2.3K views Dec 2009
Two morning show hosts interview a publisher about an absurdly popular picture book series for toddlers, praising its literary depth and dramatic plot twists.
0:07 One of the most anticipated books of the year is finally hitting the shelves now. 0:11 Of course, I'm talking about Green Man, Blue Cat, the 6th installment in the wildly popular Barclay Mitchell Green Man series. 0:19 Now, of course, the books were originally written for children ages 2 to 5, 0:22 That's right. 0:22 but they're not just for kids. 0:23 Oh no, they're not. Each one of the Green Man books, from Green Man Waves Hello to Green Man Big Hill and Green Man White Snow: A Holiday Story, have sold over 25 million copies, making it the most popular fiction series ever for any age group. 0:37 Right. 0:37 And drawing comparisons to other cross-generational hits like Harry Potter, 0:41 Mm-hmm. 0:41 the Twilight series. 0:42 And here to talk about the new book is John Basil, CEO of Sunflower Books, responsible for the publishing of the Green Man series. 0:49 Hi, John. 0:49 Big day for you, right, John? 0:50 Thank you. Yes, we are very excited. 0:52 Now, John, why do you think these books have struck a chord with not only kids, but adults as well? 0:56 I think a lot of people feel the books fill a, a, a void left in contemporary adult literature, which tends to favor stodgy tomes with hundreds of pages 1:04 Yeah. 1:04 and almost no pictures. 1:05 I got to tell you, John, I was at my yoga class yesterday, and everyone was talking about this book. 1:10 What will happen to Pink Pig? Will Green Man find his way to the square box? 1:13 We're both very excited, as you can see, and I don't think it's any secret to our viewers that we're both big Green Man fans. 1:18 As a matter of fact, I'm right in the middle right now of Green Man Jumps. 1:21 Oh, that is a good one. 1:22 It is. 1:22 Green Man jumps far. 1:24 Green Man jumps high! 1:25 Green Man jumps high. Yeah, I just finished that part. It was so much fun. 1:29 Oh, and also I want to tell you, John, uh, the New York Times Book Review got an advanced copy of the book and gave it a glowing review this morning. 1:35 I'll read you a part of it. It says, Mr. Mitchell makes Green Man both a human figure coping with the banal frustrations of the colored objects he stands next to and an epic hero. 1:45 In the latest installment, the Green Man is frequently overwhelmed with disillusionment and doubt. 1:49 Ooh, so it sounds like this book gets a little darker. 1:52 Yeah. 1:52 Yes, in this one, he actually gets lost. 1:55 No. 1:55 No. 1:55 There is an event related to saying thank you 1:57 Ah. 1:57 will keep a lot of readers on the edge of their seat. 2:00 Sounds exciting. 2:01 Oh, I can't wait. 2:02 Oh yeah, John Basil, thanks so much for spending part of your morning with us here on Today Now. 2:06 And, uh, you stick around because after the break, we're going to have a sneak preview of the new Green Man movie starring Johnny Depp as the Green Man and Tilda Swinton as the Tall Tree. 2:14 Don't go away. 
