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Reviews
Wild Things! Acts of Mischief in Children's Literature by Betsy Bird, Peter Sieruta, Julie Danielson
libraryterri's review against another edition
5.0
So much fun! The sordid lives of children's book authors! The story behind the children's books we love! I am not a fan of nonfiction but I thought this was an excellent book!
erboe501's review against another edition
4.0
A humorous, informative exploration of children's literature, WILD THINGS takes itself just seriously enough. I learned quite a bit about famous children's authors and the background of certain children's books. The growth in popularity of children's books in the 21st-century is reason enough to read this. While at times a little repetitive, the book was a reasonable length of just over 200 pages. It's also just a pretty hardback to have.
amibunk's review against another edition
4.0
This book hit all the right tones with me. It felt a little gossipy with fascinating snippets about some of my favorite authors, but at the same time meatier issues such as book-banning and diversity are addressed. As a bonus, I knew almost all of the authors discussed which made me feel well-read and high brow. It's always a plus when that happens.
I would have loved to have had more. More stories shared, more gossip given, more speculation, and more topics discussed. Maybe they'll make a second volume? Fingers crossed.
I would have loved to have had more. More stories shared, more gossip given, more speculation, and more topics discussed. Maybe they'll make a second volume? Fingers crossed.
beths0103's review against another edition
5.0
Just the right amount of academia and snark
I'd love it if there was eventually a Volume 2 of Wild Things.
I'd love it if there was eventually a Volume 2 of Wild Things.
jennutley's review against another edition
4.0
Finally, someone dislikes The Giving Tree as much as I do.
Elizabeth Bird is my favorite children’s book reviewer on the planet. I have been reading her reviews on amazon and goodreads for more than a decade. (How does she find time to write all those insightful and lengthy reviews? She is my idol.) So I would, for sure, want to read her new book. And to have it be about the stories behind the stories in children’s literature—just my type of thing.
Wild Things is terrific when it is telling you about the mistakes and hidden messages and behind-the-scenes machinations in your favorite, beloved children’s books. Where I found myself wandering was when the authors climbed the issue soapbox and this went on for a few chapters at the beginning.
My favorite chapters, by far, dealt with celebrity children’s books. I usually ignore new books by celebrities, but there are two that stand out as different. I worked at an independent bookseller throughout college and my favorite books to recommend for 8-12 readers were Julie (Andrews) Edwards’ Mandy and The Last of the Really Great Whangdoodles. I sold tons of them. And when I was a kid, Fred Gwynne’s pun-filled books (like The King Who Rained and The Sixteen Hand Horse) were hands-down my favorite books in my collection. I am glad to see both of them get special shout outs in this book.
This book really hits its stride about 1/3 of the way in. By the end, I really wanted more. I hope there is a Wilder Things in the works.
And really, The Giving Tree is about a selfish boy. You won’t convince me otherwise.
Elizabeth Bird is my favorite children’s book reviewer on the planet. I have been reading her reviews on amazon and goodreads for more than a decade. (How does she find time to write all those insightful and lengthy reviews? She is my idol.) So I would, for sure, want to read her new book. And to have it be about the stories behind the stories in children’s literature—just my type of thing.
Wild Things is terrific when it is telling you about the mistakes and hidden messages and behind-the-scenes machinations in your favorite, beloved children’s books. Where I found myself wandering was when the authors climbed the issue soapbox and this went on for a few chapters at the beginning.
My favorite chapters, by far, dealt with celebrity children’s books. I usually ignore new books by celebrities, but there are two that stand out as different. I worked at an independent bookseller throughout college and my favorite books to recommend for 8-12 readers were Julie (Andrews) Edwards’ Mandy and The Last of the Really Great Whangdoodles. I sold tons of them. And when I was a kid, Fred Gwynne’s pun-filled books (like The King Who Rained and The Sixteen Hand Horse) were hands-down my favorite books in my collection. I am glad to see both of them get special shout outs in this book.
This book really hits its stride about 1/3 of the way in. By the end, I really wanted more. I hope there is a Wilder Things in the works.
And really, The Giving Tree is about a selfish boy. You won’t convince me otherwise.
kilbmc's review against another edition
5.0
Very informative and incredibly readable. A must for anyone with a vested interested in children’s literature.
crystal_reading's review against another edition
5.0
Loved this and will likely read it again. So many fun bits of info about subversive children's lit.
jobinsonlis's review against another edition
4.0
Light and charming from beginning to end. This isn't the book for someone wanting an in-depth look at the childrens' book industry but if you want to learn about a beef between J.R.R. Tolkien and Maurice Sendak which robbed us of a Sendak-illustrated Hobbit or hear how Laura Ingalls Wilder implied that her Pa may have rid the world of a few serial killers, this is the book for you.
ashleylm's review against another edition
4.0
This was just a fun read throughout. Some of it I knew, much of it was new to me, it didn't feel too bloggy (if you know what I mean--there weren't 100 repetitive chapters, for instance), and I was happy to return to it whenever I got the change (lunchtime, waiting for the water to boil, the bath--those are all separate times, I don't personally boil my bathwater).
Could have done without the sidebars where they polled themselves on certain subjects. If you have nothing to say on the subject (as one of them did at one point) why are you publishing that fact? Weird.
(Note: 5 stars = amazing, wonderful, 4 = very good book, 3 = decent read, 2 = disappointing, 1 = awful, just awful. I'm fairly good at picking for myself so end up with a lot of 4s).
Could have done without the sidebars where they polled themselves on certain subjects. If you have nothing to say on the subject (as one of them did at one point) why are you publishing that fact? Weird.
(Note: 5 stars = amazing, wonderful, 4 = very good book, 3 = decent read, 2 = disappointing, 1 = awful, just awful. I'm fairly good at picking for myself so end up with a lot of 4s).