Supersize Everything

We all know that everything is bigger - if not always better - in America.

I had not expected the same to apply to books. Imagine my surprise, therefore, when my son came home with the classic Ted Hughes tale 'The Iron Man':

Odd Products

Can't manage an entire delicatessen?
We have the solution!

Not my definition.

Two shredded pizzas?


He was fresh off the plane.

Get 'Em While They're Young

Barnes & Noble has slipped even further down in my estimation. In its children's section, right next to the reading area and within easy reach of inquisitive kids' hands, our nearest Barnes & Noble prominently displays the following blatantly political made-for-children's books:

(Barack Obama: Son of Promise, Child of Hope)

(My Dad, John McCain)
(Hillary Rodham Clinton: Dreams Taking Flight)

Don't get me wrong. I have nothing against political literature. People should be free to buy whatever they want to read about. What I don't like is when political propaganda is fed undiluted to impressionable minds that cannot differentiate between reality and convenient fiction (i.e. "spin").

I was amused, however, to discover that the book "The Rise of Barack Obama" is now 50% off:

Book Sections

Barnes & Noble has really come down in my estimation.

They may stock virtually every book since the Gutenberg Bible, but isn't it a bit sick having a separate Memoirs of Affliction section (including, I might add, such titles as "My Lobotomy" and "ADHD & Me")?