Review: Not For Me
Rating: 3 out of 5
Date: 04 10, 2013
"Drippy the Peg-Legged Rainbow" by John H. Carroll is sub-titled "A Story for Demented Children", and the author is serious about that sub-title. This is a strange, bizarre story, potentially frightening to normal children. Drippy is a rainbow who had one of his "legs" stolen by a Leprechaun, who wanted to use it to somehow anchor his pot of gold. That happened in Ireland, but Drippy apparently is in North America when the story begins. He suddenly gets the idea that he could use a tree in much the same manner as a pirate uses a wooden leg, so he asks two nearby bunnies if anyone is using the tree they are sitting under. One of the bunnies is very anti-social, depressed, and angry at life in general. Drippy yanks the tree from the ground after attaching it to the site of his missing leg. He then goes looking for the Leprechaun who stole his real leg, so he can physically assault the Leprechaun and retrieve his real leg.This story is not for normal children, nor is it for children you hope to raise as normal children. I'm really not sure who this story IS for. Perhaps teenagers who are in the throes of "teenage angst", or are just anti-social as a rule, might find that they can relate to it. I hate to recommend against buying a book, because everybody has unique tastes in literature, but when the author himself warns that his book is not for "normal" children, I think it wise to take him at his word. Therefore I must concur with his assessment, and caution against buying this book if you are in the market for a children's book. The author even suggests a couple titles more suitable for that purpose! This story may appeal to some people, such as I mentioned above, but it definitely is not for everybody. So here's my caveat: I recommend this book for people who think they might enjoy reading about angry rainbows, depressed and depressing rabbits, violence against a rainbow, and subsequent violence against a Leprechaun. Everybody else? Find another book.