Michelle Knudsen Marilyn and her monster. New books of July from the biblioguide. Guess Keuyer. "The Book of All Things"

What children are not afraid of: the dark, people in white coats, monsters and public speaking. Not only conversations with adults can help them understand their feelings, but also stories about kids and teenagers who are struggling with their fears. The Village talks about books that will teach a child to cope with various exciting situations.

Helena Kharashtova, Jakub Tsenkl."I'm not afraid of darkness!"

"Mann, Ivanov and Ferber", 2017

Who didn’t have this in childhood: late at night, lying in bed, peering at some familiar object, and imagination draws various ugly monsters? Or is it just scary to go into a dark room - what is waiting inside? Perhaps the novelty of "MYTH" will allow the child to take a bold step into a room without light, or to understand that there cannot be a monster next to the bed - there is just a familiar dressing table. This book with retractable elements: first the child sees the picture in the dark, and then - once! - pulls a bookmark, and light is shed on two night monsters - it turns out to be mom and dad!

Age: from two to three years

About what: fear of the dark

Norbert Landa, Tim Warnes."Monster Hunt"

"Melik-Pashayev", 2014

One morning the goose heard under the bed strange sound"psh-psh". She excitedly told the piglet about this, and he ran for help: he met a bear, a wolf and an owl, and they passed from mouth to mouth what happened to the goose. By the time the animals came to her aid, they were sure that a monster was sitting under the bed, making unimaginable sounds. The forest inhabitants, of course, inflated an elephant out of a fly - there was only a small one ... However, it is better to solve this riddle yourself.

Age: from two years

About what: fear of the unknown

Cornelia Spielman, Kathy Parkinson."When I Worry"

"Peter", 2017

This is not a book with a plot, but pictures-sketches that will help the baby understand his emotions a little. In the illustrations, he will be able to find out typical situations in which excitement manifests itself (doctor's office, unfamiliar place, quarrel), and how loved ones can dispel fear: listen, hug, pick up. When I Worry is meant to be read together to help your child understand what worries them and how to deal with it.

Age: from two years

About what: situations that cause anxiety

Michelle Knudsen, Matt Phelan."Marilyn and her monster"

"Polandria", 2016

This book is able to deprive the word "monster" of any negative context, because they are here - cute friends of children who appear when a child is in a difficult situation. Lenny, for example, got a huge monster when he was attacked by hooligans, and Rebecca got it when she was riding a bike. But the monster never comes to Marilyn! And one fine day, having decided not to leave such important things to the will of fate, the girl got ready and went to look for her good monster herself.

Age: From five years

About what: scary monsters

Ulf Nilson, Eva Erickson."Alone in the whole wide world"

"Scooter", 2016

Main character book, I learned to tell the time in kindergarten: nine o'clock, ten, one, two. At three, his father did not pick him up, and the child had to go home himself. But there was no one there, and a terrible thing occurred to the boy: his parents were hit by a truck. He was overwhelmed by a wave of despair, when suddenly he remembered his younger brother - because now he is obliged to patronize him. The boy quietly took the baby out of the garden, and they began to build a house in the yard in which they would live. The head of the family to the last tried not to burst into tears, but still could not restrain himself. Fortunately, at that moment, frightened parents ran home (the children disappeared from kindergarten), and it suddenly became clear to everyone that their eldest son does not determine the time very well. Nilsson and Erickson have another book about fear with the same characters: in it, the eldest child is terribly afraid of performing on stage (but everything ends well here too).

Age: At the age of six

About what: fear of loss

Arne Swingen. "The Ballad of the Broken Nose"

"White Crow", 2017

The family of 13-year-old Bart is one of those that are usually called problematic: an apartment in social housing, drug addicts live in the entrance, bills are not paid, his mother drinks. The mother and the boy really want to get out of all this, but it turns out with difficulty. Bart is a boxer, but the love of his life is singing. True, this is not only love, but also a huge fear: he is very afraid to speak in public. However, one day a classmate Ada finds out about his talent and tells the teacher about it: now Bart can’t get out - he will have to perform at a school concert. And this circumstance changes a lot in his life.

Age: from 12–13 years old

About what: fear of public speaking

Guess Keuyer. "The Book of All Things"

"Scooter", 2014

When nine-year-old Thomas is asked what he wants to be, he replies: “ happy man". Now he can hardly call himself such: his believing father, angry, beats his mother, and even the boy himself. Thomas feels sorry for his mother, and if at first he is afraid to argue with his father, then he gradually finds the courage to condemn the actions of the parent. In this he is helped by his sister and an elderly neighbor, who tells the boy the cherished phrase: “Do you know when happiness begins? When you stop being afraid. The Book of All Things should not be taken as a work of violence - on the contrary, it is a bright, well-written text about the courage of Thomas and his sister and about justice, which in such cases simply must prevail.

This is our April HIT! My daughter has love at first sight, for three evenings in a row we read only about Marilyn and her monster, and many other monsters))) And then for a long time we came up with a monster for the beetle, fantasized what she would do with him and how she would do with him live.

I have a phrase stuck in my memory that you need to fight your fears, you need to defeat them, probably, that’s how I was taught in childhood. But with my child, I have a completely different point of view, and a different approach to working with fears: we learn to coexist with them in a comfortable environment, manage them and sometimes even play with them. I have long noticed that some parents go berserk, protecting their children from scary and gloomy stories, pictures, and also life situations which, in the opinion of an adult, can frighten a child. Thus, they project their attitudes into a reaction, transfer their fears into the life of their child. And the child’s perception is completely different, and the reaction to this or that situation is unpredictable even by parents. But I will not talk about this topic for a long time, because after all it is very individual, and in no way do I condemn a position that differs from mine. We're just trying to work with fears differently. And books like this help a lot.

Marina Aromshtam spoke very well and sensibly about this book and about fears. I agree with every word.

Well, now about the book itself: what wonderful monsters are depicted in it, a feast for the eyes! They are not scary or intimidating at all. Of course, at the age of 2 or even 3, I think the story and illustrations will not be understood by the child, and they can still frighten to some extent, but closer to 5-6, I'm sure the book will become one of my favorites. The point is that each child has his own monster, with whom he plays, sleeps, studies and goes to school, eats, rides a bicycle ... This is a personal friend, only yours, and it is different for everyone. I perceived each monster from this book as a visual reflection of the soul of a child, a person, and even thought about how my monster looks like?))) I definitely had one as a child, I talked to him, collected bouquets for my mother, filled pockets with colored stones, fell asleep ... It was definitely always with me, and I trusted him with my secrets. But her monster does not come to Marilyn, which makes her sad and lonely, and I understand her)))

And now, without waiting for her friend, Marilyn goes in search of him on her own. I really like how Marilyn's parents are serious about the existence of that very monster. Of course, this image of "European" all-understanding parents is somewhat far from "our" realities in this particular context, and we are often skeptical about foreign literature that fills our children's heads with God knows what, but in this case I strongly share their position, and I like them)))

In general, I didn’t even have doubts about buying this book, since the first acquaintance with Michelle Knudsen was simply amazing, and you can probably guess why? That's right, Leo in the library. In my opinion, will not leave anyone indifferent.

But back to the book about Marilyn. It is interesting to watch how the guys, Marilyn's friends, find their monsters.

Key point: it's scary not to be near a monster, it's scary to live without it!)))

And so, when Marilyn stopped waiting, stopped looking at others, she realized that it was necessary to look for her friend herself, on her own. And she went looking.

And, lo and behold, of course, Marilyn finds her monster! After all, the seeker always finds;)

I was fascinated by this wonderful girl, and even more by her amazing monster)))

A good message of the book, although it reaches the child with the help of such unusual creatures: look for YOUR!

Children's books in July: a review of the Russian State Children's Library

Text: Larisa Chetverikova/bibliogid.ru
Collage of the Year of Literature. RF

The St. Petersburg "Polyandria" has an important feature: it produces really new products. Her repertoire is, as a rule, the works of popular authors from Europe, Australia, Asia, and America published in Russian for the first time.

The publishing house is trying to select the best examples of "intellectual literature for kids, junior schoolchildren and teenagers." Talented authors, who can see the world through the eyes of children and speak the same language with them, talk about “love and trust, loneliness and true friendship, compromise and strength of character.” All this, in addition, is "wrapped" in amusing stories, which are accompanied by highly professional illustrations. Recent Polyandria books addressed to preschool and younger children school age, confirm the commitment of the publishing house to the declared principles.

Murphy, J. "Five Minutes of Peace"

“The children had breakfast. It was not the most pleasant sight.

Mom quietly took the tray, put a kettle on it, a milk jug, her favorite cup, a saucer with cake and toast, which she generously smeared with jam ... She put a newspaper in her dressing gown pocket and began to carefully make her way to the door.

Toddlers who listen to this story will undoubtedly be intrigued by the strange behavior of their mother, but parents will immediately guess what it is. And they will sympathize with the heroine, because her escape from three children is doomed to failure in advance. Yes, my mother managed to get to the bathroom, turn on the tap, fill the bath, pour a good half bottle of foam into it and blissfully relax in hot fragrant water. But then the eldest son came with a flute to demonstrate his musical successes (he played “Sleep, my joy, sleep” three and a half times), then the daughter appeared and demanded to listen to how she reads (under “Little Red Riding Hood” my mother napped a little), and soon the youngest arrived in time, but not empty-handed. "This is for you!" - he said and with a generous gesture threw all his toy treasures into the bath ...

Vital and funny (especially when viewed from the outside), the family scene does not lose anything from the fact that characters- elephants. On the contrary: such anthropomorphism arouses the curiosity of the little ones, captures their imagination. In pretty pachyderms, they are more interested in recognizing themselves, and the history of animals makes a greater impression than if "ordinary" children and parents participated in it.

The author of "Five Minutes of Peace" is the British writer and artist Jilly Murphy. We know her as the creator of the Worst Witch series. The first book in the series, which became very popular in the UK, appeared in 1974. In Russian, five books about the adventures of Mildred Hubble, an unlucky witch school student, were published by the Moscow Octopus in 2007. These are also author's books: both the text and the illustrations belong to Murphy, but the black-and-white graphics of the "witch" books are noticeably inferior to the color drawings in "Five Minutes ...", made with great skill, cozy, imbued with warm humor.

Murphy's excellence as an illustrator is evidenced by his three nominations for the Kate Greenway Medal, which is known to go to the best British children's book artist. Murphy came closest to winning in 1994 when her book A Quiet Night In was shortlisted for the award.

"Five Minutes of Peace", published by "Polyandria" for the 30th anniversary of the book, was translated by Anna Remez. (Note that in the UK they also celebrated 25 years from the date of the first publication - a special, improved edition of the history so beloved by the British).

Knudsen, M. "Marilyn and her monster"

- St. Petersburg: Polyandria, 2016. - p. : ill.

Every child has imaginary friends one day, often making parents nervous. Adults accustomed to a logically built world do not understand what they are dealing with: with a violent childhood fantasy, an attempt to overcome loneliness generated by a lack of real communication? .. Or does an imaginary friend appear to help the child when there is no one else?

Perhaps both, and another, and the third, and many more different reasons. Marilyn, the heroine of Michelle Knudsen, needs her own monster to be "like everyone else", because she is the only one in the whole class who does not have a monster. Having broken the unwritten rule - to wait until your monster comes to you by itself, Marilyn goes in search.

This book is worth paying attention to. She will play their favorite game with the children and reassure parents: an imaginary friend is normal at a certain age. In addition, Matt Phelan painted the monsters so cute that no one will now be afraid to go into a dark room. And another important reason: in 2007, the book illustrated by this artist (The Power of Luck by Susan Patron) was awarded the John Newbery Medal. This annual literary prize, in existence since 1922, is awarded by the United States Children's Library Services Association for outstanding contributions to American children's literature.

"Marilyn and her monster" was also translated by Anna Remez.

Daywalt, D. "The Day the Crayons Came Home"

- St. Petersburg: Polyandria, 2016. - p. : ill.

The authors of this book are American Drew Daywalt and a graduate of the Irish Ulster College of Art Oliver Jeffries. From this duet, we know the talented, original-minded artist Oliver Jeffreys. His books - completely authored or only designed by him - are published by Scooter, Phantom Press and Polyandria. But if the first two publishing houses published a total of three stories for teenagers, with rare black-and-white drawings, then Polyandria already has six colorful books for preschoolers. Jeffreys has been repeatedly nominated for the Kate Greenaway Medal, and Polyandria has published three contender books: Lost and Found (2013), Crayons Strike (2014) and Road Home (2015). Continuation of the fabulous story about colorful drawing supplies - "The Day the Crayons Came Home" - 2016 nominee.

The idea of ​​both books about crayons belongs to the American Drew Daywalt, who first became famous as the creator of horror films, and then - cartoons about the new adventures of Timon and Pumbaa, Simba's friends from The Lion King, and the most famous woodpecker in the world, Woody Woodpecker. And the animated series The Naughty World of Tex Avery, based on a script by Daywalt, won an Emmy Award, which is considered the television equivalent of the Oscars. No wonder Daywalt's books are so "cinematic"; in essence, they resemble a carefully crafted (and with the help of Jeffreys, traced) script of a famously twisted story.

Books about crayons were enthusiastically received by readers in many countries of the world. In Russia, the success of the first book was more modest. However, Polyandria also published a second book, because not only their design is remarkable, but also the idea itself, which lies in the fact that every crayon/pencil/person is important and necessary. Without it, the Universe will become poorer in colors, emotions, thoughts.

Books about crayons, which became world bestsellers, were published by Polyandria in translations by N. N. Vlasova.

Light, S. "Have You Seen My Dragon?"

- St. Petersburg: Polyandria, 2016. - p. : ill.

Steven Light is an American, and in his book, New York comes to life, more precisely, Manhattan. There are many Manhattan sights of various scales here: from a smug skyscraper and a luxurious gothic “long-term construction” - the Cathedral of St. John the Evangelist, which has been in the forests for more than a century, to an old water tower with funny rivets on rusty sides. However, the author did not come up with a hand-drawn guide for tourists of preschool age.

His intention, much deeper and more interesting, becomes clear from the dedication, in which Light mentions his little friends, Olive and Ivy: "May the city always be a great playground for you."

This book can be played for a long time and in different ways. "Have you seen my dragon?" - this is a picture book, and a coloring book, and a "walker-finder" (the route of the hero's journey is on the flyleaf). But still, this is secondary, because in fact the author, the hero and the reader who has joined them are playing mathematics.
The way and means by which Stephen Light teaches babies to isolate from environment identical objects and count to twenty, attracted the attention of the experts of the Mathical Book Prize, established in 2015 by the Mathematical Sciences Research Institute and the Children's Book Council. The award is intended to promote the emergence of books that awaken in children - from toddlers to teenagers - curiosity about the world and educate the desire to explore it through mathematics. "Have you seen my dragon?" became the first winner of the "Mathical" award in the category of books for preschoolers, or rather, for kids 2-4 years old.

Stephen Light also has a book, Have You Seen My Monster?, in which he invites you to play geometry. The child will get an idea of ​​twenty geometric shapes: square, triangle, ellipse... We hope that Polyandria will release it soon.

For reference. The Mathematical Sciences Research Institute (MSRI) was founded in 1982 by three professors at the University of California, Berkeley. It is also known as the Berkeley Mathematical Institute after its location. The activity of the institute is dedicated fundamental research in the field of mathematics. MSRI is one of the most respected scientific centers peace.

The Children's Book Council (CBC) is an association of publishers of books for children. Established in 1946 to support book publishing and encourage children's reading. The organization is headquartered in New York.

The Moscow publishing house "Mann, Ivanov and Ferber" adheres to the same policy - to publish recently appeared books by domestic and foreign authors. It is primarily educational literature.

Zisk, S. “Magic Flowers. My herbarium»

- Moscow: Mann, Ivanov and Ferber, 2016. - 79 p. : ill.

Another book of "MYTH" is addressed to young researchers of nature. The edition is bright, enlarged, its dense sheets are held together by a spring.

The name "Magic Flowers" may seem frivolous, but this is a thoughtful, completely trustworthy book. By following Stephanie Zisk's guidelines for finding, identifying, harvesting and drying plants, your child will be able to create a small but smart (with scientific point vision) compiled herbarium. You can store dry plants directly in the book: stick it on specially designed pages, protected by a sheet of transparent tracing paper. At the bottom of each such page there are lines to fill out: “Where it was found ...”, “When it was found ...”, “What guests were on the plant ...”. Pasting samples, the child will certainly pay attention to these important details. Cisk offers garden flowers as collectibles - they are easy to find, and there is no damage to nature. And so that the young naturalist does not lose interest in his occupation, Zisk shows what wonderful flower boxes, mobiles, candles, napkins, lanterns and so on can be made if you show at least a little imagination.

Stephanie Zisk was assisted by artist Lars Baus. Without his beautiful, clear, visual drawings, "Magic Flowers" would not be so fascinating, useful and "versatile" - at the same time an atlas-key, a diary for recording observations, a collection of creative tasks and a folder for storing a herbarium.

“Magic Flowers” ​​was translated from German by Natalia Kushnir.

Dronova, K. "Mom, give me an apron!"

- Moscow: Mann, Ivanov and Ferber, 2016. - 87 p. : ill.

Another book that can bring a lot of benefits to both children and their parents: for the first it will provide exciting and useful leisure, and for the second - just leisure, although not immediately: while the child is learning to cook, his communication with knives and a hot stove should be supervised adults.

The collection of "recipes for independent children", released by "MIF", is one of the very few truly children's cookbooks. Few, because the easy-to-prepare dishes and the title "my little friend" mean nothing. A recipe for a child is absolute clarity of presentation, a clear sequence and simplicity of actions. And also - explanations, hints, tips, all sorts of reminders and enough free space on the pages (not counting the extra blank sheets at the end of the book) so that a novice cook can make his own notes. Pictures should also be informative, complement the text. Journalist and mother of a budding eight-year-old culinary specialist Katerina Dronova wrote just such a book, and Maria Larina, an illustrator and designer, turned the manuscript into a beautiful, stylishly designed work of printing art.

“Mom, give me an apron!” consists of four large "recipe" chapters, one small one containing recipes for ultra-fast food, and a very interesting chapter "For inspiration", which clearly shows that cooking is by no means boring and not at all intimate. In the "Open" section, the author offers to look at some culinary sites, as well as "View" - films and cartoons, "Go" - to the food festival and "Read" - for example, Robert Wolke's book "What Einstein Told His Chef".

And here's something else. The vast majority of the recipes that Katerina Dronova has collected in her book are savory. Of course, there are also desserts, but they are based on berries and fruits, and only occasionally - chocolate. If the child starts cooking according to the book “Mom, give me an apron!”, Parents don’t have to worry about healthy eating his child.

Many publishing houses release not only new books, but also updated ones, that is, in a new edition, new translations, with original illustrations. The Moscow "CompassGuide" among others published just such a book.

Mikheeva, T. "Light Mountains"

- Moscow: CompassGuide, 2016. - 176 p. : ill.

In 2010, Tamara Mikheeva's story "Light Mountains" received an honorable mention at the Sergei Mikhalkov competition, and in 2012 it was first published by the Meshcheryakov Publishing House with illustrations by Vasily Ermolaev. At one time, the Bibliogide analyzed this book in some detail (see: Tamara Mikheeva, Light Mountains), so we will not repeat what has already been said. We only note that the work of a modern author, which raises such an important topic, deserves the increased attention of publishers and readers.

CompassGuide subjected the story to minor editorial revisions, and main news- illustrations by Maria Pasternak.

The Moscow "NIGMA" also produces many reprints, but it always knows how to offer something new: either translation, or drawings, or both at the same time. These books are proof of that.

Boussenard, L. "The Adventures of Ballooners"

- Moscow: NIGMA, 2016. - 303 p. : ill. - (Land of adventure).

Louis Henri Boussinard (1847–1910) is one of the classics of adventure literature, whose name is on a par with the names of Thomas Mine Reid, Jules Verne, Maurice Leblanc, Arthur Conan Doyle. At one time, Boussenard was extremely popular in his homeland, and in Russia his novels were translated immediately after their publication in France. In 1911, a collection of works by Boussinard in 40 volumes was published in St. Petersburg. However, time was not kind to the writer: in France he was forgotten in the middle of the 20th century, but with us he lasted a little longer. But even the 30-volume collection of works published by Ladomir in 1991–2001 (at the height of the book boom), although it pleased fans of the genre and book lovers, did not save the situation. Today, in the memory of the mass reader, only "Captain Break the Head" and the "junk" "Diamond Thieves" respond to the name of Boussinard.

And suddenly "NIGMA" publishes "Adventures of aeronauts". Publishes in the "Adventureland" series, which means an enlarged format, embossed cover, ribbon, coated paper and numerous color illustrations. Moreover, I. Izmailov's translation is new. Was it worth the effort? Undoubtedly. Firstly, the fans of the classic adventure novel mentioned above will be happy, and there are not so few of them. Secondly, this work of Boussenard has not yet been published as a separate edition. But, perhaps, the main reason is different: this novel, written in 1908, with its set of clichés and an abundance of enchanting events, today can be read as a parody - both of the adventure novel as such, and, which is especially surprising, of our modernity. Either way, it won't be boring.

And the illustrations of Oleg Pakhomov will contribute to this. The young artist, slightly imitating the style of Igor Oleinikov, tried to show the world of the near future, as Louis Boussenard saw it. The term "retrofuturism" appeared much later than the novel, but it is quite suitable for both the drawings and the "Adventures of the Ballooners" itself.

Carroll, L. "Alice's Adventures in Wonderland"

- Moscow: NIGMA, 2016. - 199 p. : ill.

So much has already been written about Lewis Carroll and his ironic, absurd, funny, fascinating and so on that there is nothing to add to this. About the brilliant retelling of Boris Zakhoder, who recreated the English "Alice" by means of another language and in another time, too. And about the artist Gennady Kalinovsky, who was able to "sharply feel the specifics<…>text, its tempo and timbre”, can be read, for example, here. We will simply say about the book "NIGMA": this is the best modern incarnation of "Alice in Wonderland" and an almost exact copy of the book published in 1974 by the Moscow "Children's Literature".

The absence of a fabric spine does not detract from the merits of the publication, they are so significant: delicate embossing with colored foil on the cover, a ribbon to match the embossing color, in addition, a larger and, accordingly, “readable” font, dense white offset and, finally, excellent print quality. As they say, this book is able to decorate any collection.

Two more books of NIGMA are valuable not so much for their well-known texts, but, first of all, for their illustrations.

Andersen, H. K. "Thumbelina"

- Moscow: NIGMA, 2016. - 47 p. : ill.

“An amazing and romantic story about a tiny girl who appeared from a flower bud”, NIGMA published in the classic translation of Anna Ganzen. But the drawings by Sergey Kovalenkov and Elena Trofimova are published for the first time. This does not mean that the named artists are newcomers. Against. It’s just that the illustrations for Thumbelina, created by them in 1993, have lain unpublished in the archive to this day.

The drawings by Kovalenkov and Trofimova are an attempt at a philosophical reading of the fairy tale: “...the illustrators decided to show the story of the maturing Thumbelina, who is destined to go through the most serious trials. The open free space of the sheet in which the action takes place creates a special artistic atmosphere characteristic of the works of these masters,” notes Lidia Stepanovna Kudryavtseva in her book “Hans Christian Andersen and his Russian illustrators for a century and a half” (M .: Moscow textbooks, 2012 ). L. Kudryavtseva also cites the words of Boris Diodorov about these drawings: "There is freshness, wind, spaciousness, light." And another original artist, Leonid Tishkov, gave a more detailed definition of the work of Kovalenkov, who played the first violin in a creative duet: “The ability to build space on a page, to present a spread of a book as an endlessness, populating it with a multitude of things, is one of the main virtues of the artist.<…>Draw a picture: a little man wanders through a flowering field. Then<…>will place it on the page so that we understand how lonely this little man is in the Universe, what a bottomless world around him and what light fills him.

"The Fox and the Crane"

- Moscow: NIGMA, 2016. - 20 p. : ill.

This collection includes four Russian folk tales in the processing of Alexei Nikolaevich Tolstoy: "The Fox and the Crane", "The Crane and the Heron", "The Fox and the Hare", "Crooked Duck". Illustrations - Vera Pavlova. As with the previous book, published for the first time. The artist designed a total of about seventy books, and saw the light of day - less than twenty. The situation was not greatly influenced even by prestigious international awards - gold medal at the International Biennale in Bratislava for a series of illustrations for the collection of fairy tales by Alexei Remizov "The Salting" (2001) and an IBBY Honorary Diploma for drawings for "Sleepy Trams" by Osip Mandelstam (2014). Therefore, one can only rejoice at the small collection "The Fox and the Crane", which is of very high quality in terms of printing. And hope that NIGMA will continue to publish books with illustrations by the incomparable Vera Pavlova.

Dinosaurs, dragons, transformer robots, "just monsters" of all kinds and different origins are an integral part of modern children's subculture. Both the fact that they are scary, and the fact that plots related to monsters tell not so much about their “overcoming”, but about their taming, taming, are the most important signs of our time.

After all, what are the monsters that have populated children's literature in abundance? This is a kind of legalization of that part of children's life, about which adults did not want to know anything for a long time. This is a symptom of the transformation of the image of childhood with which we lived a couple of decades ago, sharing the delusions of the 18th century enlighteners about a child as a blank sheet of paper. I note that a sheet of paper is not just “clean”. The sheet of paper is also flat. Another common metaphor for the child was wax: they say, we sculpt what we want. Behind such goodness is also a frank desire to manipulate. Does the baby wax? And how recklessly can you mold “whatever you want” out of it?

But if the child is not wax and not a clean slate, if this creature is "voluminous" and has "resistance of the material", then you need to muster up the courage to deal with the monsters of the children's world.

Consistently this "motive" is developed only in translated books. And there seems to be no shortage of variations. There are books about how children tame monsters that represent their fears. There are books that teach to laugh at monsters, that is, fears. There are books in which monsters live a "human" life, and this opens up the reader the opportunity to "negotiate" with them.

But the authors of the book about the girl Marilyn upset all possible expectations. Here monsters perform some completely different role. It turns out that every child has his own monster. More precisely, it should be. The Beast is a cross between a pet, a magical protector, and a playmate. All individual monsters are completely different and seem to refer to the well-known psychological test“draw a non-existent animal”, by which you can understand a lot about the author of the drawing. Each monster is, as it were, an integral part of the child himself, his second “I”, brought out, confidently occupying a place in space and even possessing the magical qualities of invulnerability (at least, many monsters are quite “voluminous” and endowed with well-identifiable protective means like fangs and claws).

The monster must be "acquired" - and after that it cannot go anywhere. The acquisition is usually unpredictable and always happens unexpectedly: a monster appeared to Timmy on a history test, Franklin met his in the library, Rebecca - when she was riding a bicycle, and Lenny - when she was running away from hooligans. At first glance, monsters appear in a variety of situations, but apparently these situations are associated with immersion in oneself or self-mobilization. This is something like an inner revelation: you open your eyes in the morning - "and here it is, your monster, right in front of your nose."

But nothing like this happens to the heroine of the book, Marilyn, and she really suffers due to the absence of her own monster. For some reason, she does not manage to give her individuality a pronounced form. Either she tries to be a very good girl, or a very bad one. But this is all “external paraphernalia”. And these external efforts lead nowhere. In her case, attempts to do “like everyone else” do not lead to success. And, apparently, you need to do NOT like everyone else, but as you feel, as you see fit. This requires determination and will. Only such a strategy allows Marilyn to achieve the desired result - to find her monster. In Marilyn's case, it's not the monster who finds her, but she finds her monster herself. And let her mischievous brother grumble that "this is not done." Marilyn now knows "what is different."

There are no rigid recipes that allow you to come to yourself, to discover something important in yourself. Every time a person (child) is looking for his own way.

Of course, this metaphorical layer in its rational expression eludes not only a child of four, but, most likely, a child of seven. For little reader it's something like " household history”, in which interestingly drawn monsters act along with children. And this is almost true: there, it turns out, it can be interesting in life!

That is, this is exactly what is true: look how, it turns out, everything is arranged in an interesting way!

Marina Aromshtam

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Michelle Knudsen "Marilyn and her monster"