Miss Muffet, or What Came After

by Marilyn Singer, David Litchfield (Illustrations)

People will tell you that all little Miss Muffet wanted was to sit quietly and eat her curds and whey. They’ll insist that she was so scared of a spider, she ran away from it, and that’s where her story ends. Well, those people are wrong! Miss Muffet is more daring than that—and so is the spider. Together, they head off on an escapade involving a host of other nursery rhyme characters to help a famous old monarch who’s lost his fiddlers three.
     Told in clever verse arranged like a musical theater production, this hilarious picture book reveals the true story of the adventures of Miss Muffet and her spider friend.  

Genres: Picture Books, Poetry, Childrens, Humor, Nursery Rhymes, Music, Fiction

40 pages, Hardcover

Published September 6, 2016

About the author

Marilyn Singer was born in the Bronx (New York City) on October 3, 1948 and lived most of her early life in N. Massapequa (Long Island), NY. She attended Queens College, City University of New York, and for her junior year, Reading University, England. She holds a B.A. in English from Queens and an M.A. in Communications from New York University.

In 1974, after teaching English in New York City high schools for several years, she began to write - initially film notes, catalogues, teacher's guides and film strips. Then, one day, when she was sitting in the Brooklyn Botanic Garden, she penned a story featuring talking insect characters she'd made up when she was eight. Encouraged by the responses she got, she wrote more stories and in 1976 her first book, The Dog Who Insisted He Wasn't, was published by E.P.Dutton & Co.

Since then, Marilyn has published over seventy books for children and young adults. Her genres are many and varied, including realistic novels, fantasies, non-fiction, fairy tales, picture books, mysteries and poetry. She likes writing many different kinds of books because it's challenging and it keeps her from getting bored. She has won several Children's Choice and Parents' Choice Awards, as well as the following: the Creature Carnival, Lee Bennett Hopkins Poetry Award Honor Book, 2005; I Believe in Water: Twelve Brushes with Religion, New York Public Library's "Best Books for the Teen Age," 2001; Stay True: Short Stories for Strong Girls, Popular Paperbacks for Young Adults, 2000 (YALSA); On the Same Day in March, Booklist's Top Ten Science Books of 2000; NCSS-CBC Notable Book, 2000; Deal with a Ghost, finalist, YA category, Edgar Award, 1998; It Can't Hurt Forever, Maud Hart Lovelace Award, 1983; The Course of True Love Never Did Run Smooth, ALA Best Book for Young Adults, 1983; Turtle in July, NCTE Notable, N.Y.Times Best Illustrated and Time Magazine Best Children's Books of 1989; Turtle in July was also a Reading Rainbow review book.

Marilyn currently lives in Brooklyn, NY, with her husband Steve; their standard poodle Oggi, a cousin of their beloved and recently departed poodle Easy, seen in the home page photo; a cat named August ; two collared doves named Jubilee and Holiday; and a starling named Darling. Her interests include dog training, reading, hiking, bird-watching, gardening, meditation, playing computer adventure games and going to the movies and the theatre. She's also a major Star Trek fan.

Reviews

[Amanda · Rating 2 out of 5]

1 1/2 stars

Mother Goose

*sigh*

*face palm*

This is really more a commentary on our society than on Singer's work isn't it? It's too long. It's too sophisticated for most but the oldest audiences. This isn't a picture book for little kids. What has our world come to when we can't force ourselves to finish a children's book?

*double sigh*

[Boni · Rating 3 out of 5]

The poetry and wordplay is amazing, the theatrical spin is well-done, and I love the illustrations, but this is one sophisticated picture book. I don't think there's much kid appeal...but definitely a clever pb for adults.

[Jenny · Rating 4 out of 5]

I really liked this story! It was a bit too wordy for my preschooler but an older child might really love it. I thought the book very clever and the lyrical rhyming on every page is wonderful. The illustration style makes it a fun visual journey as well. Again, it was very, very cute but not a good fit for those under 5, I think.

[Cindy Mitchell *Kiss the Book* · Rating 1 out of 5]

Singer, Marilyn. Miss Muffet, or What Came After, PICTURE BOOK. Clarion Books, 2016. $16.99.

Written as if through acts in a play, we hear Miss Muffet’s story of what happens after she meets the spider. According to this story, Miss Muffet loves to play the violin and her mother doesn’t like that. Miss Muffet decides to run away to pursue her dream with a music-loving spider she just met. Along the way they run into Little Bo Peep, who also happens to be a violinist. They become friends and play lovely music, which the spider (who can talk) sings to. They eventually become a trio after thwarting a theft and end up at the castle, playing for the king. This story was much too convoluted. There was too much going on with the stage directions, singing chorus, and much too lengthy soliloquies. I could barely hang in there to finish it, I can’t imagine a younger reader doing so.

EL- NO. Reviewed by Shay. School Librarian
http://kissthebook.blogspot.com/2017/...

[Emily · Rating 3 out of 5]

An interesting fractured nursery rhyme that shows the other side of Miss Muffet and Little Bo Peep! Book is kind of confusing but could be good read for Gr. 2-2 learning about fractured fairy tales.

[Bonnie · Rating 2 out of 5]

The illustrations were nice and the idea of fractured nursery rhymes was cute but it did not hold the 4 yr old's (nearly 5) attention past the fourth page and it was difficult for me to finish on my own.

[Sasha · Rating 3 out of 5]

Great idea (theatrical retelling of Miss Muffet and her previously undiscovered music career), but kind of not the best execution, with awkward rhymes and a plot that didn't quite work out. Although I loved the illustrations and the details. Not terrible and not amazing. Worth a read!

[Lynn Davidson · Rating 3 out of 5]

Little Miss Muffet sat on her tuffet ... Apparently there's more to this nursery rhyme than anyone knew after Miss Muffet ran away! This book is in rhyme and set up like an opera with various singers and nursery rhyme characters showing up for parts in the show.

[Ashley · Rating 4 out of 5]

I was worried when I opened it that it would be too wordy, but my 4 year old loved it. And keeps asking me to reread it. The style makes it a lot of fun to read out loud. We had fun pretending the chorus were opera singers.

[Our Weekend Is Booked · Rating 2 out of 5]

I wanted to like this but it was just too long and the word choices were difficult for my younger child to understand what was happening. The concept was cute but could have been told in an easier way to follow.

[Sherrie · Rating 4 out of 5]

Fun and fresh take on the Miss Muffet nursery rhyme. I liked the creativity of the book and fun illustrations but I think it might be a bit long and over the heads of the target audience. Fun story but too involved for younger kids.

[Angela · Rating 2 out of 5]

This was, quite possibly, the most boring book I have ever read. Reading this book was like walking through wet cement. The text was ponderous and rhymed in a way that was VERY annoying. I gave it 2 stars only because I liked David's artwork.

[Tracy Holland · Rating 4 out of 5]

Interesting twist set in verse, this book tells the story behind Miss Muffet and Little Bo Peep. Written in operatic form, this book adds some new twists to some old nursery rhymes.

[Sarah Threlkeld · Rating 3 out of 5]

Clever concept. Very text-heavy, making it better as a mentor text in upper elementary rather than a read aloud.

[Angie Quantrell · Rating 4 out of 5]

What happens next to Little Miss Muffet tells all you could want to know and more. Written as if this story were being told on stage. Cute!

[Stephanie · Rating 3 out of 5]

The page layout and complexity of rhymes make this a picture book that is more appropriate for older kids.

[Bethany · Rating 3 out of 5]

Cute version of what happens after the events of the miss Muffet rhyme. It's way more enjoyable if you read it out loud as you go. And do the different voices.
Recommended? Sure
Buy/Borrow? Borrow

[Dawn · Rating 2 out of 5]

Too wordy!

[Randi · Rating 5 out of 5]

Delightful.

[Jo Oehrlein · Rating 3 out of 5]

Best if kids already know Little Miss Muffet, Little Bo Peep, and Old King Cole.

Feels like this would be a GREAT readers theatre piece for upper elementary.

[Grace · Rating 5 out of 5]

What an interesting picture book. As a former theatre kid, I loved it. Yes, the rhymes are complex and the story is long but picture books aren't just for small children.

[Heather Lee · Rating 4 out of 5]

A clever new way to write a picture book. This one is geared towards older readers with a lot of text and a lot going on. Mash up of different nursery rhymes. Gorgeous illustrations.

[Misty · Rating 5 out of 5]

I loved it. Kaitlyn didn't seem as thrilled. Reading the different parts in different voices & singing the backup voices was hilarious.

[Erin · Rating 4 out of 5]

An odd setup. Imagine opening a picture book onto a stage scene. Some of the characters are the chorus (think Greek, with much commentary), others are simply actors on a stage. The benefit of putting your stage play into a picture book is of course that scene and costume changes don't involve much moving about, and there's no trouble with seeing the spider from the cheap seats. The story itself gives Miss Muffet a lot more depth and character than the traditional nursery rhyme.

The length and format of this would probably lend itself nicely to an older (or smaller in number) audience.

[Daphne · Rating 5 out of 5]

Fantastically original mashup of several Mother Goose nursery rhymes. The presentation of the story as like a play and the intricate rhyme schemes make for highly enjoyable reading. Who could pass up a picture book that rhymes "fantastic" with "sarcastic"? My favorite line, care of the spider: "Prepare yourselves to meet your enemy. / You will find me rather venomy." And finally, happily ever after explicitly explained!

[Lynn · Rating 3 out of 5]

I appreciate the clever weaving of stage directions and extended fractured fairy tale done in rhyming text. It does go on a little long, and may loose attention of young readers.
Definitely good for giving spiders a positive image! It also encourages young maidens to follow their dreams.
Detailed, full color illustrations, (the orange speech bubbles are a bit too dark & hinders ease of reading the text they hold).

[Michele Knott · Rating 3 out of 5]

What happened after the Miss Muffet story we all know...
What happened after isn't quite what I thought it was going to be but what captured me was the way this book is written. Told in rhyming verse but somewhat in a play format, this could be used as a mentor text for plays - with side directions, unseen narrator, a chorus, and various nursery rhyme characters.

[Ed · Rating 2 out of 5]

I liked the beginning, but it just seemed to drag on, and it committed the most grievous sins in my opinion. I really HATE when books put black lettering on dark blue backgrounds, which is very difficult to read. If you have a dark background, use a light colored font (white or yellow), but never have a dark background with black letters. It is annoying, to say the least.

[Jess Verzello · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is an interesting expansion to the classic children's rhymes and tales, but the overwhelming design elements make it difficult to follow along. I struggled particularly with the speech bubbles and text. However, the bright colors and fun graphics will draw readers in.

[Kate Hastings · Rating 3 out of 5]

Grades 6-9. This would be a fun book for an older middle/high school audience because of the sophistication of the writing. A fun fractured tale tells how/why Little Miss Muffet ran away. Different types of poetry. The setting is that of a play. There is a LOT going on here.