this is not a book review so much as a fulfillment of a request by ladies whose whims i cannot refuse... Gorey has stated the book to be inspired by "those 19th century cautionary tales, I guess, though my book is punishment without misbehavior". [4] Description [ edit ] This essay is adapted from Born to Be Posthumous: The Eccentric Life and Mysterious Genius of Edward Gorey, out now from Little, Brown.

Probably Gorey's most famous work, clever and lightly (?) sardonic and meticulously crafted. An abecedarian book. Told in dactylic (look it up!) couplets about each of 26 (one for each letter of the alphabet) children and how they met their untimely deaths. Sound horrific? It's very fun and funny and for all ages. I have read this book many times, and own it, as you all should.It’s no secret I have a massive soft spot for alphabet books. In 1963, prolific illustrator and author Edward Gorey (February 22, 1925–April 15, 2000) published an alphabet book so grimly antithetical to the very premise of the genre — making children feel comfortable and inspiring them to learn — that it took the macabre humor genre to a new level. “A is for Amy who fell down the stairs,” The Gashlycrumb Tinies begins. “B is for Basil assaulted by bears. C is for Clara who wasted away. D is for Desmond thrown out of a sleigh…” here, the children are expendable, as they are in gorey's tract, but ultimately the two philosophies have different endgoals. gorey claims "yes, your parental fears are valid - children are fragile and will inevitably come to harm," which encourages americans to stay in their bedrooms, ignore the children they already have (who are going to fall whether they are being watched or not) and make more babies for america, while in battle royale, the teens have their intercourses during the actual games, so that murder and death are shown to be the most effective forms of birth control, which keeps the population down, and lessens the need for future battles. Part Tim Burton long before there was Burton, part Edgar Allan Poe long after Poe, the book exudes Gorey’s signature adult picture book mastery, not merely adorned by the gorgeously dark crosshatched illustrations but narratively driven by them.

This book is basically set up as reciting the alphabet by detailing every child’s name that starts with the letters of the alphabet and how each child dies, such as one poem about a boy named Basil being assaulted by bears.edward gorey was an american illustrator, and as such his children, or "tinies", meet their ends in very american ways. they all have "accidents" befall them. (excluding the suspiciously-like-suicide situations of zillah, neville, and james) this book is seemingly representative of the american attitude towards blame, circa 1963. everything that happens is unfortunate, but the parents are not responsible. what was ida doing by the lake when she drowned? probably eating apple pie and supporting our troops. and rhoda was simply lighting 4th of july sparklers when she became consumed by fires. written today, all of these drawings would be followed by a panel indicating what steps were taken w/r/t litigation, after the children's deaths. the peach orchards would be sued for allowing ernest to choke upon a peach stone, the train company would be paying for victor's death for years to come. but this historical artifact is an exercise in cause rather than effect, and certainly free of affect. it is coldhearted american realism with an anti-abortion message. if there are stairs, your children will fall down them, so the more children you make, the less you have to actually look after them. just play the odds...