Sugar and Snails

Written by Sarah Tsiang

Illustrated by Sonja Wimmer

Annick Press

978-1-77321-005-6

32 pp.

Ages 4-7

March 2018

Though many nursery rhymes have some dark meaning behind them,  I like to think the old English nursery rhyme about boys being made of “frogs and snails and puppy dog tails” and girls being made of “sugar and spice and everything nice” was an innocent poem people may have used to poke fun at the differences between boys and girls.  Then again, maybe not.  But Sarah Tsiang takes the sexism out of that nursery rhyme and shows us that boys and girls can be just about anything they want to be.

From Sugar and Snails

by Sarah Tsiang 

illus. by Sonja Wimmer

Sugar and Snails begins with an embroidered piece of stitchery with the old rhyme on it, and then page by page a grandfather unravels that saying for his grandchildren after the boy wonders about sweet boys such as himself.  The elderly man suggests a myriad of things boys and girls could be as he pretends to recall how the rhyme goes.  But as he suggests things, the grandchildren recognize that they just don't fit.  She doesn't like dresses, and he doesn't like frogs.  There's rocks and butterfly socks, rain boots and whales, and even dirt and lemon dessert.  Any of these could be assigned to either child or both.  It's an equal opportunity rhyme of a menagerie of delights, which ends with the grandfather proclaiming to them, "Dangnamit, I give up.  What in the heck are you made of?" and the stitches of the embroidery being unravelled by little hands.

From Sugar and Snails

by Sarah Tsiang 

illus. by Sonja Wimmer

Sarah Tsiang makes Sugar and Snails a wacky speculative poem that attempts, amusingly though foolishly, to differentiate between boys and girls.  But it's German artist Sonja Wimmer's surreal illustrations that bring that outrageousness to the forefront.  Sonja Wimmer, who illustrated Belle DeMont's wonderful I Love My Purse (Annick, 2017), lends wonderful fluidity and connectedness between the children and that which might define either of them, with a frisson of humour and folly. 

From Sugar and Snails

by Sarah Tsiang 

illus. by Sonja Wimmer

If Sugar and Snails teaches us anything, it's that labelling is restrictive and inappropriate, and children, girls, boys or non-binary, should just be themselves, no matter what an old rhyme proposes.

I Love My Purse

Written by Belle DeMont

Illustrated by Sonja Wimmer

Annick Press

978-1-55451-954-5

36 pp.

Ages 5-8

September 2017

Children will be picking out their first-day-of-school clothes soon.  They'll be looking for clothes and accessories that make them feel good and look good but they'll also be thinking about how others will see them.  Charlie, the boy in I Love My Purse, is familiar with this process.  When he looks up at his sky-high (he stands on 4 chairs and 5 pillows and 4 books to reach the top) closet which is a colourful menagerie of clothes, footwear and more, he sees "nothing he liked.  Nothing except the bright red purse that his grandma had let him have." Until now, he'd only worn it viewing himself in the mirror.

From I Love My Purse 

by Belle DeMont 

illus. by Sonja Wimmer

When his hipster dad sees him, he questions why his son is wearing a purse.  Honestly, Charlie tells him, "'Cause I want to." Of course his dad's initial response is to tell him that boys do not carry purses and that one can't always wear what they love, like him and his Hawaiian shirts, inappropriate for his suit and tie workplace.  At school, his classmate Charlotte questions him similarly, declaring that, although she loves face paint, she can't come to school wearing it.  Charlie replicates his response: "'Cause I want to" and "Because I love my purse."  He is polite enough, however, to offer that maybe he'd go along with their suggestions of a backpack the next day.

This continues when a group of older boys led by Sam approaches Charlie in the school cafeteria.  Sam's response is about wishing he could eat actual food rather than the slop served up at school but he can't very well march into the kitchen and start cooking. The crossing guard's feedback is perhaps the warmest.

"Well, I love it!" said the crossing guard.  "Have I ever told you about my favorite sparkly shoes?"

From I Love My Purse 

by Belle DeMont 

illus. by Sonja Wimmer

The next day, everyone who'd questioned him the day before has relaxed their stance, showing a hint of their own preferences, though still somewhat shy.  It's not until the third day that his father is wearing his Hawaiian shirt, Charlotte has her face painted like a tiger, and Sam's cooking risotto.  And the crossing guard?  He's wearing his sparkly shoes that send Charlie on another foray into proclaiming his individuality.

From I Love My Purse 

by Belle DeMont 

illus. by Sonja Wimmer

Nova Scotian writer Belle DeMont and German illustrator Sonja Wimmer (whose art you might recognize from Mahtab Narsimhan's Looking for Lord Ganesh, 2016) give a jazzy feel to the text and illustrations.  Perhaps it's the fluidity of the art and the prose, or maybe it's Charlie's "cool cat" attitude.  From the swinging purse to the pliable characters (both in body and disposition), Belle DeMont and Sonja Wimmer have given us a wonderful story about self-expression.

Charlie may love that bright red purse but I love Charlie for his refreshing and honest appreciation for  that tote that others question, ridicule and even condemn him for carrying.  For Charlie, carrying that purse is nothing abnormal, it's just something he does.  It's sweet, it's honest and it's Charlie.  And it should be all of us.  The message of I Love My Purse is about fulfilling a need for self-expression in dress or action and it's paramount.  Forget the stereotyping that tells us a boy carrying a purse is inappropriate. Haven't we gone beyond that narrow-minded thinking?  Charlie has.  Let's all embrace our inner Charlie and bear our purses proudly, regardless of gender.