I am high-fiving myself about being able to write this post, because I know it’ll give you a laugh on this windy, autumnal Monday morning. And we always need those, don’t we?
I have been laughing at the memory of some of the pages of ‘H is for Hummus, A Modern Parent’s ABC‘, by Joel Rickett and Spencer Wilson, ever since I spotted the hardback version in Bags of Books about a year ago. I know you’ll love it and laugh at it too because you’ll all relate to it, the ‘modern’ parents that you are. And most especially because you are modern LEWES parents.
So a few weeks back I saw it in paperback, again in Bags of Books, and it prompted me to get in touch with its illustrator, Spencer, who is a friend of ours and one part of the very excellent London illustration collective Peepshow, to ask if I couldn’t feature it on Little Lewes and host a social media giveaway. He kindly agreed – but has gone one step further than sending the lucky winner a copy of the book. See the bottom of the post to find out why.
The book goes through the alphabet letter by letter, as one of our own dear offspring’s tomes might, with each page crisply and humorously drawn in pure, vibrant colour by Spencer’s fair hand. He and co-author Joel are mates from school who ironically started on the idea for the book while overseeing their daughters on a playdate (as in, ‘P is for’) and Joel wondered aloud what on earth anyone fed their children before the discovery of hummus.
Each word that each letter stands for humorously reflects the ‘challenges’ of today’s generation of middle class parents in the raising of their kids, – O being for ‘Ofsted’, I being for ‘iPaddy’ and N being for ‘Naughty Step’… You get the picture (ha). These are words that didn’t exist in our own parents’ lexicon – and as grandparents they must find them more than slightly hilarious (and excruciating).
Then there are the trappings of our lucky little ones’ lives: ‘S is for Scooter (micro)’, ‘D is for Doughballs’, and of course ‘H is for Hummus’.
But I think my favourite has to be ‘W is for Wine time’. This is a celebration of the moment when, as my husband always japes: “with bedtime done, all of England simultaneously comes alive and the air rings with the sound of corks being released from wine bottles.” I KNOW that same moment happened at 7pm back in the Seventies, too.
WHAT YOU COULD WIN:
Spencer and Joel have offered to send to the winner of this giveaway EITHER
* a paperback copy of their brilliant little book OR
* an unframed print of any of the pages (so that the walls of their house can mock you). The print can be either a spread or a single page, up to size A2 (see below for the dimensions available).
TO ENTER to win your choice of a book or a print:
- Share this post on Facebook (yes, you may do that despite how I feel about it! But if you do, please email me through the Contact page of the blog to tell me, so that I can register your entry). Please comment and make sure you mention ‘Modernabc’ to link to the guys’ Facebook page for the book (see link below). If you ‘Like’ their page, you will get extra credit *smiley face*
- Share the post on Twitter, following @LittleLewes if you aren’t already, tagging with #modernABC
- Share the post on Google+ (again, please email me to tell me, as I am not yet on Google+ – I am most certainly not a luddite, but could someone please explain it to me!)
- Comment on this post in the section below, making sure to put your email address in the indicated field so I can reach you. If you subscribe to receive Little Lewes post notifications, extra credit again… *smiley winky face*
CLOSING DATE
The competition/giveaway will run for one week, closing next Monday the 13th of October at midday. Get sharing!
MODERN ABC DETAILS
The book retails at £7.99 for hardback and the paperback for £6.99. Either can be ordered through Bags of Books if they don’t have it in stock (and if you do this, they can get it in sharpish). They make fantastic presents for new parents or for hardened warriors who could do with a laugh this Christmas (as they weather the ‘X for Xmas excess’ and ‘W for Wine time’ deservedly creeps forward to 11am). They’re also brilliant for eye-rolling grandparents.
Prints can be ordered direct at modernabc.bigcartel.com and start at £25 for 18 x 24cm, rising to £50 for 40 x 50cm (A2).
Joel and Spencer’s Facebook page for the book and prints is at facebook.com/Modernabc. Please go and ‘Like’ it!
Spencer can be found on Twitter at @spencerwilson8
Disclosure: No compensation, financial or otherwise, was offered or accepted for the writing of this post or the hosting of the giveaway. I took pictures a year ago with my phone, to do a post on Little Lewes, and then my husband pointed out that I should get in touch with Spenny about proper spreads of it. When I did that, he offered to giveaway a book or a print to a lucky Little Lewes reader. Good luck!
CONGRATULATIONS to Naomi Fry, the winner of this giveaway! Hope you have fun laughing at yourself courtesy of ‘H is for Hummus’!
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Ive posted on facebook!
Thank you Anna, and good luck! Your entry has been logged… x
Hey. I will post to my facebook page and also am a loyal little lewes follower, you page really is simply fab and I love seeing it pop up on a regular basis in my inbox.
Happy monday to you.
Abbie Hills x
Hi Abbie, what a lovely lovely comment! It is always just when I’m thinking ‘oh no one reads this, I should just shut it down already’ that a nice bit of feedback pops up and makes me rethink. I am really chuffed to read your comment, thank you so much. (Oh and your entry has been logged too! Might have to ask Spenny to send you a copy of the book even if you don’t win, just as a reward for being so kind!). x
Ah bless you, yes please spenny! Ha 😉 your John Lewis blog recently made me go through my daughters wardrobe and revamp it a little! Thank you – keep the wonderful inspiring writing going x
Oooooo, what did you buy? I haven’t indulged YET, but my younger boy is suddenly growing out of everything so it won’t be long!
Just reading a few of these pages brightened up my gloomy Monday!
What a brilliant post from Little Lewes today. (Love LL!) x
Thank you thank you thank you Naomi! I’m glad you like it! x
Hi Naomi, YOU’RE THE WINNER! I’ll email you privately to give you the details… Kate x
Shared on Facebook!
Wine time is my favourite time of day.
Your entry has been noted! It’s definitely mine too (with the exception that it’s V for Vodka time) x
I’m an avid follower of your wonderful blog and use it for inspiration of what to do with my little one, despite being too far away from
Lewes to enjoy most of your suggestions. Thank you xx
I LOVE your blog and would like to say thank you for some excellent fun, inspiring and most of all practical suggestions. I also love this book (and Bags of Books shop) so putting it on Facebook was a dilemma as I have bought it for several friends! But I think the prints are fabulous so I had to give it a go. Thank you x
Thank you Catherine, what nice things you’ve said! I am always pleased to hear people find it useful, especially as I have gone off into the more indulgent design/blog/product blogs lately… Always worried Little Lewes readers might get fed up of them! It’s such a brilliantly hilarious book – I will tell Spenny what you’ve said as I’m seeing him at the weekend! x
I know I’ll enjoy this book. We lived in Abinger Place in the early 70’s with our two daughters aged 2 and 0. Foraging – yes we did it then – shopping at Clothkits, and babysitting groups (the tokens were gromits. What happened to babysitting for one’s mates? Fear of paedophiles?) not to mention making one’s own bread and yes, I made hummus! My daughter and 14 month old are now residents in Lewes and ‘plus ca change’? Grandson and I have spent most of the summer in the Grange gardens as I did with his mother and aunt.
Hello again Lynn! I always like it when you comment as I love to see that people beyond parents use Little Lewes a bit. I love hearing that you were eating hummus in the 70s (even better that you were making it!). I live just opposite where you used to live… I also think the babysitting groups would be useful today, especially as life has become so expensive and families can’t really live on a single income any longer… Perhaps I should start some kind of campaign through Little Lewes! Thank you for another lovely comment. See you in the Grange sometime I’m sure… x
OMG I love this!
Great find off to spam my whole social media with this now 🙂
Ha! Thanks Rachael, yes do spam away! Glad you like it… x
have shared on facebook, love this book, love little lewes very much! it’s great to read about someone else’s life with little boys!