Worst Band In The Universe

For Slashdotters lucky enough to have kids, small siblings, cousins, or the occasional need to babysit for those who do, NVH Engr's review of Graeme Base's Worst Band In the Universe might be helpful. Finding kids' books interesting enough to read out loud without destroying the reader's brain cells is a tough job, but it sounds like it might be just slightly easier now.

The Worst Band In the Universe author Graeme Base pages 44 publisher Harry N. Abrams, Inc. rating 9.9 reviewer NVH Engr ISBN 0810939983 summary Sprocc Innovates new music and is exiled by the Musical Inquisitor. A small group of fellow exiles group together to fight the Status Quo. How they possibly succeed?

The Scenario On Planet Blipp, the world is ruled by music, however only the Traditional Songs are allowed; innovation is a horrible crime. (Sounds like one of my previous employers!) I found this book at Thinker Toys in Akron around the middle of 1999 and was immediately enthralled. My wife thinks I bought it for Caitlin, our then-2-year-old daughter, and I still read it to her every chance I get (to keep up the facade...).

This is the story of a young alien that just cannot stop innovating. Like all Blippians, he loves to sing and play music but he constantly finds himself Improvising when he should not be. This book chronicles his escape from Blipp just ahead of the law and his adventures surrounding an underground band contest, "The Worst Band In The Universe" where the best and most innovative --and illegal-- music would be rewarded. To me, this is a story of Innovation versus Status Quo and, yes, my blood boils as I am reminded how easy it is for Status Quo to beat down Innovation.

Of course, this is a children's book, so I dare not give away the ending.

To my daughter Caitlin this is a brightly illustrated poem that is incredibly easy and fun to listen to. It opens up a whole new set of experiences; aliens, conflict, petty authority, adventure, loud music, and new words. The art work is truly astounding. Find a copy in the nearest library, if only to look at the art work (Read the book, too, while you are there.)

What's Bad? Alpha-10 --one of the songs on the enclosed CD. The full title is "Alpha 10 (semi-instr. version 57.7)," performed by The Amazing Centrifugal Blortcrooners of Alpha 10. Do not let your children hear this song --they may very well prefer it over Barney. Okay, maybe I am exaggerating a little here ...

On the bright side, it is only 1:30 long and causes loud squeals of delight from my child. ;-)

Seriously, though, this book depicts authority figures as being potentially arbitrary and self-serving. Those who do not wish to expose their children to these kinds of concepts would be advised to hide their copy until the kids are old enough to understand.

What's Good? Splingtwangers and a Power Axe -- these are the musical instruments du jour. Blipp is a planet that loves to rock!

Inside the back cover is a CD containing nine of the songs from the contest, "The 18th Annual Worst Band in the Universe Competition." That CD now has a permanent home in my CD jukebox so my daughter and I can dance to it whenever we want. The music is surprisingly high quality and fun to listen to. Her favorite song is "Alpha 10" but I am hoping she will grow out of it. In addition, the lyrics are printed inside the back cover, which makes some songs a little easier to understand. The songs parallel the story and add another level to the experience, much like the filk songs of science fiction conventions. For example, Ancient Melody #42 (performed anonymously, as per tradition) is a haunting instrumental that simultaneously speaks to the grandeur and elegance of times past as well as to the stifling of times present. Other songs have a faster, more upbeat rhythm, with lyrics about space travel and the exciting-though-vagabond existence of an Innovator. There is a joy in this music that is hard to quantify.

The storytelling is riveting. The plot makes several surprising turns. At a particularly bleak point, a band technician (Button Pusher) steps in and nervously saves the day.

So What's In It For Me? A book with color pictures, an engaging storyline, a real plot, a cool CD with 8 excellent songs (and then some). Gosh, what else could you want?

I liked this book, mainly because there is a real story here. This is not just cutesy drivel with good marketing and hype. It speaks to a fundamental conflict between "new ideas" and "the way things currently are". This story chronicles that conflict from the innovator's view which makes it a must-read for the other people in your life. But it also confronts the reader with the fear and uncertainty felt by the non-innovators and the innocent bystanders. This is a view point I often need to be reminded of.

And it is fun to read to children.

You can purchase this book from Fatbrain.

Comments

New section- Geek books for Kids ?

[cheekymonkey_68]

Any chance we could have a "books for kids" section on slashdot ?

I reckon there must be a lot of /.'ers that have children or grand children that would love to buy them books that really educate them.

Perhaps I'm showing my age but after all the dreamcast/playstation non-stories of the last week
we get some stuff that really matters. Thank you /.

Thanks Timothy, any ideas for books to ween my kid of the Teletubbies and the Tweenies are greatly appreciated.