Zilot & Other Important Rhymes
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- $16.99
Publisher Description
A New York Times bestseller!
An IndieBound bestseller!
A USA Today bestseller!
Emmy Award-winning and New York Times bestselling writer, comedian, and actor Bob Odenkirk and his daughter, illustrator Erin Odenkirk, present poetic nonsense for all ages perfect for fans of Shel Silverstein and Jack Prelutsky!
Bob Odenkirk began writing these poems with his children when they were little, compiling the poetry into a homemade book entitled Olde Time Rhymes. He wanted Nate and Erin to understand that actual people had written the books the family loved to read and to instill in them the feeling that they could be writers and illustrators themselves. Almost twenty years later, when the Odenkirks found themselves quarantined under the same roof, they revisited these mostly silly, sometimes poignant works. It wasn't until Erin began to create illustrations to accompany the words, though, that the book grew to be something much bigger than an Odenkirk family treasure.
From the titular made-up word for a blanket fort, an adorable dog with a penchant for the zoomies, and a father teaching his kids how umbrellas work, the subjects of these works, complemented by Erin’s whimsical and detailed linework, come alive on these pages. Featuring over seventy poems, Zilot & Other Important Rhymes will delight readers young and old.
PUBLISHERS WEEKLY
"A zilot is an indoor fort,/ a home inside your home" begins actor Bob Odenkirk (Comedy Comedy Comedy Drama, for adults) in this playful children's debut, a cooperative family effort illustrated by daughter Erin Odenkirk. Silliness abounds throughout the 70-plus disparate poems, each featuring digitally colored pen illustrations that radiate enthusiastic quirkiness with whimsical scenes of monsters and contraptions. Some works describe common childhood experiences, such as reacting to a new baby, heading to camp and returning home, and shopping at the 99-cent store. Others channel Shel Silverstein with stanzas that bask in their own ludicrousness. Many of the poems rhyme, and some delve into gross-out subjects including boogers and dog poop (the latter "in slimy pellets or fulsome logs"), but all employ fun wordplay and meter that beg to be read aloud, as in "Lollygagging": "We'll aim to aim aimlessly/ and traipse about spaciously/ and fart around graciously/ and fritter tenaciously." Characters portrayed with pale skin throughout. Ages 6–up.