Fungus the Bogeyman

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Delusions of Eloquence: Bogeys are fond of profound-sounding platitudes, which they usually misquote. First published in the 70s, this book feels very dated. As a children’s book today, I would not recommend it: there are many references to British culture in the 70s that simply would not be understood; the vocabulary used is quite advanced (at times fantastical) and thus I would not even be sure at what age group this book should be aimed; and as the book is so dated, it feels sexist and racist by today’s standards. Additionally, the humour and complexity are more suitable for adults. Bad Is Good and Good Is Bad: Among other things, Bogeymen love filth, cold, and being lazy and hate cleanliness, warmth, and being industrious. Theme Naming: The characters are all named after gross things (Fungus, Mildew, Mould, Fester, Mucus, Pus).

Fungus the Bogeyman is a 1977 children's picture book by British artist Raymond Briggs. It follows one day in the life of the title character, a working class Bogeyman with the mundane job of scaring human beings. The character and all related properties are now owned by Vivendi's Studiocanal. [1] Plot [ edit ] Mix-and-Match Critter: Bogeys are humanoid but have horns, cat-like whiskers in their ears, frog-like tongues, spinal fins, scales, webbed hands and feet, and four-chambered stomachs like cattle.

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The Vicar: The "Nice Little Vicar" terrorised by Fungus. A footnote explains that bogeys resent Vicars for conflating them with devils. Odd Name Out: Fungus is the only one of his family whose name doesn't start with an "M". His wife's name is Mildew and their son's name is Mould. A stage production, based on the book, was performed at artsdepot in North London between November 2007 and August 2008. A co-production with Pilot Theatre, the show was directed and adapted by Marcus Romer and designed by Ali Allen. [5] TV series [ edit ]

Most of the book is explaining how Bogey biology and society works, but the actual plot is about a Bogeyman named Fungus going to and from his job, which is scaring humans, all the while having an existential crisis about "what it's all for". Thermal Dissident: Bogeys as a species prefer colder temperatures, which is part of the reason they're nocturnal, and will complain if the weather is too warm. However, there's nothing to suggest they actually need it to be cold. And even considering that many children do seem to massively relish and cherish humour based on bodily functions and liquid excretions, I do have to wonder whether the massive amounts of the latter occurring in Fungus the Bogeyman might well end up being potentially distracting and even too much of a "good thing" (so much so as to even jade and feel dragging for children who usually enjoy this type of humour, these types of jokes). For while Fungus' world and his daily life are indeed often minutely, engagingly and even in a strange way beautifully described and depicted (and the accompanying illustrations are gorgeously drawn and actually, amazingly sparkle with their very and often intense general ugliness), really and truly, for and to me, the constant and ever-present referrals to farting, vomiting, grottiness, slime, mould and the like does tend to become rather frustratingly dragging.Fungus the Bogeyman is a book that is somewhere between a comic book and a regular book written by Raymond Briggs. Much of the humour derives from word play. For example, Bogeymen are shown to enjoy eating and sharing flies in a similar way to human cigarettes; one brand of fly is the "strong French Gallwasp", a pun on the cigarette Gauloises. The dwine is doing very well. Fungus is proud of it. Everything is dying nicely. There is not a bloom to be seen. The air is full of the scent of decay. The acid soil smells, the rotting vegetation smells. It is a real Bogeydwine.”