Even MORE New Muppet Books Coming Soon!

Ryan Dosier - Just over two months ago we did a post showcasing the upcoming Muppet books from Disney. Well, here we are again, with more books, or updated information on the other books. There's quite a few, so get excited for more Muppet stuff you'll be able to buy soon!

Tales of a Sixth-Grade Muppet Book 3: The Good, The Bad, and The Fuzzy

$12.99, available September 11

Changing into a Muppet has really turned Danvers Blickensderfer's life upside down... literally! That's him dangling above a toilet at the hands of Beebus Spracklin, the biggest thug in school. This creep is the Picasso of insults, swirlys, and wedgies and Danvers is his canvas.

But he's messin' with the wrong kid! Not only is Danvers the heart throb star of Kermit's upcoming band camp movie musical, he's also a secret... superhero? That's right, Danvers is convinced that his Muppetmorphosis has bestowed on him extraordinary powers-now he'll need Gonzo, Miss Piggy and the gang's help to figure out what the heck those powers could possibly be!

Can Danvers balance being a caped crusader and a tween crooner? Or, will the bully behemoth drive him out of his own school into the open wings of Sam Eagle's Talent Academy? And what's with the mysterious green light at the edge of Custardcrust Swamp?

The Muppets: Kermit's Costume Caper

$4.99, available July 17

Written by Martha T. Ottersley, illustrated by Amy Mebberson

The Muppets are having a costume party! Of course, each one tries to outdo the others with the punniest costume. Lift the flaps to discover what Kermit the Frog, Miss Piggy, Fozzie Bear, and The Great Gonzo wear to the party. Who will win the grand prize for funniest costume? Find out inside! 

The Muppets: Presto, Gonzo! 

$3.99, available September 18

By Lucy Rosen

Gonzo is known for his amazing and crazy stunts—he is The Great Gonzo, after all! But what happens when he tries to add some magic tricks to his daredevil act? Will he win over the audience, or just make them disappear?

The Muppets: The Twelve Days of Muppet Christmas: and a Chicken in a Pine Tree

$4.99, available October 16

Written by Martha T. Ottersley, illustrated by Amy Mebberson

Get into the holiday spirit with the Muppets as they count down to Christmas with friends-a-singing, fruitcakes flying, pine trees running amok, and...a chicken in a pine tree! This Muppet twist to a classic carol will have you singing long after the holidays are over.  

For the Love of Miss Piggy
$4.99, available January 2, 2013
Written by Martha T. Ottersley, illustrated by Amy Mebberson

Kermit is surprised to learn that Miss Piggy has a secret admirer. Her dressing room is filled with roses, heart-shaped boxes, and half-eaten chocolates (well, she had to test them, didn't she?). It seems someone else wants all of Piggy's attention and love...could Kermit actually be a teensy, weensy bit jealous?

Included are valentines for you to share with friends!

The Muppets: Miss Piggy in the Spotlight
  $3.99, available now
By Lucy Rosen
Kermit announces that there is a big new star coming for the show! Miss Piggy tries to get more details out of him, while the other Muppets imagine who the big guest star will be and worry that it's someone who will steal the show. At first, Piggy thinks this is silly talk-Kermit would never bring in someone to upstage her. She will always be the star of the show...right?

Before You Leap: A Frog's-Eye View of Life's Greatest Lessons (Revised Edition)
 $16.99, available November 6
By Kermit the Frog
A revised edition of the best-selling book Before You Leap: A Frog's-Eye View of Life's Greatest Lessons. This updated edition is a fun, full color gift book which includes two brand new chapters. It's sure to delight kids and adults!

In this gift book Kermit the Frog shares his own story in a funny, heartfelt manner about his life and yours. After telling the tale of his remarkable career, and about all the amazing people and pigs (like you-know-who) he's met along the way, Kermit shares his advice on many of life's milestones.

The Muppet Mindset by Ryan Dosier, muppetmindset@gmail.com

Tales of a Sixth-Grade Muppet: Clash of the Class Clowns Book Review

Tales of a Sixth-Grade Muppet: Clash of the Class Clowns

Story and Art by Kirk Scroggs

Available now

Kyle Mahoney - When I read the first Tales of a Sixth-Grade Muppet book I couldn't wait for the continuing adventure of Danvers Blickensderfer. Luckily my prayers were answered on May 15th when Disney and Kirk Scroggs released Tales of a Sixth-Grade Muppet: Clash of the Clowns. Scroggs took the wit and artistic charm of the first book and improved on it with the second installment of the Sixth-Grade Muppet series. Later this year the third installment, The Good, The Bad, and The Fuzzy will be released as well.

The story takes place an unknown amount of time after the first book, but within the same year (considering it isn't called Tales of a Seventh-Grade Muppet) with Danvers enjoying life as a Muppet, helping Gonzo, and singing for the Muppet-filled boy band Mon Swoon. Everything is great, until a new kid comes to Coldrain Middle School and makes Danvers, Pasquale, and Kip (the lead singer of Emo Shun) the butt of all his jokes. This young man is Phips Terlington (does anyone have a normal name in this book?) and for some reason he really bothers Danvers, he bothers him so much that he and Kip start an Emo Shun/Mon Swoon collaboration band (because... that will help?).

Danvers later becomes a student of the Muppet Masters of Comedy after challenging Phips to a comedy jam and realizing that he's not funny. Danvers learns the art of the pun from Rowlf the Dog, the art of the heckle from Statler and Waldorf, and the art of being weird from Pepe the King Prawn. Pasquale also becomes obsessed with "Angry Chickens" (a parody of Angry Birds) which features hurling Gonzo in a chicken suit at the members of Mon Swoon. Somehow in the middle of it all (I'm not gonna spoil how), Danvers and the rest of the Muppets must fight off a hoard of joke telling zombies.

The book has the same general format of the first book with Danvers telling the story along with his illustrations helping the story along and adding dialogue. Once again focusing on Scroggs' original characters and using the Muppets as supporting characters. The illustrations include visual gags and even an appearance by Walter! Pepe's dialogue is semi-annoying to read when he has a big part in the story. (Reading all those "okays" can really get on your nerves, okay?) The story also has connective tissue to the first book, mostly because Danvers is still looking for the origin of his "Muppetmorphosis." It also gives a small bit of insight into the next book Tales of a Sixth-Grade Muppet: The Good, The Bad, and The Fuzzy.

Kirk Scroggs truly has the Muppet sense of humor when coming up with the many jokes for all the characters. He knows exactly what he's doing in regards to honoring The Muppets and, at the same time, creating a world all his own. One aspect of the story that I really enjoy is how Danvers wonders why the Muppets have randomly appeared in his city around the same time as his Muppetmorphosis. I wonder if there is a connection between the two. I guess we'll have to wait until the next book. But I give Tales of a Sixth-Grade Muppet: Clash of the Class Clowns two flailing Kermit Arms Up!

The Muppet Mindset by Ryan Dosier, muppetmindset@gmail.com

More New Muppet Books Coming Soon

Ryan Dosier - We're months past the release of The Muppets in US theaters this past November, and most of us were more than a little disappointed in the scant amount of merchandise released to tie in with the movie. Well, luckily for us, it seems that Disney has realized the error of their ways and will be releasing more and more Muppet merchandise this year. We already know about the POP! Vinyl figures coming soon, but Amazon and Barnes and Noble give us a look at some fun-sounding new Muppet storybooks coming soon/already available as well. Check them out below!

The Muppets: Green and Bear It

$4.99, available now

Fozzie Bear is having a hard time getting laughs during his comedy routine, so he decides he needs a little bit of luck.. When Fozzie's friends suggest that he find a rare four-leaf clover, he consults the master of science, Dr. Bunsen Honeydew and his faithful assistant, Beaker. Bunsen's cloning machine is just the thing to generate hundreds of lucky four-leaf clovers! With clovers everywhere, the Muppets decide to put on a Go Green benefit show to celebrate Earth Day! But will the audience be able to bear Fozzie's new jokes? Wocka! Wocka!

The Muppets Read-Along Storybook and CD

$6.99, available nowWalter has always felt like he doesn't quite fit in with the rest of the folks in Smalltown, USA. What Walter wants more than anything else is to go to Hollywood and meet the Muppets. His brother Gary knows how Walter idolizes Kermit, so he and his girlfriend, Mary, decide to take Walter on a trip to California. But when they arrive, they discover that the Muppets have broken up, the Studios are in ruins, and the Muppets Theater is about to be purchased by a greedy oil tycoon who believes that the theater is sitting on top of a large untapped oil source. The only way to save Muppet Studios is to reunite the Muppets and put on a fund-raiser show. Can Walter, Gary, and Mary help Kermit get the Muppets back together and save their theater?

Tales of a Sixth-Grade Muppet Book 2: Clash of the Class Clowns

$12.99, available May 15

Ever since transforming into a Muppet, Danvers Blickensderfer's life has gone a little bonkers. Not only does he have a cool fuzzy nose and flip-top mouth, he's also the right-hand man to his hero, The Great Gonzo. To top it off, he's singing boy band hits with the coolest guy in school, Kip Strummer. Yes siree, life is sweet... that is, until a new kid strolls into town. Armed with snarky attitude, snappy one-liners, and a killer bowler hat, this conniving comic is soon stealing the spotlight and turning Danvers into the laughing stock of the school.

It's a clash of the class clowns as Danvers enlists the help of master Muppet yukmeisters Fozzie Bear, Pepe, and Rowlf in his quest to be the sixth-grade king of comedy.

Meanwhile, evil little sis, Chloe, is getting her own musical number at Kermit's theater and, for Miss Piggy, this means one thing: War!

Let the battles begin! 

Tales of a Sixth-Grade Muppet Book 3: The Good, the Bad, and the Fuzzy

$12.99, available September 11

Changing into a Muppet has really turned Danvers Blickensderfer's life upside down... literally! That's him dangling above a toilet at the hands of Beebus Spracklin, the biggest thug in school. This creep is the Picasso of insults, swirlys, and wedgies and Danvers is his canvas.

But he's messin' with the wrong kid! Not only is Danvers the heart throb star of Kermit's upcoming band camp movie musical, he's also a secret... superhero? That's right, Danvers is convinced that his Muppetmorphosis has bestowed on him extraordinary powers-now he'll need Gonzo, Miss Piggy and the gang's help to figure out what the heck those powers could possibly be!

Can Danvers balance being a caped crusader and a tween crooner? Or, will the bully behemoth drive him out of his own school into the open wings of Sam Eagle's Talent Academy? And what's with the mysterious green light at the edge of Custardcrust Swamp?

The Muppets: Kermit's Costume Caper

$4.99, available July 17

The Muppets are having a costume party! Of course, each one tries to outdo the others with the punniest costume. Lift the flaps to discover what Kermit the Frog, Miss Piggy, Fozzie Bear, and The Great Gonzo wear to the party. Who will win the grand prize for funniest costume? Find out inside!  

The Muppets: Presto, Gonzo! 

$3.99, available September 18

Gonzo is known for his amazing and crazy stunts—he is The Great Gonzo, after all! But what happens when he tries to add some magic tricks to his daredevil act? Will he win over the audience, or just make them disappear? 

The Muppets: The Doodle Book

$12.99, available September 18

Dive into the world of your favorite Muppet characters. Editorial prompts and light illustrations sparks your creativity!

Inside, you can:

- draw your family as Muppets-draw yourself as a Muppet!

- create Gonzo's next big stunt

- join Kermit and Fozzie in the Wild West

- help Miss Piggy create her next great outfit

- doodle your way out of lots of mazes

- and much, much more!

The Muppets: The Twelve Days of Muppet Christmas: and a Chicken in a Pine Tree

$4.99, available October 16

Get into the holiday spirit with the Muppets as they count down to Christmas with friends-a-singing, fruitcakes flying, pine trees running amok, and...a chicken in a pine tree! This Muppet twist to a classic carol will have you singing long after the holidays are over.  

   

Well, there you have it, Muppet fans! A look at some of the new and upcoming Muppet books from Disney. I highly recommend going out to pick up a copy of Green and Bear It. It's only $5 and features stellar art from the one and only Amy Mebberson. 

The Muppet Mindset by Ryan Dosier, muppetmindset@gmail.com  

 

"Tales of a Sixth Grade Muppet" Book Review

Tales of a Sixth-Grade Muppet

By Kirk Scroggs
Available at Wal-Mart, Target, and wherever books are sold

Book Review by KC Silva

KA Silva - Here’s a News Flash for anyone who still thinks kids’ books are just for kids: Hardly. In fact, grown-ups are more likely to get the biggest laughs from Kirk Scroggs’ newest book than readers in its presumably-target tweener age group. Grown-ups, that is, who are ardent Muppaphiles!

Scroggs' previous credits include an entire series of children’s books centered around "Wiley and Grampa," a full listing of which can be easily found on Amazon.com, but his newest, "Tales of a Sixth-Grade Muppet,"  is both a stand-alone story and an obvious tie-in to all things Muppety in honor of the upcoming film. Done in the part-text, part-cartoon narrative style made popular by the "Wimpy Kid" books, Scroggs proves he is wittier and a better artist than the author of that series, and draws laughs easily from any reader familiar with the Muppets. That said, don’t give this book to your 11-year-old nephew in the hopes that he’ll suddenly become a raving Muppet fan. The story presumes readers are already somewhat familiar with Kermit, Piggy, Muppet Labs, and of course the narrator’s hero, the Great Gonzo; but given that, any Muppet fan will find plenty to enjoy.

Although all of the Muppets are well written, the only character development takes place with the narrator, a sixth-grade outcast named Danvers Blickensderfer, who copies the insanely dangerous stunts of his idol Gonzo, ostracized by his classmates, harassed by his kid sister ("evil incarnate," claims Danvers), incomprehensible to his parents, and wishing desperately to be a Muppet. Of course, this being both children’s literature and a Muppet book, he gets his wish, waking up one morning inexplicably Muppetized. However, enjoying the fuzziness and quick recovery time after injuries which all Muppets are privileged to doesn’t mean Danvers’ social life becomes any easier...

What really makes this book a blast are the cartoons. Scroggs combines not just text narrative and childish doodles (which are supposed to be Danvers’ own drawings) throughout the book, but frequently includes comic-book-style illustrations... and those are often the best jokes in a book full of good ones! Even the one-liners he tosses off in these drawings are hysterically funny: a running gag about his little sister Chloe’s obsession with the Fluffleberries ("the world’s most diabolical children’s TV celebrities"), a gag about his school lunch lady, Gladys, Beaker "Meep" jokes, a mock-Billboard Top 10 list of the hit songs by the boy-band group Emo Shun... The most admirable things about these casually tossed-off jokes within larger cartoons are how well the drawings flow in the narrative; rather than simply complementing the story, most of them are integral to it, and it works extremely well.

As far as the Muppets themselves go, Gonzo is the focus of Danvers’ attention, but Piggy gets plenty of time, as do Bunsen and Beaker, Pepe, Kermit, the Electric Mayhem, and the cast of "Veterinarian’s Hospital." Other characters are featured several times, such as Rizzo, Sam the Eagle, Statler and Waldorf (who begin showing up, randomly heckling Danvers–guess that’s part of the whole territory of being a Muppet), Animal separately, Fozzie, and others. Almost everyone gets at least a cameo drawing, and the drawings are comic in all senses! Scroggs nails the persona of each Muppet he includes, even if they have only a few lines; it’s obvious within just the first couple of chapters that the author is a Muppet fan from way back, and whether kids or adults, he’s aimed this work at fellow fans who’ll get the in-jokes as well as the sillier ones.

There’s also a bit of satire: the aforementioned Emo Shun are antagonists of a sort, competing for fame alongside some of the Muppets in a "Fall on Ice" show, and every mention of the boy-band will tickle every hater of bland-as-white-bread teen pop singers. As an example, the list of hits garnered by Emo Shun includes such memorable tunes as “You Put My Heart in Detention, Girl” and “Girl, You Treated My Heart Like a Yo-Yo, Yo.” Piggy judging the entrants for the ice follies smacks highly of a certain ridiculously popular American talent show. The Fluffleberries movies are rated “G-5: Viewing this film could cause irreversible brain damage to anyone over the age of 5.” Though such snickers aren’t major plot points, they assuredly raise a grin and add to the entire atmosphere of the story.

Danvers, for all his social-outcast status, is nevertheless a witty observer of modern pop culture–something I believe is integral to Muppet fans in general, as the humor of Henson and Co often relied on the juxtaposition of social mores with absurd parodies of those same superficial "values." It’s clear the Muppets strongly influenced Kirk Scroggs’ outlook on life, and he does tribute to them extremely well... even in a book marketed for kids.

Dozens of Muppets, hundreds of good jokes and witty drawings, a main character every Muppet lover can identify with, an unexpected ending. Four out of five stars (only because I wished for a little more depth to the plot). Check it out!

The Muppet Mindset by Ryan Dosier, ryguy102390@gmail.com

Doodling With Jim Henson

The fine folks over at the Muppet Musings blog (which you should really check out) have provided the world with some awesome information: a new book of Jim Henson's doodles is coming out this fall. Doodling with Jim Henson will be released on October 1, 2011 and we have the full description of the book below:

Scribbling and doodling have long been enjoyable pastimes. From rendering prehistoric cave drawings to sketching innovative creations while sitting in class, people of all ages since the dawn of time have gravitated toward doodling regardless of their artistic abilities. Doodling with Jim Henson invites doodle enthusiasts and Henson fans alike to view the practice of doodling as a method and framework for additional creative development. Using a comprehensive catalogue of Jim’s sketches and doodles throughout his career, you will learn the “finer points” of doodling as art and will be invited to doodle monsters, fish, birds, title treatments, signs, banners, borders, and backgrounds directly in the pages of this eclectic, colorful book. Fun exercises and drawing prompts engage and invite creative participation using no more than a pencil and a bit of imagination.

• Features easy step-by-step instructions for learning the fine art of doodling through the eyes of celebrated artist and puppeteer Jim Henson.
• Includes a brief history about Jim Henson and his influence in art, puppeteering, and television, as well as several of his simple yet profound life philosophies.
• Contains a variety of doodle content, including Jim Henson’s character designs, dingbats, borders, frames, backgrounds, and more!

Jim Henson, an extraordinary artist and visionary, invented unique worlds and characters that remain just as vivid, original and fresh today as when they were created. A television pioneer, an innovator in puppetry, technology and visual arts, and a performer who literally brought to life some of the most memorable characters ever, Jim Henson’s impact on entertainment, education and culture continues to this day more than 20 years after his death.

Sounds pretty cool, right? I know I'll be picking up a copy!

And speaking of cool books. Remember when we mentioned The Tales of a Sixth Grade Muppet book that would be coming out this fall to promote The Muppets? Well, the cover art has been revealed and discovered by our friends at ToughPigs! Check it out:

Looks pretty Muppety to me! I love the scribbly drawings in the background. Looks like what I still draw in math class!

You can pre-order both Doodling with Jim Henson and Tales of a Sixth Grade Muppet now from Amazon.com!

The Muppet Mindset by Ryan Dosier, ryguy102390@gmail.com