The Gashlycrumb Tinies

Rating:
Summary: Cute and Creepy
Review: But you will not die of ennui if you open this book. It illustrates the misfortunes of 26 children with names A-Z to a ghoulishly humorous rhyme. The cover image of the umbrella wielding symbol of death and his doomed "tinies" is one of the most famous artwork out there; especially in the gothic world. Inside are drawings of the children before or after their sudden deaths. My favorite is "H is for Hector done in by a thug" with a drawing of an innocent schoolboy and two arms holding a long piece of cloth in the background. No doubt this scene was inspired by the barbaric cult that practiced ritual strangulation known as the "Thuggies." The most gruesome drawing is "K is for Kate who was struck with an axe" the rest are more witty than grisly. Like the title, this book is tiny in size as well but big on macabre humor!

Rating:
Summary: G is for Gorey who laughed us to death
Review: This book was my first foray into the wierd Victorian-styled blackly-comedic world of Edward Gorey, and definitely got me hooked. It provides an alphabetical list, in rhyming couplets, of children dying from freak accidents, parental neglect, or their own foolishness ("L is for Leo who swallowed some tacks," f'rinstance). It pokes fun at the Victorian era's placing children on a pedestal by pointing out how easy it is for them to fall and possibly asks, through the absence of parents in any of the illustrations, why did people who held children in such high regard leave theirs in big creepy houses full of potential death-traps?
I give it a 3 because, while silly, it's not the best example of Gorey's quirky humor. If you'd like quirky humor and wierd art without dying children, I highly reccomend The Doubtful Guest or The Epipleptic Bicycle

Rating:
Summary: For $$$ How Can You Go Wrong???
Review: Best twisted children's story EVER. I tricked you, you thought this was going to be negative, but I seriously don't know how you can't like this book unless you're some sort of fundamentalist (which I used to be, but thank, God, I got straightened out). Gorey's art is fabulous black and white and his humor subtly subversive. Seriously, it's only $$$, stop reading and just order it.