LBC Puffins - Book 03 - Mrs Frisby and the Rats of Nimh

LBC Puffins

Venue: Outlaws Yacht Club

Date:  Wednesday, 9th of July 2013

Time:  6pm

Address: 38 New York Street, LS2 YDY

DISCUSSING:

MRS FRISBY 

AND THE RATS OF NIMH

ROBERT C O'BRIEN

BLURB

Mrs. Frisby, a widowed mouse with four small children, must move her family to their summer quarters immediately, or face almost certain death. But her youngest son, Timothy, lies ill with pneumonia and must not be moved. Fortunately, she encounters the rats of NIMH, an extraordinary breed of highly intelligent creatures, who come up with a brilliant solution to her dilemma.

THE AUTHOR (from Goodreads)

Robert Leslie Conly (better known by his pen name, Robert C. O'Brien) was an American author and journalist for National Geographic Magazine. Conly was the third of five children from a wealthy Irish-Catholic family. With interests in music and literature, Conly entered Williams College in 1935 but left in his second year. He then went through a period that he referred to as his "breakdown", briefly working in Albany, New York before going back to his family in disgrace. Although he later studied for a time at Juilliard, he went on to receive his Bachelor of Arts in English at the University of Rochester in 1940.

Are you sitting comfortably? 

Then I shall begin.

As the clock ticked 6:30 in the White Swan pub in Leeds, The children sat in a circle, crossed legged and fingers to lips ready to hear the story of the field mouse and her struggle to survive just as a rogue dog joined the meeting disrupting the silence only to ask the question was Harry Potter a Mormon or is he an Aura?

Sometime last year this is the book that kicked off another addition to the big family we all know as Leeds Book club. It started with a tweet after a discussion with a fellow book clubber one evening at book club about how much I enjoyed this book and then the next day I noticed a feed discussing this and LBCPuffins was born.

Let me explain. A few years back I started reading kids books because I got so bored of adult fiction because it just had so much information in them that I felt a bit overwhelmed, that I switched to reading kids books for a short while. This is one in particular is one of the books I read at school and has always stayed with me. I think we did a project on it in English class but I can’t remember what. When I last visited my Mum’s I picked this up and it still didn’t disappoint.

A lot of it I had forgotten. I remember it was a fight for survival and that was it. The story is about a field mouse that has to overcome all sorts of obstacles to protect her family when it comes to ploughing day because her youngest son is ill and cannot move. She has to go seek help from an unlikely source, a group of rats. It is here where we find out about her husband and the need to escape the farm. I personally had forgotten about the rats and how they had become so intelligent and the conflict with Dragon the cat.

‘“The Rat Race”- which. I learned, means a race where no matter how fast you run, you don’t get anywhere. But there was nothing in the book about rats 7 I felt bad about the title because I thought, it wasn’t a rat race at all. It was a people race, and no sensible rat would ever do anything foolish’.

A part of me thinks it’s about self discovery and what we do to protect ourselves and others in what we tell them and do. At one point I did feel myself going ‘No Mrs Frisby don’t do that!’ and 
because I couldn’t remember the ending. I was hoping the ending was not going to be sad. I think as a child you miss quite a lot of what is written in there, you’re just reading a story and not 
looking for things and to reread it as an adult gives it a new perspective and also brings back fond memories. 

‘All doors are hard to unlock until you have the key’

In the discussion at the White Swan while munching on white chocolate mice, we found that the book was perhaps trying to teach us a lot about solving problems and conflicts. Such as Mrs 
Frisby stumbling across Jeremy the crow, on her way back from Mr Ages (the field mouse who is a doctor) with the potion for Timothy. He has his leg trapped and she feels torn because she needs to get back to her sick son, but can’t leave him injured. So she stops and helps him and in return takes her home and promises that if she ever needs help she just has to ask. It is later on that Jeremy says to Mrs Frisby at one point about why he is helping her, is because they maybe different but they all have the same enemies; 

‘We all help one another against the cat’ 

(always prowling the farmyard) 

This book tries to cover almost everything, from mice inventing x-ray machines, Owls not eating mice (what was that about?) to rats being able to read in a lab. Adventures i.e. the great escape. 

How difficult it is to move a house let alone a home? One book clubber thought of the TV series ‘Location Location Location’ and Kirsty Allsop saying something like ‘Mrs Frisby has a dilemma
of huge mouse proportions. She must either find a new location or fear being crushed to death. Let’s look at her options. Phil it’s over to you’ or something like that.

‘Mrs Frisby could not quite get rid of the nagging worry that kept flickering in her mind; it was the kind of worry that if you push it out of this corner of your thoughts, pops up in that corner, and finally in the middle, where it has to be faced’

For some the book appeared to be old fashioned in some respects such as the female animals not being allowed in any of the meetings and then would look at role models. The males seemed to be the ones with the power even though our hero is a heroine. There is also a part where there was a role reversal I think between Timothy and Mrs Frisby when she starts acting like a child about moving day and not being mature and thinking like a child, thinking that the worse could happen, when the child believes everything will work out.

Although we all loved this book we did feel the ending let us down slightly it gave us an unnessary epilogue which didn’t let us know what happened to the rats, they simply just disappeared.

‘The room they entered was big, square, well lit, and had a faint misty smell. “It’s reasonably comfortable, and if you like to read....” he gestured at the walls. They were lined with shelves 
from floor to ceiling, and on the shelves stood- Mrs Frisby dredged from her memory. “Books”, she said, they’re books” “yes” said Justin do you read much?” “Only a little,” said Mrs Frisby. 
“My husband taught me”. –Mrs Frisby in the library.

There is a sequel to this book called ‘Racso And The Rats Of Nimh' written by the author’s daughter and also a film. However the film has a few differences, it’s called the Secret of Nimh 
made in 1982 and the names of the character has changed due to a possible copyright infringement with a certain toy and the mouse was know as Mrs Brisby. Not quite the same ring don’t you think?

Oh and one last thing, apparently animals can get pneumonia and NIMH is a real organisation, it is a part of the National Institutes of Health which is not revealed in the book. Although someone did mention if you add a letter it could be ‘Mrs Frisby and the Rats of Niamh’ a new title for book club perhaps?

And that my dears is the end of our story, always brush your teeth before you go to bed, and always remember book club is not just about the books you learn much more oh and it’s not just
is for Christmas, book club is for life.

Oh and if anyone is wondering about the state of the book I was reading I think my dog ate it.

SCORE:

8/10

To find other members of the club, search on twitter for #LBCPuffins

And don't hesitate to contact Outlaws on @OutlawYachtClub

Let me know your thoughts by either tweeting me @LeedsBookClub, commenting below or emailing me at leedsbookclub@gmail.com

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LBC Puffins

NOV - Wee Free Men - Terry Prachett - GUEST

OCT - Black Beauty - Anna Sewell - GUEST

SEP - The Secret Garden - Frances Hodgson-Burnett - GUEST

AUG - Coraline - Neil Gaiman - GUEST

JUL - Mrs Frisby and the Rats of Nimh - Robert C O'Brien - GUEST

JUN - The Sheep Pig - Dick King-Smith - GUEST

FEB - Matilda - Roald Dahl - GUEST

Book Club - Table of Contents

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Full Table of Contents

LBCPuffins Write Up - The Sheep Pig - Guest

LBC Puffins

Date:   Tuesday, 11th of June 2013

Time:   6pm

DISCUSSING:

  

THE SHEEP-PIG 

DICK KING-SMITH

The Sheep-pig is one of Dick King-Smith's most famous tales. It shot to further fame when the film adaptation – Babe - was released in 1995.

'Why can't I learn to be a Sheep-Pig?'

When Babe, the little orphaned piglet, is won at a fair by Farmer Hogget, he is adopted by Fly, the kind-hearted sheep-dog. Babe is determined to learn everything he can from Fly. He knows he can't be a sheep-dog. But maybe, just maybe, he might be a sheep-pig.

Dick King-Smith served in the Grenadier Guards during the Second World War, and afterwards spent twenty years as a farmer in Gloucestershire, the country of his birth. Many of his stories are inspired by his farming experiences. He wrote a great number of children's books, including The Sheep-Pig (winner of the Guardian Award and filmed as Babe), Harry's Mad, Noah's Brother, The Queen's Nose, Martin's Mice, Ace, The Cuckoo Child and Harriet's Hare (winner of the Children's Book Award in 1995). In 2009 he was made an OBE for services to children's literature. Dick King-Smith died in 2011 at the age of eighty-eight.

BLURB (GOODREADS)

Babe is a sensitive soul, deeply loyal to those who are kind to him. So when he is taken in by Farmer Hogget's sheepdog, Fly, it's only natural that he would want to follow in his foster mum's paw-steps.

Even with Babe's considerable handicaps as a sheepdog - namely, that he's a pig - he manages to overcome all with his earnestly polite and soft-spoken ways, proving once again that might doesn't always make right. After saving the sheep from rustlers and wild dogs, Babe convinces Hogget that his idea of becoming a sheep-pig "b'aint so stupid" as it might look. But neither Hogget nor Babe, nor anyone else, could have predicted what follows.

As utterly charming as Charlotte's Web, this book is bound to pluck even the tightest heartstrings. Masterful characterization brings every personality to vibrant life, while Mary Rayner's lively line illustrations only elucidate images Dick King-Smith has already planted in the reader's mind. Herd the whole farmyard together: readers of all ages, ambitions, and antecedents will love this one.

Emilie Coulter

THE REVIEW

I can't believe this story is 30 years old!!!

The story begins in the house of Mrs Hogget and Farmer Hogget hearing the sounds of the fair deep from the Valley. It is There that Farmer Hogget first encounters Babe.

After dropping off some produce he hears a squealing noise and discovers it is coming from Babe. A small creature making so much noise all for a competition to guess its weight. The Vicar persuades Farmer Hoggart to have a go and guess his weight and the moment he picks Babe up there is a connection, He goes quiet. Later in the day Farmer Hoggart is told he has ‘won’ Babe. He returns and places him in the barn not sure what to do with him other than his wife thinking he’ll make a great meal for Christmas.

This is where the story begins. Alone and afraid, Babe’s first encounter with another animal is with Fly and her pups. The pups are told ‘pigs are stupid because people only eat stupid animals like, sheep and pigs’. This is because Fly has never encountered a pig and didn’t want to appear ignorant to her children.  Our first lesson of judging a book by its cover.

It is not until she speaks to Babe and realises he scared and lonely from being separated from his Mum and takes him under her wing that she builds a relationship and following the loss of her pups to other farms, that she discovers how intelligent the little pig is and what he can achieve.

The same goes with the encounter with the sheep. When Fly is showing Babe how to bring them back, she believes they are stupid when in fact they just get a bit confused at the orders being shouted and would much prefer it they were all as polite as babe and treat them ‘ a bit decent’, then they would do as they were asked. A bit of common courtesy goes a long way.

In this story Babe has to show courage, strength and loyalty to his foster mum, the farmer and bravery against all odds. It’s about how one little animal/person can have such an immense impact on everyone’s lives. He changed the animal’s/people’s views about others and proved to everyone that anything is possible no matter who you are or what you look like.

THE MEETING

This was the second choice for LBCPuffins, a well known story, made famous by the film Babe released in 1995. To be honest I didn’t know the film was based on a book until it was pointed out at the last meeting. I have always loved the film especially when the mice pop up and did think that they would in the book, but of course they don’t.

With all children’s books; they take out all the unnecessary fillers and just create a beautiful story that can be told again and again. This one exceeded that with masterful characterization which brought every personality to life in such a way you forgot they were animals.

Dick King-Smith wrote this story after becoming inspired by his farming experience and what an amazing idea to portray a lovely message. The group believed that he was trying to say that the story was about not being prejudice about other people because of their appearances, as in the sheep dog accepting Babe as one of her own, and to always be polite to others. It also was a very positive story and that when people believe in you like the farmer did in ‘pig’ aka Babe, it shows how confidence can grow, when believing in yourself.

Again, as mentioned in other reviews, we went back to the subject of film adaptations from books, and couldn’t quite decide which was better. There were slight differences, which I’ll leave for you to spot, but the lovely thing about this book is the illustrations. Illustrations can be a huge positive for a book sometimes and can break the story up. These were created by Ann Kronheimer and one of my favourites was the diagram of the sheep dog trials or ‘pig’ chasing the animals and barking. 

Once again I love the idea of this book club – adult reading kids books. I think reading is an amazing gift and once in a while we need to take a break from our busy lives and read children’s books as sometimes the stories can still have an impact - though not necessarily be as intense as an adult's book, This such a heart warming story that can make you look at the world in a different way.

I highly recommend it to everyone; I think it's one that will stay with me for a while.

SCORE:

9/10

To find other members of the club, search on twitter for #LBCPuffins

And don't hesitate to contact Outlaws on @OutlawYachtClub

Let me know your thoughts by either tweeting me @LeedsBookClub, commenting below or emailing me at leedsbookclub@gmail.com

* * * * *

LBC Puffins

NOV - Wee Free Men - Terry Prachett - GUEST

OCT - Black Beauty - Anna Sewell - GUEST

SEP - The Secret Garden - Frances Hodgson-Burnett - GUEST

AUG - Coraline - Neil Gaiman - GUEST

JUL - Mrs Frisby and the Rats of Nimh - Robert C O'Brien - GUEST

JUN - The Sheep Pig - Dick King-Smith - GUEST

FEB - Matilda - Roald Dahl - GUEST

Book Club - Table of Contents

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Full Table of Contents

LBC Puffins - Matilda Write Up - GUEST

LBC Puffins

Venue: Outlaws Yacht Club

Date:  Wednesday, 20th of February 2013

Time:  6pm

Address: 38 New York Street, LS2 YDY

DISCUSSING:

MATILDA 

ROALD DAHL

Our write up here is supplied by regular book clubber and book lover extra-ordinarie @AlisonNeale. We rate this report: A* 

SCHOOL REPORT:  Matilda, by Roald Dahl

GENERAL:

The first LBCPuffins demonstrated a trait probably likely

to be a recurring theme in this book club: nostalgia. Most

of the Puffins had read the book when young and felt that it

had stood the test of time. Some felt themselves transported

back to childhood as they read, with clear memories of events

and illustrations, and even the book tape to which they had

listened.

CREATIVITY:

Some Puffins, while enjoying Matilda, pointed out that it

wasn’t as imaginative as other Dahl books. It was agreed that

it was definitely a classic fairy tale of rags to riches, but

that the characters weren’t as mysterious as in the BFG, for

example, despite the element of ‘magic’. However, many of the

events in the book, such as the cake-eating incident, caused

much hilarity – even laugh-out-loud moments.

BEHAVIOUR:

Dahl was felt to be encouraging children to battle against

evil adults, although some of the more extreme tricks pulled

by Matilda came with health warnings! While in some ways a sad

and distressing story, the Puffins felt that as children they

had ‘glossed over’ the sadder elements of the tale – perhaps

had not fully understood the implications behind the child

abuse to which Miss Honey and the children were subjected –

but this element had been more disturbing on the re-read.

Fortunately, though, in Dahl’s world, characters who do bad

things surely get their just desserts!

CONCERNS:

Slight concern was expressed at the animal cruelty in the newt

and parrot sketches. There was also some class snobbery in the

portrayal of poverty and family life, amusing in the comment

about margarine, but slightly more vexing (one Puffin felt)

in the negative portrayal of television – a common theme in

books. Others, though, argued that this was more a criticism

of the style of family life and interaction, and the lack of

respect for books and knowledge over money and appearances.

ENGLISH:

Descriptions are short but incredibly visual (even without the

illustrations). The Puffins expressed joy at the characters’

names, some of which are almost ‘filthy’ words, and most

of which gave evidence of the distinction between ‘goody’

and ‘baddy’. One Puffin aptly described the names as

almost ‘Dickensian’.

ART:

The Puffins couldn’t imagine Dahl’s books with illustrations

by anyone other than Quentin Blake. Although a few of his

early books were illustrated by someone else, they are thus

not as memorable. One Puffin suggested that Blake’s art style

was a visual version of Dahl’s words.

MATHS:

While the scores were very high indeed, they were noticeably

lower from those few Puffins who hadn’t read the book when

young. The averages were 4.675 out of 5 for writing and 4.475

out of 5 for story. Grrr ... We all know who decided to

complicate matters with difficult half marks, thus challenging

my maths skills!

In conclusion, then, Matilda, LBCPuffins said, was all about

a child fulfilling her potential, felt to be a common theme

in most of Dahl’s books. Reading here is portrayed as a

superpower. Quite frankly, how could we possibly disagree?!

AVERAGE SCORE:

9/10

YouTube

To find other members of the club, search on twitter for #LBCPuffins

And don't hesitate to contact Outlaws on @OutlawYachtClub

Let me know your thoughts by either tweeting me @LeedsBookClub, commenting below or emailing me at leedsbookclub@gmail.com

* * * * *

LBC Puffins

NOV - Wee Free Men - Terry Prachett - GUEST

OCT - Black Beauty - Anna Sewell - GUEST

SEP - The Secret Garden - Frances Hodgson-Burnett - GUEST

AUG - Coraline - Neil Gaiman - GUEST

JUL - Mrs Frisby and the Rats of Nimh - Robert C O'Brien - GUEST

JUN - The Sheep Pig - Dick King-Smith - GUEST

FEB - Matilda - Roald Dahl - GUEST

Book Club - Table of Contents

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Full Table of Contents

LBC Puffins - What? Another book club?

Ladies and Gentlepeeps, LeedsBookClub is somewhat bewildered to be finding itself announcing the launch of a new Book Club*. 

LBC Puffins

The second of our themed clubs, this is a book club strictly for the young at heart - no true grown ups will be allowed anywhere near us. 

We shall be meeting every two months (oh who am I kidding, we invariably end up meeting more frequently than that!) in a fabulous local art-cafe.bar.hangout - Outlaws - to discuss children's books.


Because why should children get all the fun! 


Venue: Outlaws Yacht Club
Date:  Wednesday, 20th of February 2013
Time:  6pm
Address: 38 New York Street, LS2 YDY

We haven't chosen a book yet - options will go up in a post or two, with you lot the deciding votes!

What's more, I have it on good authority that the write up's will be rotated between group members and will contain music, cartoons, emoticons and more colours than you ever thought possible. 

*This time, it really isn't my fault. 
My arm is still twisted halfway around my body. There was begging, pleading, tears...it was a kindness to say yes. Seriously.  
I'm just so easily led you know. 

To find other members of the club, search on twitter for #LBCPuffins

And don't hesitate to contact Outlaws on @OutlawYachtClub

Let me know your thoughts by either tweeting me @LeedsBookClub, commenting below or emailing me at leedsbookclub@gmail.com

* * * * *

LBC Puffins

NOV - Wee Free Men - Terry Prachett - GUEST

OCT - Black Beauty - Anna Sewell - GUEST

SEP - The Secret Garden - Frances Hodgson-Burnett - GUEST

AUG - Coraline - Neil Gaiman - GUEST

JUL - Mrs Frisby and the Rats of Nimh - Robert C O'Brien - GUEST

JUN - The Sheep Pig - Dick King-Smith - GUEST

FEB - Matilda - Roald Dahl - GUEST

Book Club - Table of Contents

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Full Table of Contents