I'm looking for passtimes and lifestyles to keep my attention at bay

[venta]

Well, it's no wonder there's a generation of illiterate kids, is it ?

In our staff room at present there is a bunch of sample books - they're delivered sporadically by The Book People and we have the chance to purchase any we like the look of. I started leafing through a kids' A-B-C book while I waited for the toaster to boil.

The opening pages described the game to play (find the correct letter, lift the flap to reveal a picture), and described the first few:

a flies high, b rings "DING DONG", c when she's happy purrs all day long

McGonagall is alive and well, but never mind.

There is a flap labelled "a", shaped like an apple. Underneath is a pop-up aeroplane. Well, they fly quite high. So far, so good.

There is a flap labelled "c", shaped like a cake. Underneath is a rather smiley cat. You could plausibly imagine her purring all day long. You're with the program up til now ? Good.

There is a flap labelled "b", shaped like a balloon. Underneath is a pop-up butterfly.

Comments

[cardinalsin.livejournal.com]

Not illiterate, they just have funny ideas about the noise a butterfly makes.

[bateleur.livejournal.com]

Ryan would have trouble with that book... he'd lift the first flap and declare: "Plane !"

[phlebas.livejournal.com]

Will you buy the book?
Ooh, I wonder if we have the same selection here...

[uitlander]

Heh. The samples are left in the postroom at my current place of work. The humour value somehow is lost in that context.

[(Anonymous)]

Butterflies stamp (cf Just So stories).

[bloodnok.livejournal.com]

while I waited for the toaster to boil

This worries me somewhat.

[venta.livejournal.com]

Of course.
Maybe this one stamped on, like, a bell or something.

[venta.livejournal.com]

There is a school of thought in this office which says that there is a little known species of campanologist butterfly.

We have not yet established whether the butterfly is very large, or the bells are very small.