The Ransom Demands For Our Gerbil, "Geronimo" Quiz

Answer: "Fish" was a Vietnam veteran and, while in drunken rages, had been known to physically assault his wife.

OK. So the only answer that sounded even slightly NOT bizarre was the one to choose, just to get us started. While Miss Scofield's brilliantly crafted novel won the 'American Book Award' (for Fiction) the year it was released, it never became a runaway bestseller. Critically, though, it was a solid success.

The crux of the story, in a few words, is that Katie and "Fish" are so terribly, so passionately, so spiritually connected that they hang onto each other as means to survive. The elements of their union are drastic and brutal, but the roots of it are fine and deeply real. Nothing was determined to be the fault of anyone.

The war wasn't, maturity wasn't, external and internal conflicts weren't. Ultimately, all they had to take responsibility for was that love that glued them together.

The book is exceptional and a sizable group of such accessible characters are drawn almost perfectly in it - I highly recommend it.

Answer: "Minor Characters" by Joyce Johnson

The original cover of Joyce Johnson's memoir basically indicates the contents of the extremely fondly-written story inside it. It is a photo of beat generation author Jack Kerouac under the lights while standing outside the "Kettle of Fish Bar" in Greenwich Village, New York. Behind him, hardly visible in the shadows, stands the woman who loved him and the woman who (for a short time) stood behind him and held him up. Jack and friends, including the likes of Allen Ginsberg, Jack Cassady and William S. Burroughs, had a brilliant vision of literature and how to express it - and had more than their share of detractors as they went.

It was the support they got from each other and from those "Minor Characters" that kept the fireworks contained, always hot but not flying like chaotic missiles crashing in the night.

The romantic relationship between Johnson and Kerouac was brief, lasting only through 1957 and 1958, but it clearly impacted their lives and the work of each for a lifetime.

Answer: He was kitchen help at Donner's Bakery and his teacher was Alice Kinnian.

Interesting that such an engaging story came from a man who, at the time "Flowers for Algernon" first appeared as a novella in 1959, was an editor for a 'pulp' science fiction magazine in NYC! The full length novel appeared in 1966 where it fully explored all the parameters of Charlie's "transformation". For those unfamiliar, the story is simply that 30-ish year old Mr. Gordon is sweet and mostly happy but soundly mentally impaired.

In the course of things he submits to a procedure which causes him to not only grow out of the retardation but WAY beyond it to become some sort of super-genius. Charlie's life, as one would expect, turned upside-down and it became clear that so much of what was admirable about the man himself was the simplicity he carried.

The hyper-intelligence destroyed the character that was him; in fact, it made him more "different" than he had been before. That his course followed the same path as that of the mouse that had preceded him in this "experiment" seemed, when all was said and done, a happy ending. Bittersweet as it went, but almost a relief as it finally landed. To add: this was another example of a "banned book".

Some determined it "filthy and immoral" (?) and it made the list of the '100 Most Frequently Challenged Books of 1990-2000', coming in at number 47. My guess? Even Charlie Gordon at the apex of his brilliance could not have explained that odd 'fact'.

Answer: The Mysteries of Harris Burdick

In the book, the spectacular drawings are accompanied by only a title and a one-line caption. The idea is to encourage the young (and even the older people with the imagination of the young-at-heart) to concoct a story with just an image and several words as a guide. As time passed, "The Mysteries of Harris Burdick" has become a tool used by teachers in creative writing classes in schools across the globe, especially since the drawings run the gamut from completely whimsical to downright sinister. While Van Allsburg is best known for the exceptional Christmas staple "The Polar Express" I ALWAYS, when people would ask after his backlist, immediately suggested "Burdick". I've also been known to pull it out at miscellaneous parties where the adults had a grand time outdoing each other as they described the pictures. I suspect, if one tried hard enough, they might even find a gerbil or two in it?

All the other possible answers were by the same author and each one is quite unlike the others (Van Allsburg seems to be a bottomless pit of styles, ideas and formats). Christopher also wrote the familiar tale "Jumanji".

Answer: "The Return of the Native" by Thomas Hardy

Hardy's novel, his sixth, was not received so encouragingly at the time it came out. In fact, the only place that would touch it was a periodical known for its 'sensational' material called "Belgravia" (and even they ran it in a serialized format from January through December 1878). "The Return of the Native", beautifully written as it is, does explore some issues that the typical 19th century reader might have found a little (a lot?) -erm- daring.

The main female character, Eustacia Vye, has come to be one of the more memorable [ahem] "heroines" in classic fiction - depite some very major flaws.

The story flaunted more than one illicit sexual situation and the Victorian audience thought the whole business a bit of an affront to their general starchiness. Eustacia, Clym and Wildeve are characters struggling against the rigid demands of society while entertaining the instinctive demands of 'nature' - it was a thoroughly "modern" novel, yet it was built as a classical tragedy.

Despite its rocky start in the history of literature, the book is now Thomas Hardy's most popular novel. Even if the story doesn't strike one's fancy, I'd recommend the book simply because the poet in Mr. Hardy flourishes throughout it. Almost every passage is poetry, every word so well-placed and right.

The craft of the text is incredible indeed.

Answer: In the American West

Avedon (May 15, 1923 - October 1, 2004) drew some harsh criticism for "In the American West" from many sides when it began as an actual exhibition at various museums, and it got no friendlier in spots when the book was released in 1985. The truth of his entire photography "career" is that it was mostly luck. Upon leaving college (without graduating) he took a job shooting models for a department store catalog - simply because he derived pleasure from his camera and seemed to have an instinctive eye for an above average snapshot. Against all odds, he was discovered and soon found himself on his way to becoming a well-known member of the glamorous fashion crowd. What most failed to notice, amongst all the gowns and 'glitz' and celebrities and politicians that sat for him, was his true focus as he went: a fascination with the human face.

The emotion of a man or a woman. What they "were" much more than just how they "looked". His evolution away from somewhat "tabloid photography" into serious art was not so unexpected to those who knew Avedon and his passions.

It was, however, a major upset to those who had enjoyed expecting much LESS from him.

Answer: ...Until the Fingers Begin to Bleed a Bit

Heinrich Karl Bukowski (1920-1994) was born in Andernach, Germany. His mother was a native German and his father a Polish American soldier who moved his family to America in 1923, finally landing in Los Angeles. Bukowski eventually became a college drop-out and then pursued a nearly 20-year career in the civil service.

He always had a large affection for writing but had no luck with "mainstream" publishers. After a life-changing (and near fatal) brain hemorrhage in his 40s, he became the author of a column called "Notes of a Dirty Old Man" in an alternative newspaper.

He soon was affiliated with Indie publishing house 'Black Sparrow Press', and eventually the poet and the publisher put each other on the map of pop culture. Bukowski is the sort of writer that people are rarely indifferent about - a reader either venerates him or is repelled by his 'vision'.

It seems his words paint the world in an insulting light (but a bit of examination proves that he loved life and only wanted to see it from all sides, good or bad).

His world is rife with drunks, prostitutes, criminals, restlessness and urban despair but, just when he seems entirely undone from the ugliness, he will offer lines thundering with hope, such as: I must mount a comeback. / I must crawl back into the sun of creation. / Let there be light! / Let there be me! / I will beat the odds one more time...

Answer: "To Wit: A Ladder Bent by Filby" by Georges Pái (a sequel to "The Time Machine" by H.G. Wells)

George Pái was actually the director of the 1960 film version of "The Time Machine" (and was not an author, so wrote no sequels), although such a sequel subtitled "A Ladder Bent by Filby" would have been a nifty trick since David Filby was originally written as the Time Traveller's best friend.

The other two were follow-ups to classic tales that preceded them - neither of which posed any threat to the credibilities of the authors that came first, mind you. In fact, I'm sure it could be said that such efforts made the original author's skills and the stories they told seem BETTER at the end of things.

The most interesting thing I learned as I researched this question was that, until the 20th century, a writer's work was only copyrighted for 50 years after his or her death.

This has since gone up to 70 years ~ but it still seems wrong that literature can essentially be "altered" in such a short time. Margaret Mitchell's survivors did, at least, get to choose the author of "Gone with the Wind"'s sequel after an exhaustive search and I'm sure made a decent amount of money in the process. My opinion? They ought to have left well enough alone.

Answer: Henry, Jessie, Violet and Benny

Hmmm. Since I found that question especially difficult I hope it helped that I threw in the the singing Jackson family, the characters on TV's "Beverly Hills 90210" and, yes, even those teens stuck in detention from "The Breakfast Club". Henry, Jessie, Violet and Benny were a likable bunch and, while the books about them would hardly be considered "high art", they managed to give both boys and girls common ground in reading material and have inspired generations of youngsters to read happily and want to read more.

The author was a Sunday School teacher who fell into the role of elementary scool instructor after a shortage of men were available to do the job [the majority of the fellows were off fighting WWI]. Many of her pupils spoke no English but Miss Chandler met that challenge and began the stories as means to both boost communicating skills and to encourage her classes to learn and think with enthusiasm.

It worked and the series is still available on shelves today. Interesting, too, that the tales initially riled many an adult in the early 1900s.

They feared the stories inspired youthful rebellion and general misbehavior (believe it or not, these were another early example of those unexplainable widely "banned" books!). Strangely enough no one seemed to have the slightest problem with, or misgivings about, a beastly grandfather as he was described to be.

Answer: Robert Munsch

While packaged as just a child's 'board book', Munsch's brisk-selling (and very charming) little book is hard to find the closer Mothers Day nears. There is an oft-repeated "chorus" in its simple presentation, as it explores a mother's and son's relationship from birth to old age:
"I'll love you forever,
I'll like you for always,
As long as I'm living
my baby you'll be."
Needless to say, there's rarely a dry eye in any house as the story travels!

Munsch himself is a fascinating "story" on his own. He was classically educated (a Master's Degree from Boston University), almost became a Jesuit priest, eventually moved to Canada where he opted to teach preschoolers, married and endured the loss of two stillborn children (prompting him to write "Love You Forever" in 1986 - which has sold a whopping 20,000,000+ copies, by the way). An interesting footnote to the author, too, is that he suffers from obsessive-compulsive disorder and manic depression. Clearly, he manages his obstacles well.

So... there you have it. All is now well. I made an executive decision to leave the bookstore closed on that happy Friday. No books needed sold, after all. Myself, my much valued co-workers, our families and friends - and, of course, our most honored pal Geronimo - decided to spend the day at the park instead, simply enjoying the day as it went. Sometimes it takes a thing so slight as a missing gerbil to make us all remember how important we are to one another, doesn't it?