This book is much more appropriate for a fairy tale blog. It is a living toy story where the toys come to life outside the view of the child who owns them. There are a lot of books in the Raggedy Ann series, but this one is far more interesting and entirely appropriate for both children and adults, boys and girls. A lot of what the toys encounter on their adventure outside of the house is very trippy in the extreme while still being meaningful.
The world inside this little girl's room is quite normal, but everything outside of it is bizarre and dreamlike. Not a bad thing! It forces you to question what is really going on. Is this real, or is this apart of some external imagination? Either way, the dolls don't question it at all. They simply deal with each and every thing, one after another. And really, who cares?! It ends up being a great adventure!
Some parts of the story are scary. There is a creature called "The Greedy," that is a sloppy creature made of candy. Although he seems to have everything, he won't be satisfied until he has a sweetheart. Unfortunately, that's what Raggedy Ann has as a heart, so he intends to cut out her heart and eat it. Very scary! I like the severity though, even for a children's book.
I don't want to spoil everything about this book, but I do want to warn you about something I found out after finishing it. The blurb on the back of the book completely spoils the entire book, 100%. It eloquently goes over every single thing that happens in the entire story to the point where you don't really have to read it. My friend told me it was probably indented to inform the parents, so that they could decide whether or not the book was appropriate for their child. Fair enough.
I don't think the book is really all that inappropriate though. Even for boys, the story kind of works because of Raggedy Andy. He is not a girly doll, but a tough guy who wants to fight, despite being a raggedy doll. He adds a much needed masculine aspect to the story.
The book I got was in good condition. It said it originally sold for $2.95 back in 1977. I got it for a little over $5.00. That means that this book is not, in any way, considered a collectable. So paying for it won't be a problem. Finding it though may be a challenge. I feel like I kind of got lucky.
Either way, I do recommend the book "Raggedy Ann & Andy: An Adaptation" in and of itself. The movie is better, and you should see it, but the book was fun to read outside of the movie. They are both really good, and I am glad that they exist in this world. Slight warning about the movie though: it's only available on YouTube. Do yourself a service and give it a watch.
This blog was written on August 18, 2022.
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SCARY is a good thing in a fairy, even in one meant for children. Jim Henson agreed with me in this regard: THE DARK CRYSTAL was such a tale. RAGGEDY ANN AND ANDY had a cast of endearing characters on a "real" adventure in a world of strangeness that was the one they lived in. Their quest was meaningful, and its connotations relevant in any world, even our real one. The agendas of the villains were those of the wicked in our world only expressed in strange ways that made them very interesting.
ReplyDeleteI was pleasantly surprised that the book was so good and faithful to the movie.
DeleteInteresting, I normally would say using screenshots as illustrations seems lazy but if it actually works I don't see a problem. I would say the movie is worth the watch. Especially when it all goes off the cliff into a surreal journey. The Greedy was indeed creepy.
ReplyDeleteThe illustrations were perfectly used! They did a great job.
DeleteSince dolls tend to be fashioned in our likeness, it is natural to imagine what their lives would be like. They may not move, but we wonder if they can think. What words would they say if they could speak?
ReplyDeleteThis actually gets its own genre honestly. It's something that's been done so many times throughout history.
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