Few adults who had young children in 1996 will forget the Elmo fever that swept the nation as Tickle Me, Elmo become the “must have” toy of the Christmas season. Anyone who unfamiliar with the baby monster prior to the holiday season, quickly became aware of his red fur, contagious laugh, and the unprecedented fist fights which broke out between some parents desperate to buy the toy. Few however, would have given much thought to the creator of that laugh. My Life as a Furry Red Monster: what being Elmo has taught me about life, love, and laughing out loud is the memoir of Kevin Clash, the puppeteer who has brought Elmo to life for almost 20 years.
My Life as a Furry Red Monster may be considered by some as a clone of All I Really Need to Know I Learned in Kindergarten or the Chicken Soup for the Soul books. Although it does contain many of the same life lessons and advocates seeing the world through the eyes of a child, Kevin Clash does more than just replicate Robert Fulghum’s best-selling work. Clash presents readers with a loving tribute to Jim Henson, Sesame Street, and the simple teachings which helped create the foundation for many readers' childhoods.
My Life as a Furry Red Monster celebrates joy, creativity and following your dreams wherever they may take you. For Clash, his delight in performing with puppets led him on a journey, the result of which was his work on Sesame Street. Being Elmo taught him a powerful lesson: the most fundamental power on earth is the human desire to love and be loved, a lesson which he hopes to share with the world in this new book.
ISBN10: 0767923758
Publisher: Broadway Books
Publication Date: September 2006
Binding: Hardcover
Author Website: www.kevinclashbook.com
tags: books book reviews Kevin Clash Sesame Street Elmo memoir
1 comment:
I can't hold a darn thing against Kevin Clash, but man, Elmo annoys me. And the fact that he's got his own segment that's separate from the doings of Sesame Street? Doesn't that go against the all-inclusive, multi-cultural neighborhood they work so hard to portray???
(actually, now that I'm done with my Elmo rant, I've got to admit a curiosity for the book ... but only if it talks about puppeteering and the backstage life. You know... that which brings the magic to life.)
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