Learning | Burma-Shave, Part 1.

I recently requested a book, that I remembered checking out from my neighborhood library when I was a child. I had started thinking about it when a friend posted something about Burma-Shave on Facebook--and that post had caused a lively discussion about rhymes and roadside signs.  

Every second without fail, some store rings up another sale. Burma-Shave.
(Lori's note: I recall roadside Burma-Shave signs spaced much farther apart.)
 Photo courtesy of Brent Moore's photostream on Flickr.com Some rights reserved.

Just in case you do not know what all the fuss is about, Burma-Shave was an innovative brushless shaving cream product that first appeared in the United States in 1925. Picture the days when people were riding around in Model-T Fords.

The manufacturer of Burma-Shave, the Burma-Vita company, began advertising with roadside signs, which evolved into clever rhymes. The signs were spaced far enough apart that one would have to wait to see what came next.

Photo courtesy of Orin Zebest's photostream on Flickr.com.

Some rights reserved.

Since SSJCPL does not own a copy of Frank Rowsome, Jr's The Verse By the Side of the Road: the Story of the Burma-Shave Signs and Jingles, I had to order it through the Link Plus program.

I regret to say that I don't have time to write everything I wanted to say about Burma-Shave, so I'll have to wait until next week.  

Photo courtesy of miss_curse_10's Photostream on Flickr.com.
Some rights reserved.

In the meantime, I'll share my favorite Burma-Shave jingle with you: 

Don't stick your elbow
out so far
it might go home
in another car
Burma-Shave.

Learning | Bonus Letter Z?

Sometimes people who normally write material for adults produce some of the best children's books.  Take New Yorker cartoonist Roz Chast, for instance. She collaborated with author/comedian/entertainer Steve Martin on The Alphabet from A to Y with bonus letter Z! 

This book is a fine example of the Bullwinkle Effect mentioned in my Hey, Moose! Where is Crocodile? post. This is classified as a children's picture book. Kids will enjoy it, but their parents will enjoy it just as much, if not more. 

There are things mentioned here that very small children won't necessarily understand until they are older, but they'll chuckle when they learn what they mean, because they'll remember some silly phrase from this book.


As one expects from a typical alphabet book, there's plenty of alliteration in the rhyming couplets for each letter. 

As one would expect from Steve Martin and Roz Chast, there's an abundance of silliness, too.

(Honestly, I wonder how they got this thing done. They must have had to take a lot of breaks to laugh, and then collect their composure.  I know Chast did all of the illustrations, but which jokes were Martin's? And who thought of dropping the usual "A to Z" progression, in favor of "A to Y" with "bonus letter Z?" I would love to have been a fly on the wall during their meetings.)

I like Chast's New Yorker cartoons because they are subtle.  They don't rely on just one gag; there's enough to keep the viewer going back to look at a piece again and again.  

Can you think of other examples of the Bullwinkle Effect?  What are your favorite silly alphabet books?