Fuse 8 n' Kate

04/11/2024

Betsy calls this the Muybridge 5-panel sequential art sequence of the book. Really surprising and well done! [Kitten’s First Full Moon, 2004]

04/11/2024

What a difference eyebrows make! Without them - funny! With them - tragedy incarnate. [Kitten’s First Full Moon, 2004]

04/11/2024

The simple fact of the matter is that American illustrators don’t really do cat anuses in picture books ( excepted). Europeans? Put ‘em in all the time! So no, Kate. Kitten ain’t gonna have one. [Kitten’s First Full Moon, 2004]

04/11/2024

Can you believe Kitten is already 20 this year? On the podcast today, Kate and Betsy dive into this Kevin Henkes classic-status contender and much of what it entails.

28/10/2024

We know they’re supposed to be freckles but this particular shot of Ghost makes it look like he’s sporting stubble. Sort of gives you a whole different take on the guy. [Skeleton Hiccups, 2002]

28/10/2024

Interestingly, while it looks like you couldn’t pack any more in, Skeleton is missing a slew of ribs. The more you know. [Skeleton Hiccups, 2002]

28/10/2024

What kinds of slippers do skeletons wear around the house? R.O.U.S. ones, apparently. Who knew? [Skeleton Hiccups, 2002]

28/10/2024

“A ludicrous concept that is funny because it is ludicrous.” On the podcast we talk about a bony boy with a penchant for homemade hiccup cures.

21/10/2024

If you should question why we did this book around the Halloween season, let this image be your guide. Naturally no one today would make a book where you had apes in clothes, but in 1991 it was still par for the course. [The Wretched Stone, 1991]

21/10/2024

Attention ! You may have already collected this one, but if not it’s all yours! [The Wretched Stone, 1991]

21/10/2024

While doing another Chris Van Allburg picture book may seem like a relative no-brainer around the Halloween season, maybe there’s a reason we hadn’t done this particular title before. We discuss The Wretched Stone on the podcast.

14/10/2024

As legit scary faces in picture books go, this one’s hard to top. But we love the response from Miss Moody. “Getting bigger and uglier doesn’t scare me.” [Do Not Open, 1981]

14/10/2024

Anyone else feeling Monday like this guy? [Do Not Open, 1981]

14/10/2024

Wow. This book came out in 1981 but this interior design? Timeless. What do you like best about it? The banjo clock? The barrel chair? The figurehead? Can we live here now? [Do Not Open, 1981]

14/10/2024

Who wore it better? Young Janet or Old Janet? [Do Not Open, 1981]

14/10/2024

We continue our consideration of creepy picture books for October. On the podcast we’re talking orange cats (NOT Garfield) and a legitimately chilling book from Brinton Turkle “purveyor of terror” (or so Betsy called him on her blog back in 2011).

14/10/2024

For the record, if you haven't seen the trailer for the documentary STORY AND PICTURES BY, here's your chance:

Dir. Joanna Rudnick; One of our earliest introductions to storytelling comes in the form of picture books, the art of pairing stories and illustrations so se...

07/10/2024

This is so American. We can definitely have a naked witch flying around but don’t you DARE show any butt crack.[Wee Winnie Witch’s Skinny, 2004]