As an early childhood educator, this came as a little surprise that many famous children’s book authors were Jewish. I’m gonna drop some names here, so bear with me.
- Maurice Sendak, a now very old Brooklyn Jewish man who thought children should be read scary stories, and is best known for hipster-loving Where the Wild Things Are. He also illustrated the Little Bear series.
- Shel Siverstein, who is actually a man named Sheldon, is best known for his children’s poems. These include Where the Sidewalk Ends and many people’s favorite, both Jewish and non-Jewish, The Giving Tree.
- Dr. Seuss, aka Theo Geisel, had a Jewish-sounding name. And while he wasn’t actually Jewish, he helped the Jewish cause so much in the 1940s that he deserves to be an honorary one. Here’s what Wiki had to say about it.
- “Geisel’s cartoons also called attention to the early stages of the Holocaust and denounced discrimination in America against African Americans and Jews. Geisel himself experienced anti-semitism: in his college days, he was refused entry into certain circles because of a misperception that he was Jewish (he was in fact a practicing Lutheran).” Works for me.
- William Steig is not famous in most circles, yet the man wrote one of the greatest books of all time. Shrek! There’s nothing more to say.
- Finally, we have The Reys, Margaret and H.A. What did their sculpted Jewish minds create? An incredible series known as Curious George.
I write all this because The Jewish Museum in NYC is currently having an exhibit on Curious George. I hope to see it, and if you get the chance, I suggest you wander over there too. Oh yeah, and Douthat, just more proof that Jews can make believe.
justin
03/19/2010
damn, look at chicky dropping knowledge from his mindgrapes