Wednesday, November 6, 2013

Anita and Arnold Lobel's On Market Street: a pediatric guide to capitalism

FOUND AT the Sick Child Clinic today: On Market Street by Anita and Arnold Lobel. It's a picture book that illustrates the alphabet in beautiful shapes, patterns, and designs. Truth is, it's also an introductory lesson on shopping hoarding.

The story begins this way:

Picture book

A for apples. B for books. Ingenious.

Picture book

C for clocks—who's the talking pendulum clock in The Beauty and the Beast? O for oranges; surely he's had a good dose of vitamin C.

Picture book Picture book

F for flowers—the person looks like s/he's wearing a dress with floral designs. The U for umbrellas, which make him look like a knight in shining armor.

Picture book Picture book

I for ice cream! L for lollipops!

Picture book Picture book

And the parting words . . . .

Picture book

Picture book

So the story is about friendship after all, and capitalism, and why material gifts matter.

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1 Comments:

Anonymous Anonymous said...

Love picture books. If print dies out or becomes marginal paper picture books will remain.

Wed Nov 20, 02:37:00 PM GMT+8  

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