Rainbow Fish Reading List

If you and your little loved watching and reading Rainbow Fish, here are the next books to add to your reading list!

Here's our pick of books to read after Rainbow Fish!

Get in the spirit for our next show, The Very Hungry Caterpillar, with this Eric Carle classic, The Grouchy Ladybug.  Focus on concepts of time and space while following the ladybug's adventures.




For a slightly older crowd, the beautifully illustrated Stellaluna, follows a young bat attacked by an owl, who must learn to embrace the meaning of family.





Enjoy a great classic with Coduroy, in the tale of a bear waiting on the department store shelf for his new owner.  This one is even more popular today than in was during it's late 1960's release.





Stick with your friend Rainbow Fish in this more recent scale tale, Rainbowfish Finds his Way.  When Rainbow Fish loses his way, he finds new friends help him get back to his sparkle scale school.



Are there other classics about family and friendship you and your kids love? Tell us about it in the comments!

Fly Guy's Favorite Dessert: Dirt Cake

Flies love gross stuff: moldy bread, rotten meat, and stale Oreo cookies.  Just one of the many things we humans don't have in common with our fly friends.  But, what if, just for an afternoon we could enjoy gross treats just as much as these bugs do?

Treat yourself to some afternoon grub with dirt cake!

Photo Credit: Food.com

The perfect treat for spring time, get your kid's psyched for Fly Guy, the Musical with this no bake, easy to make dirt cake!

Photo Credit: Food.com

Ingredients:

• 1 Oreo package--double stuff or flavored will lighten the color of your top soil, but add fun flavor to the mix!
• 1 16 oz. instant pudding package--chocolate will leave your dirt extra brown, while vanilla or banana will make for light colored layers
• 1 16 oz Cool Whip--full fat is best to create extra fluffy dirt.  Our try non-dairy Coco Whip for a slight coconut flavor!
• Gummy worms, or other fun treats to bury in the mud!
• Fun container--clean plastic pot, lined terra cotta pot, or just some cups for serving!

Photo Credit: Food.com

How to make no-bake dirt cake:

1. Mix pudding per box instructions.
2. Grind Oreos into a soil-like consistency.  If you don't have a food processor, try putting the Oreos in a Ziplock and smashing them for extra fun!
3. Separate pudding into two portions.
4. Mix one portion of pudding with equal portion of Cool Whip.
5. Start layering!  Layer pudding, Oreo crumbs, Cool Whip, and the pudding mix in whatever order you like, making sure to leave a thick layer of Oreo dirt on top!
6. Garnish with creepy crawlers and enjoy!

Don't worry, if you think you made too much dirt cake, leave it on the counter for a few days, and Fly Guy will finish it for you!

Get your tickets for Fly Guy, the Musical, before he flies away!

Peculiar Friendships in Children's Literature

We at BACT are a buzz about our musical adaptation of Fly Guy, but it has us yearning for other great stories about peculiar friendships.

Buzz and Liz LOVE their pet flies

If you're in the mood for a book or two about unusual friendships, here's the reading list for you!

If you love the classics:

Curious George: Who knew a man in a yellow hat and a monkey could be pals?  Curious George stands the test of time.

Charlotte's Web: Always a tear jerker, your kid will spend the rest of their life searching for a relationship as meaningful as Wilbur and Charlotte's. 

Winnie the Pooh:  The hundred acre wood is full of unusual friendships.  Bears who love pigs, a boy who love bears, and a tigger that might love himself the most.  

Stories from BACT season's past:

Where are Jame's friends when he needs them?

James and the Giant Peach: The musical was composed by this year's Oscar winners, Pasek and Paul, but the book is a Dahl staple, perfect for those who aren't scared of the creepy and crawly.  Not for those who have a fear of their own family. 

Elephant and Piggy: Like many animal tales, this series reminds us that there's nothing strange about the bond between a cautious elephant and care-free pig.

Ivy and Bean: Ivy is a little Berkeley, Bean is a tomboy at heart.  They couldn't be more different, but that doesn't stop these girls from a world of adventures.  The perfect way remind your child to not judge their neighbor by their quirkiness.  

For poetry lovers:

The Giving Tree: This beloved tale from kid-favorite Shel Silverstein has spent over half a century teaching the beauty of the life cycle, while reminding us all to go outside and hug a tree.

Less talked about friendships:

Archy and Mehitabel: Because cockroaches and cats can be friends, especially when the cat's on her ninth life, and the roach is Cleopatra's latest reincarnation.  About as old as most cockroaches, this story has been around since 1916!

Flora and Ulysses: The unlikely friendship of a girl and a supercharged squirrel she rescued from a vacuum.  One of the quirkier tales from Kate DiCamillo.  What's not to love?

Hopefully these tales will get you pumped for the best of unusual friends of all--a kid and their pet fly!  So get your tickets for Fly Guy before they fly away!