FARTISTE

Filling an unconscionable gap in the education of American youth, this rhymed account introduces Joseph Pujol, a 19th- to early 20th-century vaudeville performer who created uncontrolled hysteria from Marseilles to Paris thanks to an ability to fart out (odorlessly) music and many sound effects. Kulikov provides sprightly views of the dapper Pujol prostrating audiences at the renowned Moulin Rouge by blowing musical notes, flowers, fireworks and more from his posterior. They accompany equally airy stanzas that may fall off a bit in scansion toward the end, but in general hold their own: “One day a baker with butter and yeast, / And the next—voila!—he was JOE, the Fartiste.” Put that tired copy of Walter the Farting Dog away: This long-overdue tribute to Le Petomane, “the man who made his pants dance,” is a total blast. (historical note, resource list) (Informational picture book. 8-10)