Fuse 8 n' Kate

Kate got a dog! A doggy dog of her very own. And you know what goes together well, like peaches and cream? Dogs and picture books. So Betsy had to figure out a classic dog picture book. And lo and behold she realized that in spite of its relative fame the show had never done a book about this particular dirty dirty dog. In the course of things Betsy and Kate solve the mystery of why Harry never ro...

"If you've got a Leo Lionni book you're not going anywhere very fast, but you're gonna get there eventually." The old Ant and the Grasshopper fable got the Lionni touch back in 1967 when the four time Caldecott Honor winner chose to put a new spin on an old classic. So how successful was this book in the end? Is it a product of its age (the tune in and drop out 60s) or something that stands the te...

It just seemed to make sense to do a book this week that could kill two birds with one stone. Betsy and Kate haven't done any picture books by Muslim-American (or, in this case, Muslim-Canadian) authors. So Betsy took a look at New York Public Library's 100 Children's Books, 100 Years list and selected Big Red Lollipop. And who did the illustrations? The latest double Caldecott Award winner, Sophi...

It's the Memento of the 1980s! Take a trip back in time with us to 1980 on the nosey. An era when children apparently eschewed backpacks for satchels and school lunches were just as elaborate as those in Bread and Jam for Frances. Don't believe me? Then you haven't taken an up close and personal deep dive into one of Kellogg's most famous stories. Kate had never seen a Steven Kellogg book on the s...

And we're back to the classics. So far on this podcast, Kate and Betsy have tackled only one William Steig (Sylvester and the Magic Pebble). As per usual, Kate notices things. She notices that the initials of Doctor De Soto are DDS, which is a dental detail Betsy had never thought of before. She notices a rather lovely umbrella stand bedecked with dragons. She notices mouse dentures (and how creep...

Last year Kate and Betsy discussed three potential Caldecott winners, and two would later receive medals. This year, the two discuss Dreamers by Yuyi Morales, Blue by Laura Vaccaro Seeger, and We Don't Eat Our Classmates by Ryan T. Higgins. And, as per usual, Kate brings up stuff Betsy never considered before. Questions like, how exactly does Penelope Rex eat her classmates so quickly (does she un...

Hungry? With the new year comes a whole set of resolutions. Not knowing that Kate is on the Whole30 again, Betsy forces her to read a book where bread plays a major role. Bread, heck. This is a book that could turn children into bonafide foodies. In spite of the fact that all badgers are born in February, we've decided to do this book in January. And then, in the course of things, Kate starts look...

"I can always be called upon to remember a Snurp". Merry Christmas! Let's celebrate with a book that has absolutely nothing to do with the day in question whatsonever. So I know you're all wondering what elements Kate chose to focus on with this book. Would she like it more than Don't Let the Pigeon Drive the Bus? Less? Well, we'll sum it up for you. We discuss at length the proper way to wash a p...

The last time Kate and Betsy saw a Dr. Seuss book they were reading If I Ran the Zoo. Not an auspicious beginning for the usually good doctor. In the course of this particular book, Kate manages to locate a place where Seuss got lazy and Xeroxed one of his two-page spreads (something Betsy had never noticed before). There is also talk about Thurl Ravenscroft (and how dead he is), odd Grinch theori...

After doing Hershel and the Hanukkah Goblins last year, Betsy was having a devil of a time (no pun intended) figuring out another Hanukkah classic. After some serious consideration, she decided that this book would give us, as she says on the podcast, a little meat. A little fodder. Something to discuss. What she didn't see coming, though, was how timely this story truly was. How does it feel to l...

Truly a book for our times. Is there any other picture book out there that causes kids to question what they've been told right from the start, more than this one? This book is timely. It prepares children, in an era of news that is not always reliable, to not take everything at face value. Warning: At one point during the end of the podcast Betsy does briefly mix up Zul and Zod. Children of the 8...

Let's see. After Tikki Tikki Tembo and Little Black Sambo, it seems like Arrow to the Sun is the natural complement to those two, don't you think? Kate and Betsy haven't dug deep into a book with racist issues in a while, and they've never done any books where white folks told the stories of American Indians. In this post-Thanksgiving episode the sisters give as much of the history of this book as...

William's Doll: Revenge of the Ascot! The big news of the day is that Kate and Betsy have created a petition. It's the very first they've ever done and its purpose is simple. As you'll hear on today's podcast, they are big time fans of today's book, but they'd rather like it if Harper Collins could publish a re-illustrated edition. The reasons for this are, as you will hear, pretty clear. With dif...

We're just going to give away the game and break down exactly how this podcast plays out between Kate and Betsy. As you will recall, Bets is a parent of two small children. Kate is not. So when the two sisters read this book, Kate became a full-throated supported of Team Mouse, while Betsy put all of her money down on Team Run-Ragged Kid. Listen and you'll hear how clearly delineated the line is b...

Since Kate had such strong feelings about Madeline and Eloise, Betsy figured that they would have to go with what she considered to be the third in the triumvirate of . . . let’s call ’em strong-minded ladies. If ever you’ve wanted to know the difference between miniature pigs, pot-bellied pigs, and razorback pigs, boy, have we got the podcast for you! Kate and Betsy talk about who the most famous...

What better time to introduce Kate to the work of Dave McKean than when it's almost Halloween! Betsy tries to give her sister a good dose of nightmare fuel, but somehow the two just end up talking about what an old wolf melody would sound like and whether Dave McKean has ever drawn a bunny (he has... and it's weird). Source Notes: - There was indeed a virtual reality version of The Wolves in the W...

If you've ever listened to this podcast then you'll know that when it comes to readalouds, that particular kind of a picture book is a little difficult to convey. Fortunately, Kate immediately interprets the cover of today's book, before reading it, as a story about a gigantic, 24-ft tall pumpkin rolling towards a little old lady, Indiana Jones boulder-style, and everything takes off from there on...

Older holiday books for kids have a tendency to be a bit on the white side. So Betsy was thinking she was pretty slick when I came up with A Tiger Called Thomas for today's discussion. But here's the thing; she thought the version illustrated by Diana Cain Bluthenthal was the only one out there. She was unaware that this book hadn't just been re-illustrated once but has FOUR different artists! Jus...

We're killing two birds with one stone this week (pun reluctantly intended). A reader suggested today's book a long time ago. Add in the fact that it's October and we should be doing some Halloween-themed titles and you've got yourself today's latest edition of International Classic Picture Books. Take a trip to Germany to visit one of the loveliest, softest books about life and death out there. M...

Happy October! We open this month of hauntings and spirits with a book about a terribly frightening monster! And by "terribly frightening" I mean "terribly frightened". Inspired by their discussion of Don't Let the Pigeon Drive the Bus, Betsy pulls out the 4th wall breaking title that started the whole American genre in the first place. Consider too the fact that this is a Sesame Street book and M...

Kate worried that there wouldn't be enough to talk about with this week's podcast because the featured book is so simple in both text and image. Little did she know!!! What happens when an adult woman reads this book for the first time and is told that many consider it a modern day classic? Oh. Let's find out. Along the way Kate questions the shenanigans (her word) of the bus driver, why the pigeo...

This week Betsy and Kate have pretty much found the bloodiest Caldecott Honor winner out there (though you're allowed to try to find one bloodier if you'd like to prove them wrong). Technically blood never mars the pages, but you can pretty much assume what's happening off-screen, as it were. And it's a fantastic introduction to the autumn season! Win-win! In the course of things, Kate and Betsy d...

Didn't Kate and Betsy just do a Robert McCloskey book? They did, but it was not his most famous work. In spite of the fact that Betsy springs the tale of Mr. and Mrs. Mallard on her poor unsuspecting sister the two somehow manage to say a LOT about it! Vicious egg-eating turtles and all. Show Notes: - Just in case you're curious, the Twitter handle for this show is @fuse_kate and on Instagram at f...

Fiiiiiiiiiish . . . An aquatic creature that has absolutely NOTHING to do with this week's book! So first and foremost, we are happy to announce that we now have our very own Twitter and Instagram accounts for this podcast. Woot! So tune in on Twitter @fuse_kate or on Instagram at fuse8kate. As for the podcast itself, Kate was semi-familiar with this book already. But did she remember anything abo...

I think this is the clearest case of Betsy pulling out a book for Kate that is well-known amongst children's librarians and is pretty obscure when you talk to your average layperson on the street. If for no other reason, you should listen to this episode of our podcast to hear Kate's exclamation of pure confusion and tiny squeaks of bafflement when Betsy mentions how well it did on the Top 100 Pic...