What Do People Do All Day? - Richard Scarry

...including 1968's most famous entry, What do People do All Day?

A very private person, not much more is really known about Richard Scarry, other than by his works. He was quite prolific, having completed over 300 works, and was married to children's writer and fellow Golden Book author Patricia and they have a son, Richard Scarry Jr (also known as Huck after one of his most famous Busy Town characters) who also illustrates for children. ...
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~~~~The book and what Mommy thinks~~~

As its title suggests, the book is about what people do all day. Since different people all do different things, the book covers a lot of topics. The first section looks at Busy Town itself along the high street. This book truly shines with some of the best examples of Scarry's illustrations, as we see the town above ground, and below ground in intricate detail. We see the men digging tunnels ... more

~~~Tidbits about the author~~~

Richard Scarry (for pronunciation, the name rhymes with marry) is a much well known and beloved children's writer and illustrator best known for his Busy Town series of books. He was born in 1919 to a family of prosperous shopkeepers in Boston, Massachusetts. Upon graduating high school, he originally enrolled at a business college, but hated it, and transferred to the School of the Museum of Fine Arts in Boston. He pursued his studies there until WW II came along and saw him drafted into the Army for the war effort.

Upon his return to civilian life, he worked for various magazines in their art departments, until he came to the attention of the successful recent imprint, Little Golden Books, in 1949. Little Golden Books first began publishing storybooks for children in 1942 The idea behind publisher Simon and Schuster's effort was to produce distinctive, yet affordable and sturdy books for children with quality stories and engaging drawings. This they did, with many of the stories going on to become children's classics and available still today in the little board bound books with the gold foil binding. Initially hired as an artist for other's works, in 1963 he sealed his iconic status with his own Golden Book, The Best Word Book Ever. It proved immensely popular and paved the way for many other books, including 1968's most famous entry, What do People do All Day?

A very private person, not much more is really known about Richard Scarry, other than by his works. He was quite prolific, having completed over 300 works, and was married to children's writer and fellow Golden Book author Patricia and they have a son, Richard Scarry Jr (also known as Huck after one of his most famous Busy Town characters) who also illustrates for children. In 1972 Richard and Patricia purchased a chalet in Switzerland where he had his writing and drawing studio, and it was there they remained until his death in 1994. His son had moved to Vienna, Austria where he still lives today and works often under the name Richard Scarry as well as in his father's style.

~~~~The book and what Mommy thinks~~~

As its title suggests, the book is about what people do all day. Since different people all do different things, the book covers a lot of topics. The first section looks at Busy Town itself along the high street. This book truly shines with some of the best examples of Scarry's illustrations, as we see the town above ground, and below ground in intricate detail. We see the men digging tunnels and the underground pipes, street cleaners at work, and peeks into the bank and various shops as well as the fire department, doctor, dentist, and so on. All are clearly labelled and much fun is to be had after reading the narration, looking at and discussing at all the marvellous detail. As the book progresses, we get to see what Mummy does all day at home, what the farmer does, the door to door salesman, the policeman, the fireman, the blacksmith, the postmen, the ferry workers, and so on. Each page again has illustrations of marvellous detail, with clear labels, and is so rich that at each reading, we find something new. The text itself is simple and straight forward, providing a mere commentary for the pictures, with the illustrations themselves being the star of the show, demonstrating what each person is doing all day clear until bedtime. We get cutaway views of each scene as appropriate, from the aforementioned bit under the street, to inside the ship's hold, to the depths of a working coal mine.

Fun and educational, the anthromorphsed characters (animals as people) entertain, the illustrations enchant, and the breadth of the book educates in no other way I have ever seen in a children's book. I have seen no other book for children aged 3-8 that shows (albeit on a simplified scale) a working colliery that follows the work on to the electricity generating plant, a water treatment plant on to its delivery points including an irrigation system, highway roadworks from planning to completion, a day in the life of a policeman, a day in the life of a fireman, a child's visit to the hospital to have her tonsils out, an overnight trip on a train, a day in the life of forestry workers and those associated with their product, and so on. It even mentions how each person does the work to earn their place in society, with some working for money, and others through trade It goes on to show that goods are purchased or traded for by the fruits of our labour, and sets the idea in motion that without work, nothing in the world would get done, and that work provides for our needs and wants as it allows us to pay for them.

Admittedly, it is a rather long picture book, being 64 pages, but it is divided up into little subsections that deal with each topic, so it quite possible to read only 1-2 topics of about 2-4 pages each and have a good look at the illustrations and talk about what we see in them without disrupting the flow of the book. The current edition is a large, sturdily bound paperback, and while the reading of a couple section a night makes for wonderfully bonding bedtime reading, it is also a great book for the pre and beginning reader to snuggle down with after to pore over the pictures for a bit before Mummy and Daddy turn out the lights.

We have found that this book inspires thought into our four year old and his six year old sister as they look about them in real life, and comment on what they see workers doing, and even what will happen in the future, one example being when we saw roadworks signs go up. Before, they knew it meant there would be diggers and rollers and men in vests and hard hats and so on. Now they can discuss in detail what will happen right down to painting the lines, and it is all down to this book. It is like a window into the world of work and people's lives at work, with the hows and whys simply explained, and how what they do is relevant to everyone about them. It absolutely feeds the insatiable curiosity that children have about the world. It is a book my children pick up again and again, and I have no doubt it has made a lasting impression on them for years to come. Admittedly, it was purchased as myself and my husband both fondly recalled this book from our own childhood's and the sense of wonder we felt at the illustrations and the satisfying ease of the questions we did not even know how to ask got answered. It truly is a timeless classic book, and one I can heartily recommend to anyone with children aged 3-8.

~~~The book and what the children think~~~

A., boy, aged 4:

I love the pictures in this book. I can see all the machines and how they do all the work with the people. It is very exciting to see the men and the tools go down the manhole and work under the road, and I also really like seeing the train station and its workers and then the family on the train. The pictures are funny too, with gorillas dropping their bananas and a little bug driving a toy digger to make the big road. I think little boys should all read this book.

E., girl, aged 6.
The words are easy to read in this book, and I like how I can put my bookmark in it to read about more jobs and stuff more people do after I finish one of the other stories. I like seeing all the jobs and how I see lots of girls doing jobs with the boys and it is very real to me. I like the pictures too, they are very funny with lots of silly things like a buffalo car in them. I think girls and boys will all love this book and all kids should have it.

~~~Where to get it and how much~~~

The current paperback edition should be available at most high street book retailers, and is also in stock at Amazon.co.uk. The cover price is £5.99, which is not bad value considering the length of the book, the quality of the binding and the sturdiness of the cover and its interior pages which are of heavyweight acid free paper. The Amazon price is discounted to £4.49, and you can get further savings if you purchase the suggested companion book, Richard Scarry's A Day at the Airport, for the combined total price of £6.08. We did so, and I will review that book at a later date.

The bottom line is, this is a simply fantastic book for children. Entertaining with zany pictures that are rich in detail and full of mayhem and wonder, and clear simple text, this book is an absolute bargain at the price and a worthy addition to any childhood bookshelf. Actually, I have to say this book is so good, it should be a crime for a child NOT to have it! 

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