I am (possibly) over-analysing "The Tiger who came to Tea". Do you do the same with childrens' books?

Now, something profoundly worth over-analysing, and worthy of any and every bit of poring you can do over it, is ... Peepo.

A specific Sunday in May 1943, with Daddy home on leave but on his way back to the front, with people's expressions coping just with keeping the home fires burning, and being terrified.

That is a book of genius.

I can sort of see the Nazi invasion/occupation idea, but that doesn't work for how mesmerising and attractive the Tiger is - they are not petrified by it, they are a bit hypnotically entranced by it. So unless you are saying something about the erotics of the aggressor (which I'd rather Kerr wasn't) I don't think the Nazi parallel completely plays.

I think it's less rooted in specific historical circumstances than in a rather conventional fairy tale mode [qv Bettelheim]: Clever Polly and the Stupid Wolf is a sharper and funnier version of the same project: child - the epitome of defencelessness - (note here, exactly, the drippiness of the mother) faces Fiendish Danger and Is Able to See It Off. (The sort of intriguing thing about the Tiger is that in a way it sees itself off (once it has eaten everything) while the child just hangs fire. That's not very Nazi - the seeing itself off in due course. Oh, I suppose unless you are suggesting that if you're patient enough Nazism will blow itself out ... no, I don't think that's at all convincing, in context.)

See also the lovely Paper Bag Princess. [no passivity there]
And dd recently had from school a volume of rewritten Feminist Fairy Tales (Australian, they were) with lots of feist in them.

The other appeal is as a shaggy-dog catalogue story: first the sandwiches, then the buns, then the cake, then the tea, then the this, then the that; ... but it's OK there's still a café. I think the [food] catalogue aspect is one of the huge bits of appeal to children - hypnotic too. Maybe I have greedy children, but I think that's why they liked it - the grub. Mmm, perhaps the fantasy of being big enough to eat everything you think you want to eat?

(Oh and as for the blurb that says "delicious naughtiness" on the back, from Antonia whatsit - TOTALLY wrong.)

The Nazi occupation idea makes a lot of sense. I've always felt mother should take a little more water with it (except she couldn't, the tiger drank it all),and have also been a bit dubious about hapless sahm being rescued by Daddy (yes indeed, isn't he camp). Then of course there's the tiger as mother's voracious lover, but perhaps I need to take more water with it.

It's the illustrations that I love though, for reasons of nostalgia and the domestic details.

Love that book.

Never noticed the cat...will look for it.

we love the book too. I think the cat at the end is defintiely where Sophie got the idea of the tiger from. Our Mog cd has Judith Kerr (pronounced very poshly "Carr") playing Mog with loud miaows

Is it really? Thanks! I sometimes wondered if it was Barnes. Will have a look at bus destination at our nightly reading tonight!

Horton - the street is in Roehampton, check the destination on the bus in the street scene.

I always noticed the cat in the final picture too and was very pleased when ds picked up on it as well....

Fantastic book, and DD loves Mog too - I have a copy of 'When Hitler Stole Pink Rabbit' to share with her when she is older.
This Guardian article is interesting...here is the
link

That's weird about the after dark street..I had exactly the same "memory" of dusky walks like that, down a street very similar. Spooky!

I love the way when we read it, DD says in time with me, laughing 'all daddy's beer' like it was a terrible but funny thing to happen .

Great book. I love it, DD loves it. I remember it when I was little.

But I do want to know why I never had sandwiches, cakes AND buns for my tea, and for two of us why we did not have plates chock full of them either.

Sub text is usually in the eye of the reader though. Nothing wrong with that.

Didn't Judith Kerr squash all speculation about sub-text by saying, very slowly: 'It's about a tiger who came to tea?'

But I like the MIL's analysis!

Daddy is very camp.Just go and look at that picture of him when he comes through the door. The after dark walk and the sausages and chips bit is great.

Now Heated that is a good explanation of why my mother likes that book and DD and I don't .

I remember that thread a MNer's MIL gave an analysis of TTWCTT:

"the tiger represents the rage of the not-yet-independent preschooler and her yearning to be out of the house. Hence kitty shrinks back into proportion once they are off to the cafe.
The tiger, by trashing the kitchen and eating all the food, is also doing the stuff Sophie secretly wants to do but can't."

I love both the 'Tiger who came to tea' and Harry the dirty dog

BonsoirAnna, did you know they have animated it. The DCs have got it on DVD.

I always think I'm overanalysing and then I read an interview with the author and it turns out I'm right. I thought I was being silly in thinking Paddington was about illegal immigration but then lo and behold, Michael Bond said in an interview it was a time when there was a lot of hostility towards immigrants so he wanted to create a character who was an immigrant that you couldn't help loving.

My take on The Tiger... is that it's to do with Judith Kerr's experiences in the war. There are several echoes of When Hitler Stole Pink Rabbit.

I think she lived in Roehampton. I grew up near there and there were a few branches of the butchers in the night picture (Pethers) round here. I think at least one still exists.

I'm not really sure where I'm thinking of Horton; we moved round quite a lot, but it's always triggered a memory of evening shopping with my parents when I was about 6, possibly somewhere like Ware in Herts. But could be Cambs or Essex, Kent at a push. I think it's more an impression than a clear identification. Where did Judith Kerr live?

Where did you grow up, Pyrocanthus? I am also convinced I knew that street. Judith Kerr lived fairly close to where I grew up so I am sure I am right.

I think it's a wonderful book. Never heard of Harry the Dirty Dog.

I love that book but dh and i always agreed tht sophie's mum must have drunbk all daddy's beer herself and then cooked up the story...

I alwyas had to read it with a RP , 1950s bbc presnter sort of voice!

I don't get The Tiger who Came to Tea.

My mother adores it and always gets it out when DD stays with her. I just see a really boring middle-class suburban family of its era and a rather silly story.

DD isn't very keen, either.

Harry the Dirty Dog - now that's a much better story!