How to Be a Little Sod

Last updated

First edition (publ. Gollancz) How to Be a Little Sod.jpg
First edition (publ. Gollancz)

How To Be A Little Sod is a humour book written in 1992 by author Simon Brett. It aims to show what a baby may think during his/her first year of development. The format is in a traditional diary style, listing selected days and events. The main character's name is never actually revealed in the story, the child is always referred to as 'baby.' We also do not find out the gender at any time, so readers can make up their own minds on these missing details. The book is written in the first person, referring as 'I' and shows the baby through their first year of life. The other characters include the mother, referred to as 'Her' and the father, known as 'Him.' There are also the two sets of grandparents, whose awkward get-togethers leave a chill in the air. The book covers a range of traditional development techniques, including the advancement to solid foods, learning to crawl and saying the first word. However, the book is not intended to be a parents guide. It is a fictional book which uses realistic elements.

Contents

Contents

There are all kinds of things to read about, with it being a story, it still goes through baby's first year of advances, including the first word, the first smile, three-month-old colic, wind, etc. And there's also 'The Great PlayPen Escape,' in Month Nine. It's aimed at adults but can be read by a wide audience. It is published by Orion under the Humour category. The book is illustrated by Tony Ross. It also briefly touches on potty training.

Series (Trilogy)

How To Be A Little Sod is the first in a trilogy of books, the second being Little Sod's Next Step, and the third and final being Not Another Little Sod. Whilst no more were ever made, the three volumes are in diary format, showing developmental advances in a different way: looking from a different aspect. For example, 'Little Sod's Next Step' looks at walking, being potty trained, and also hints that a new baby could be on the way. The final book, 'Not Another Little Sod' includes the original child, now two and a half years old, and the newborn baby. The third book is the longest, with 143 pages, and involves sibling rivalry. The series was highly successful in the UK and spawned several reprints and an animated TV series. The books were originally published under 'Victor Gollancz,' and were later rebranded under 'Orion.'

'Little Sod's Next Step,' the second book in the series, was originally known as 'Look Who's Walking: Further Diaries of a Little Sod.' It was later changed for the 2000 release, as the publishers hoped the new title would appeal to a wider audience and fit in with the other titles in the series.

Film, TV or theatrical adaptations

How To Be A Little Sod was adapted into a BBC TV release which starred Rik Mayall. [1] The series was released on video cassette and received a broadcasting certificate of '15'. The books are also available on audio tape.

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Toilet humour</span> Type of off-colour humour dealing with defecation, urination and flatulence

Toilet humour, or potty or scatological humour, is a type of off-colour humour dealing with defecation, diarrhea, constipation, urination and flatulence, and to a lesser extent vomiting and other bodily functions.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Double entendre</span> Wording that is devised to be understood in two ways

A double entendre is a figure of speech or a particular way of wording that is devised to have a double meaning, one of which is typically obvious, and the other often conveys a message that would be too socially unacceptable, or offensive to state directly.

Simon Anthony Lee Brett OBE FRSL is a British author of detective fiction, a playwright, and a producer-writer for television and radio. As an author, he is best known for his mystery series featuring Charles Paris, Mrs Pargeter, Fethering, and Blotto & Twinks. His radio credits have included The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy, I'm Sorry I Haven't a Clue and Just a Minute.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Picture book</span> Book with images at least as important as words

A picture book combines visual and verbal narratives in a book format, most often aimed at young children. With the narrative told primarily through text, they are distinct from comics, which do so primarily through sequential images.

<i>Captain Underpants</i> Childrens novel series by Dav Pilkey

Captain Underpants is an illustrated children's graphic novel series by American author and illustrator Dav Pilkey. The series revolves around two fourth graders, George Beard and Harold Hutchins, living in Piqua, Ohio, and Captain Underpants, an aptly named superhero from one of the boys' homemade comic books, who accidentally becomes real when George and Harold hypnotize their cruel, bossy, and ill-tempered principal, Mr. Krupp. From the third book onwards, Mr. Krupp also possesses superhuman strength, durability and flight as a result of drinking alien "Extra-Strength Super Power Juice".

<i>Between the Lions</i> American childrens television program

Between the Lions is an American animated/live-action/puppet educational children's preschool television series designed to promote reading. The show is a co-production between WGBH in Boston and Sirius Thinking, Ltd., in New York City, in association with Mississippi Public Broadcasting, the distributor from seasons 1–10, in Mississippi. The show won nine Daytime Emmy awards between 2001 and 2007. Although it is created by alumni of the fellow PBS children’s show Sesame Street, Between the Lions is not created by Sesame Workshop, nor is it produced with their involvement in any way. The show runs from April 3, 2000 to November 22, 2010, taking over the schedule slot held by The Puzzle Place upon its debut. This TV show is a companion piece to Sesame Street.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">V. C. Andrews</span> American novelist (1923–1986)

Cleo Virginia Andrews, better known as V. C. Andrews or Virginia C. Andrews, was an American novelist.

<i>The Railway Series</i> British fictional book series about trains and railways

The Railway Series is a series of British books about a railway known as the North Western Railway, located on the fictional Island of Sodor. There are 42 books in the series, the first published in May 1945 by the Rev. Wilbert Awdry. Twenty-six books were written by Awdry, the final one being written in October 1972. Sixteen more were written by his son, Christopher Awdry, between September 1983 and July 2011. The series features many anthropomorphic vehicles, including Thomas the Tank Engine. Thomas became the most popular and famous character in the series and the titular character of the television series Thomas & Friends from 1984 to 2021. The children's television series originated as adaptations of these stories.

Gez Walsh is a former joiner, former social worker and children's poet. He has written various books of children's comedy poetry including; "The Spot on my Bum," "The Return of the Spot," "Someone's Nicked My Knickers," Parents, Zits and Hairy Bits, Norah's Nasty Kickers, Fido's Foul Surprise, Don't Wee in the Bath, Terry and Mum, the Dog's Drunk Again! In addition, he is also the author of a trilogy of sword-and-sorcery fantasy novels: "The Man in the Skirt", "Banshee Moon" and "The Keeper".

<i>Signing Time!</i> American TV series or program

Signing Time! is an American television program targeted towards children aged one through eight that teaches American Sign Language. It is filmed in the United States and was created by sisters Emilie Brown and Rachel Coleman, the latter of whom hosts the series. Between 2006 and 2016, it was syndicated by American Public Television to public television stations across the US. Signing Time! is produced and distributed by Two Little Hands Productions, which is located in Salt Lake City, Utah.

<i>Diary of a Wimpy Kid</i> (book) 2007 novel by Jeff Kinney

Diary of a Wimpy Kid is a children's novel written and illustrated by Jeff Kinney. It is the first book in the Diary of a Wimpy Kid series. The book is about a boy named Greg Heffley and his attempts to become popular in his first year of middle school.

<i>Diary of a Wimpy Kid</i> Comic-style book series by Jeff Kinney

Diary of a Wimpy Kid is an American children's book series and media franchise created by American author and cartoonist Jeff Kinney. The series follows Greg Heffley, a middle-schooler who illustrates his daily life in a diary.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Accessible publishing</span> Approach to publishing and book design

Accessible publishing is an approach to publishing and book design whereby books and other texts are made available in alternative formats designed to aid or replace the reading process. It is particularly relevant for people who are blind, visually impaired or otherwise print-disabled.

Once Upon a Potty is a picture book by Alona Frankel for pre-schoolers and their families, aimed to help with their potty learning. Its original version was published in 1975 in Hebrew and only featured the boy Joshua (נַפְתָּלִי). The English-language version was published in 1980 along with the girl Prudence (צִיּוֹנָה). The books have been translated into multiple languages, including Japanese, Chinese, Korean, Dutch, Italian, Spanish, and Hungarian. The English editions have sold more than 7 million copies in North America alone. There were also animated VHS, DVD, audio CD and audio tape versions produced. The books are still in print in both hardcover and board editions, and Oceanhouse Media has produced mobile app versions on all digital platforms.

Interactive children's books are a subset of children's books that require participation and interaction by the reader. Participation can range from books with texture to those with special devices used to help teach children certain tools. Interactive children's books may also incorporate modern technology or be computerized. Movable books, a subsection of interactive books, are defined as "covering pop-ups, transformations, tunnel books, volvelles, flaps, pull-tabs, pop-outs, pull-downs, and more, each of which performs in a different manner. Also included, because they employ the same techniques, are three-dimensional greeting cards."

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Diary</span> Record of events with entries arranged by date

A diary is a written or audiovisual memorabilic record, with discrete entries arranged by date reporting on what has happened over the course of a day or other period. Diaries have traditionally been handwritten but are now also often digital. A personal diary may include a person's experiences, thoughts, and/or feelings, excluding comments on current events outside the writer's direct experience. Someone who keeps a diary is known as a diarist. Diaries undertaken for institutional purposes play a role in many aspects of human civilization, including government records, business ledgers, and military records. In British English, the word may also denote a preprinted journal format.

Tim Kevan is an English writer, blogger and barrister, responsible for the Baby Barista series of books published by Bloomsbury, and the Baby Barista blog, which for a time was hosted by The Guardian newspaper. Tim is also the co-founder of Law Brief Publishing and the blog “The Barrister Blog” which has gained popularity among practicing lawyers.

BookTube is a subcommunity on YouTube that focuses on books and literature. The BookTube community has, to date, reached hundreds of thousands of viewers worldwide. While the majority of BookTubers focus on Young Adult literature, many address other genres. BookTube videos also generally follow a set of formats, often drawing upon the wider "bookish" culture and lexicon. There is a distinct set of recognizable faces within BookTube as well as some content created by the publishing community. BookTube is often used to advertise new publications and is cited as a source of growth for the publishing industry.

<i>Super Why!</i> CGI-animated preschool television series on PBS Kids

Super Why! is a CGI-animated superhero preschool television series created by Angela C. Santomero and developed by Santomero and Samantha Freeman Alpert for PBS Kids. Santomero and Alpert additionally serve as executive producers alongside Steven DeNure and Anne Loi. The series was produced by Santomero and Alpert's New York City-based production company Out of the Blue Enterprises in association with Decode Enterprises for the first season and DHX Distribution for the second and third seasons. Animation was by Toronto-based C.O.R.E. Toons, Gallus Entertainment and DHX Media. The opening and closing theme songs were written by composers and lyricists Steve D'Angelo and Terry Tompkins, with D'Angelo also providing lead vocals for both. The background score for seasons 2 and 3 was composed by Lorenzo Castelli and Jeff Morrow.

References

  1. Jackie, Newton (30 October 1996). "Revenge of the teeny terror!". Liverpool Echo. p. 12.