Friday, July 10, 2009

This is . . .


Here's a transcript of a little book I made at eight years old, living in St. Paul, Minnesota, two weeks before the Apollo 12 mission launched. The original is made of folded graph paper with a stapled cardboard cover, in purple and green ink. Kidthink . . .

This is . . .
Nov. 4th 1969

Table of Contents
This is the start

This is the start
This is a cart
This is the cart at the start

This is a knee
This is a key
This is a knee on a key

This is rough
This is tough
This is rough and tough


This is some tea
This is a flea
This is a flea in some tea


This is some meat
This is obsolete
This is meat that is obsolete

This is some shrimp
This is a blimp
This is some shrimp in a blimp

This is a boy
This is Troy
This is a boy at Troy

This is a snail
This is a nail
This is a snail on a nail

This is a fact
This is an act
This is a fact, act

This is a pool
This is a fool
This is a fool in a pool

This is a fence
This is dense
This is a dense fence

This is queer
This is a pier
This is a queer pier

This is a friend
This is a bend
This is a friend on a bend

This is . . .
The End

Color Craft and Company
CopyRight 1969 by Erik France

Do you like it?

[Inside back cover:]
This is mine
Erik F.

This is a book
This is a crook
This is a crook stealing the book!

[Book at top: Abbie Hoffman, Steal This Book, 1971].

Today's Rune: Initiation.

7 comments:

Joe said...

I'd really like to see a scan of the original

the walking man said...

I saw the above post before i saw this one and my first thought was...So this is where Abbey Hoffman got the idea from.

Old Abbey wasn't that original of a thinker although quite nuts by accounts I've heard from people who knew him.

I am glad to see you were no stranger to psychedelic drugs back in the 60's Erik. ha ha ha ha ha

Charles Gramlich said...

Quite a little Dr. Seuss, but with political awareness! lol. This is cool.

Adorably Dead said...

I thought that was cute, I liked it.

jodi said...

Erik, I'm probably the fool in the pool! Cute--wish my Mom woulda saved some of my stuff.

Lana Gramlich said...

Somewhat reminiscent of Green Eggs & Ham, I think.

Johnny Yen said...

I've got a copy of the original, which I gave to my son a few weeks ago-- he's finding it fascinating.