Post by Mark T. Locker.
Squids Will Be Squids: Fresh Morals, Beastly Fables by Jon Scieszka.
Well, the holiday season is just around the corner! Maybe it is time to have your children brush up on their moral fiber. What better way to reinforce life’s lessons than with some good, old-fashioned fables? Even if you don’t recognize the name, if you have kids you know Jon Scieszka (pronounced CHESS-KA if you’re wondering). He has written and illustrated literally (okay, not literally) billions of kids’ books. He also is a huge advocate for encouraging reluctant male readers to find books that will appeal to him. To be honest, a lot of his works don’t appeal to me. But this collection I am pretty sure pleases me more than it does my son.
He begins the book by teaching us a bit about Aesop and how he used his fables both to inform and to speak out, under thinly-veiled metaphor, against the ruling class. What follows is a number of one-page fables accompanied by one-page illustrations and some rather unhelpful morals. They are actually quite hilarious. I think they are funnier than my kid does. One of my favorites is the Duck-Billed Platypus and the BeefSnakStik® which concludes with this memorable exchange: “I am one of only two mammals that lay eggs.” “Big deal,” said BeefSnakStik®, “I have beef lips.” Moral: Just because you have lots of stuff, don’t think you’re so special.
In short, this book is hilarious fun for old and young alike! Moral: Read this book to your children, or by yourself, tonight!