Volkswagon owners get dewey-eyed with nostalgia just thinking about their old Beetles. This was a vehicle of a thousand stories, and My Bug presents some of the best of them in all their tie-dyed glory. More than forty brand-new stories, poems, anecdotes, and general love letters plus 100 treasured photographs, illustrations, and cartoons from smitten owners recall the highs and lows of the golden days of Beetlemania: water splashing through holes in the rusted floor; trying to make out in the backseat (indeed, trying to make it out of the backseat; the mystery test button on the dash, the secret panel behind the footrest, the battery so conveniently(!) located under the backseat), the scalding blast of sudden heat as the car chugged up an incline.
No self-respecting Boomer can forget the Beetle, even if he or she is driving a Beemer today. Now is the time to get out the bellbottoms and put those memory cells in gear. The Bug is back.
YA-This captivating book is a gold mine of memories of life with the little car that could. Roy Blount, Reeve Lindberg, Daniel Pinkwater, Russell Baker, and Robb White recount memories of the "cuddly transport of the Woodstock generation." Whether describing the vagaries of a heating system with a mind of its own, or the battery under the back seat, or the perfect stashing place under the front floor mat, it's clear that these owners really cared about their cars. The Bug is also the most popular "art car," one used as a canvas, and more than 100 beguiling pictures are included; photographs of a stone beetle, flower-powered beetles, stuffed beetles, even lit-up beetles. Teens who have only heard stories of the "classic" beetle will appreciate knowing why it was so beloved and they'll relate to the dialogue between a former Beetle addict and his teenage daughter who owns a new one. Also included are lists of books and movies featuring the Bug in one way or another. A thoroughly engaging visit with one of the icons of the '60s and '70s. Susan H. Woodcock, Chantilly Regional Library, VA Copyright 2000 Reed Business Information, Inc.
From the Inside Flap
Volkswagen owners get dewey-eyed with nostalgia just thinking about their old Beetles. The car became the unofficial emblem of the American counterculture, automotive icon of the groovy sixties, $2,000 (initially) worth of spunk and funk and positive attitude at minimum torque.
This was a vehicle of a thousand stories, and My Bug presents some of the best of them in all their tie-dyed glory. More than one hundred brand-new stories, anecdotes, reminiscences--love letters all--as well as illustrations, cartoons, and treasured photographs recall the highs and lows of the golden days of Beetlemania: water splashing through holes in the rusted floor; trying to make out in the backseat (indeed, trying to make it out of the backseat); searching for your car after your friends had carted it away. Delicious memories of the mystery test button on the dashboard, the secret panel behind the footrest, the battery so conveniently(!) located under the backseat, the scalding blast of sudden heat as the car chugged up an incline, the ice-covered windshield--inside--at the first sign on winter.
No self-respecting Boomer can forget the Beetle, even if he or she is driving a Beemer today. Now is the time to get out the bellbottoms and headbands and love beads, and put those memory cells in gear. The Bug is back.
Greetings and thanks for welcoming me into your home. Since I write books for both young readers and adults, I've cooked up two long-winded paragraphs.
Kids first: So, I'm the author of some four dozen books for children of all ages. The fall of 2011 brings four new titles: MY DOG! A Kid's Guide to Keeping a Happy & Healthy Dog (the idea go-to dog guide for families); a pop-up book with Robert Sabuda, Chanukah Lights, which just received a starred review in Publisher's Weekly: "A stunning achievement"; The Hound Dog's Haiku and Other Poems for Dog Lovers, illustrated with Mary Azarian's woodcuts; and Night of the Pumpkinheads, illustrated entirely with extraordinary jack-o'-lanterns. Other favorites are The Cuckoo's Haiku and Other Poems for Birders; Our Farm: Four Seasons with Five Kids on One Family's Farm (which I both wrote and illustrated with some 400 photographs); A Drive in the Country; Don't Shoot!; A School for Pompey Walker, and Elijah's Angel. (And, yes, there's the Britiish Michael--no "J."--Rosen whose many books are often confused with mine.) For over 35 years, ever since working as a counselor, water-safety instructor, and art teacher at local community centers, I've been engaged with young children, their parents and teachers. As a visiting author, in-service speaker, and workshop leader, I frequently travel to schools and conferences around the nation, sharing stories, poems, creativity, and humor.
Several of my books here show my work as editor/anthologist or illustrator. It has been my privilege to have enlisted hundreds of other authors and artists to create 15 philanthropic books that aid in the fight to end childhood hunger through Share Our Strength's national efforts, or that offer care to less fortunate companion animals through The Company of Animals Fund, a granting program I administered for a dozen years.
Now, for adults. I can start by saying I'm a poet. I went to Columbia from 1979-1981, and received my MFA there. Poems are now collected in three volumes, which are all featured here at Amazon. Moving home to Ohio, I worked as an illustrator (while in NYC, I began selling spot illustrations to The New Yorker and Gourmet magazines); one of my first real clients was The Thurber House, the soon-to-be-restored home of Columbus's native son, James Thurber. For almost twenty years, I helped to restore the home, develop the programs there, and edit much of Thurber's uncollected work. (Those volumes are also featured here.) It was there, I began to edit short story anthologies, commission great writers to contribute to books about dogs, horses, and even VW Beetles. That's also where I started Mirth of a Nation, a three-volume humor biennial that constitutes almost 2,000 pages of the best contemporary humor.
Most recently, I've been working in humorous nonfiction. No Dribbling the Squid features profiles of 70-some of the world's most wayward competitions. (You can see the Web site and Facebook pages, as well.) And, most recently, there's Any Body's Guess: Quirky Quizzes About What Makes You Tick.
Otherwise, my Website has a good deal about my life on the 100-acre farm I share in Central Ohio. Thanks again for reading along with me.
www.fidosopher.com
for lots more about MY DOG!, including recipes, training tips, cool projects, games, and so forth: www.workman.com/mydog
At first I was weary that this book was simply trying to capitalize on the recent renewal of popularity of the bug, but I was pleasantly surprised. The pieces are well written, many of them downright hilarious. If you are a fan of the car, or of sincerely humorous writing, this is a good book for you.
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All who have owned and love VW Beetle cars will find this a fine keepsake: a celebration of the bug which packs in photos with memoirs and a fun set of recollections of owners. My Bug will appeal to any with a fond memory of their 'bug years' as well as new fans of the model.
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It was a pleasure working with Michael Rosen and being able to contribute to this VW treasure trove of stories--To everyone who has owned a VW or wanted to--they can live the pleasures and fun stories thru this VW book--A book that is just FUN to read--its about time--uncle jerry jess
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