you have it. This is not a "best of" list, but a "my favorites" list. I have not read every children's book of the Twentieth Century. There are certainly some greats that I have missed, so fill me in. Give me some recommendations! Thanks for reading.

Competitive Action Figuring Spreads Across the Nation

July, 2013, Carbuncle, CT (UAP) They call themselves Figgies and their numbers are growing across the country. Enthusiasts of action figures - don't let them catch you calling them toys - are building arenas and staging massive battles in basements, garages, community centers, and even bars from California to Maine. 

A Figgie runs a practice session.

   Michael Snow runs an action figure arena in his parents' garage, based in Ankeny, Iowa. "I've always been a big collector of action figures. Like most collectors, I simply displayed my figures on shelves and admired them. I didn't really interact with them like I did when I was a kid. Then, I heard about the Figgy movement and decided to get it started here, too."

   So, what exactly do Figgies do in their arenas?  "Well," Michael explains, "we plan and execute epic battles. It's like a real war, and, unfortunately, there are casualties. My guy might kill some Decepticons with his ray but eventually he will fall in battle unless he takes shelter. If he does die, then I take control of another character. The more skilled Figgies can control two guys at once, but I find it easier to focus with just one. It's kind of a zen thing."

Wrestling Figgies enjoy a vibrant scene.

   When the movement began a few years ago, the arenas were built by the Figgies themselves; however, they now have the option to order a custom-designed arena from Action Arenas, Incorporated, a thriving, new business located in Carbuncle, New Hampshire. Company founder Nick Wilson explains, "The price of an arena depends on several factors. For example, some of these guys order some pretty hefty arenas, while others can easily fit on a bedroom floor." 

   Figgies prefer using arenas that match the action figure line they use. One of the most popular lines is the decades-old Transformers series. Proponents of this line prefer wide open spaces, like deserts or moonscapes. G.I. Joe fans prefer mountain sides, jungles, trenched fields, and even oceans, if submarine vehicles are available. Of course, Ninja Turtles enthusiasts use sewers and city blocks. Then there the Melting Pot Arenas.

   "The Melting Pots are really controversial," according to Wilson. "We don't advertise them, but we do install a few. Even then, we have to keep it kind of hush-hush." Snow's position on the issue may explain the need to be confidential: "I have nothing but the utmost disdain for Mixies and their so-called Melting Pots. If I ever did come across a Melting Pot, I don't know if I could resist the urge to trash it."

   Why all the hostility, and what do purists like Snow find so offensive? "Mixies see all of the action figure lines as one big world, and we have no qualms about mixing them together, hence the name," explains Mixies Union President Steve Quincy. Mixies revel in matchups like Superman versus Optimus Prime or Godzilla against the Stay-Puft Marshmallow Man. Outside of their dream matchups, life is more difficult. Quincy adds, "The purists discriminate against us in so many ways: besides shunning and ostracizing us, they also refuse to include mixed classes in the competitions."

A Mixie in his domain.

   Your eyes have not deceived you; action figure tournaments exist, and are growing rapidly, thanks to the Bozeman, Montana-based Competitive Action Figure League and its president, Stilt Whitman. "We organize local, regional, and, for the last three years, national events. The national championship teams in each class won $100,000 last year from entry fees and our major sponsors, like Mattel, Playmates, and Hasbro."

   The scoring is rather complicated and seems mostly subjective to outsiders, but is based on a "gentleman's code of conduct". There are several classes, including G.I. Joe, Transformers, Ninja Turtles, Marvel, DC, Lord of the Rings, Naruto, My Little Pony, and Masters of the Universe, plus some smaller, second-level classes like Real Ghostbusters. The host city can also choose an exhibition class; last year, San Francisco chose Rainbow Bright." Regarding the lack of a mixed class, Whitman says it is a simple matter of economics. "There just aren't enough Mixies or Custies out there, and none of the sponsors are likely to support such a class, due to brand dilution. No, we only have room for pure classes of stock figures."

A purist, DC scenario takes place in a city arena at competition.

   Custies and Premies may be even more persecuted than the Mixies. Custies enjoy modifying existing action figures to create figures for characters that have not been served by the toy companies. Some Custies even create their very own figures, hoping to secure a distribution deal and the fame and fortune that follow. Premies prefer to use collectors'-line, premium figures that feature elaborate detail and large scales. Other Figgies criticize Premy battles as being too stiff and precious, given the competitors' fear of damaging their expensive figures.

   In many ways, the world of Figgies reflects our society today and especially in the past, with its notions of purity and class warfare. Quincy remains hopeful: "I would like to be the Martin Luther King, Jr., of Figgies, and stand before the crowd at the next National Championships and tell them that I, too, have a dream, that one day it will be acceptable for He-Man to wage war against Cobra Command."

©2013 Matthew Bert Goode

               

               

Rant: "The Length of a Novel", or "H.G. Wells' Swelling Word Counts"

I'm currently attempting to write some fiction.  For pragmatic reasons, I'm somewhat concerned about the length of my story in terms of saleability.  It seems that, for the most part, there are only markets today for long novels (published initially in book form) and short stories (published initially in periodicals).  I'm not sure where one publishes novella-length works (I noticed that Gollancz published its first-ever first-run novella recently).  There doesn't seem to be a set definition of what exactly makes a novel, which I find interesting, given that the RIAA and AFI have guidelines for full-length album and feature-length film, respectively .  The sentiment I see online is that people expect 80,000 words from a novel, at least from a new writer.  Established writers seem to get away with shorter novels when they want to.

The Wikipedia article on "word count" doesn't add a whole lot, although it says the Nebula science fiction awards only require 40,000 words.  Meanwhile, according to the same Wikipedia article, Jane Smiley says novels are usually 100,000-175,000 words.  I think she must primarily read extremely undisciplined works to come up with that figure.

H.G. Wells is one of my favorite writers of prose fiction.  I looked up the word counts of his first eight science fiction "novels".  Here they are, in chronological order, with thousands of words to the right:

1895 Time Machine (33)
1896 Island of Dr. Moreau (43)
1897 Invisible Man (48)
1898 War of the Worlds (60)
1899 When the Sleeper Wakes (68)
1901 First Men in the Moon (69)
1904 Food of the Goods (74)
1906 In the Days of the Comet (81)

The Time Machine would not appear to qualify as a novel by anyone's reckoning, yet it is frequently referred to as one. Also, isn't it amazing how uniformly the word count increases? Slightly less uniform are the diminishing returns, measured in legacy and impact, across the progression. By this I mean that most people have heard of the first four entries on this list, but not so much the last four. As his career progressed, Wells seems to have lost touch with his focus or discipline. I really enjoyed Food of the Gods but First Men on the Moon could shave most of the first quarter and In the Days of the Comet was mostly aimless nonsense.

So how many words does a novel need to have?