My guest author today is Gordon Ralph. He’s one cool dude from the Sunshine State of Florida in America – and he’s got a cracking imagination.
This funny writer is known as Gordon to his friends and “Dr. If” to the kids who gobble up his books.
That’s because his “Remaking the World” series shows what happens IF we remade the world to look the way we want it to be.
“This is not an original idea,” Gordon told me. “It seems that the “Midas touch” got the king in a bit of a bind as he wished all he touched to turn to gold, and could never get a drink to his lips before it became a heavy block of metal.”
The series features books with 8 tongue-in-cheek stories about self, family, farm animals and wild animals, each with a message for kids and parents to talk about. They are all in * Iambic pentameter (see below) with gorgeous illustrations by talented Romanian artist, Constantine.
They start with “My Brothers Pants Don’t Fit Me” about relationships with eight relatives, starting with brothers, and moving to aunts, parents, grandparents etc. with a temporary wish to “remake” each of them to suit a childish whim, but toward the last two verses, reality sets in and the child accepts a strict mom because she is so helpful when hungry or sick.
This funny writer is known as Gordon to his friends and “Dr. If” to the kids who gobble up his books.
That’s because his “Remaking the World” series shows what happens IF we remade the world to look the way we want it to be.
“This is not an original idea,” Gordon told me. “It seems that the “Midas touch” got the king in a bit of a bind as he wished all he touched to turn to gold, and could never get a drink to his lips before it became a heavy block of metal.”
The series features books with 8 tongue-in-cheek stories about self, family, farm animals and wild animals, each with a message for kids and parents to talk about. They are all in * Iambic pentameter (see below) with gorgeous illustrations by talented Romanian artist, Constantine.
They start with “My Brothers Pants Don’t Fit Me” about relationships with eight relatives, starting with brothers, and moving to aunts, parents, grandparents etc. with a temporary wish to “remake” each of them to suit a childish whim, but toward the last two verses, reality sets in and the child accepts a strict mom because she is so helpful when hungry or sick.
Older brother is finally regarded as a handy playmate, regardless of the condition of the jeans he once wore, and the lessons throughout the series are great fodder for adult/child discussions about most every daily issue one might hope to cover.
“There is always the hint of the ridiculous,” Gordon says, “as when the world is remade so that the farm animals aren’t inconvenienced by major events (in “Pardon my Turkey”) which deals with the ultimate sacrifice including the naked and embarrassed sheep after a complete shearing, but the needs of mankind are rationalised in ways acceptable to a child.
“In the case of wild animals, respect is the operating concept, and a healthy dose of it is required in each of those eight stories about bears (“Hold that Hug” gives away the plot) and alligators and such.”
SNIFFING OUT A GOOD STORY
The series began with the story of “The Nose on the Back of my Head" with inspiration coming from an unusual source - the Metropolitan Opera.
While on a car journey, Gordon listened to the radio. “I listened in amazement as the Met narrator explained the key points of the Shostakovich opera ‘The Nose’ where the Russian aristocracy was totally spoofed on stage,” he recalls.
“The title character is a nose that had once been connected to a haughty guy, but showed up walking the streets of Moscow while refusing to even recognize the body he had come from. Such is the depth of separation of the upper from the other classes.
“I started to think of my child side, loving the ridiculous and the result was the series that revised all the body parts with specious reasoning about ways to improve the eyes, ears, nose and other items we take for granted. Fear not. After all is said, we accept those parts exactly as the creator designed them, but oh what fun along the way.
“I hope the books will lead to some recitation of sing song rhymes for bedtime stories to share and discuss.”
Gordon has adopted the motto of the Florida Writer’s Association, “Writers helping writers” by using the lessons he had learned on his own publishing journey to help others.
To find out more about his books visit:
www.kidsandparentsdpress.com
A BIT OF INFO...
* Iambic pentameter refers to a certain kind of line of poetry, and has to do with the number of syllables in the line and the emphasis placed on those syllables. Iambic pentameter lines have a sing-songy rhythm like da-DUM da-DUM da-DUM da-DUM da-DUM.
In the movie “The Wizard of Oz”, the song “We’re Off to See the Wizard” features the line, “Because, because, because, because, because . . . because of the wonderful things he does!” The line “Because, because, because, because, because” is a great example of iambic pentameter. “Because” has a louder second syllable, and the quiet-then-loud syllable combination gets repeated five times.
“The title character is a nose that had once been connected to a haughty guy, but showed up walking the streets of Moscow while refusing to even recognize the body he had come from. Such is the depth of separation of the upper from the other classes.
“I started to think of my child side, loving the ridiculous and the result was the series that revised all the body parts with specious reasoning about ways to improve the eyes, ears, nose and other items we take for granted. Fear not. After all is said, we accept those parts exactly as the creator designed them, but oh what fun along the way.
“I hope the books will lead to some recitation of sing song rhymes for bedtime stories to share and discuss.”
Gordon has adopted the motto of the Florida Writer’s Association, “Writers helping writers” by using the lessons he had learned on his own publishing journey to help others.
To find out more about his books visit:
www.kidsandparentsdpress.com
A BIT OF INFO...
* Iambic pentameter refers to a certain kind of line of poetry, and has to do with the number of syllables in the line and the emphasis placed on those syllables. Iambic pentameter lines have a sing-songy rhythm like da-DUM da-DUM da-DUM da-DUM da-DUM.
In the movie “The Wizard of Oz”, the song “We’re Off to See the Wizard” features the line, “Because, because, because, because, because . . . because of the wonderful things he does!” The line “Because, because, because, because, because” is a great example of iambic pentameter. “Because” has a louder second syllable, and the quiet-then-loud syllable combination gets repeated five times.
Bye for now. But wherever you are on your Earth Walk, always try to Reach For The Stars.
You'll be surprised just what you can achieve!
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