Bumble-Ardy

PreS-Gr 2—In 1970, Sendak collaborated with Jim Henson on an animated short for Sesame Street that celebrated the number nine and a birthday boy who partied with swine. The author has re-imagined the rhymed narrative with a cast composed completely of pigs. The plot is still driven by an unfortunately/fortunately engine, but accommodations have been made for today's sensitive parents, e.g., instead of wine, the pigs guzzle brine. In the opening sequence that spans the years and starts before the title page, readers learn that Bumble-Ardy has never had a birthday party. "His immediate family frowned on fun." When Bumble turns eight, his parents "got ate." On birthday nine, divine Aunt Adeline provides a "hotsy tottsy cowboy costume" and leaves for work, whereupon surreptitious invitations lead to a masquerade. Initially framed in ovals (a nod to the film), the revelers burst out of the borders and parade across a white background. Then the raucous rumpus begins. Costumed pigs carouse with wild abandon against a star-dotted sky in three full-bleed spreads. Nine appears as a numeral and in various languages. Savvy readers will notice references to Sendak's previous books and an ebullient cameo; scholars will undoubtedly discover personal iconography in the densely populated watercolors. Familiar themes abound: the quest for home, the capacity children have for navigating their circumstances, the pleasure of cake, the presence of death. A skeletal grim reaper dances next to the banner reading: "May Bumble live 900 years." Oh that Mr. Sendak could. Nobody does naughty quite like he does.—Wendy Lukehart, Washington DC Public Library