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1990 children's novel by Daniel Pinkwater From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Borgel is a children's novel by Daniel Pinkwater published in 1990.
Author | Daniel Pinkwater |
---|---|
Language | English |
Genre | Science fiction, Young adult novel |
Publisher | Macmillan Publishers |
Publication date | April 1990 |
Publication place | United States |
Media type | Print (hardback & paperback) |
Pages | 170 pp (first edition, hardback) |
ISBN | 0-02-774671-2 (first edition, hardback) |
OCLC | 20489636 |
LC Class | PZ7.P6335 Bo 1990 |
The story is narrated by the young Melvin Spellbound who joins his eccentric Uncle Borgel and pet dog Fafner on an intergalactic adventure involving time travel and multiple alternate realities.[1]
Travelling along the Interstate Highway connecting the various realities, Borgel is separated from the others by a mischievous teleportation (called a 'bilbok'), and Melvin and Fafner stranded at a roadside root beer stand. Having waited for him, Melvin and Fafner take control of his car, and recover Borgel en route. Thereafter the three rest at a public campsite, where they acquire a new companion in 'Pak Nfbnm*', alias 'Freddie': a self-professed expert on popsicles, in search of an immortal 'Great Popsicle' whose existence maintains the integrity of the Universe. Pursuing that search, they receive directions from a computer made in the image of the Popsicle, to the anthropomorphic gorilla 'Glugo', who conveys them to an island on the River Styx. There, and elsewhere, Freddie is identified as a Grivnizoid, a shape-changing, cephalopod-like predator, desirous of achieving insurmountable power. Can they stop Freddie in time and save the world?[2]
An excerpt from Borgel was used as a question in a New York state test for 8th grade students in 2012. The question caused controversy over its nonsensical nature, stumping both students and teachers as to the correct answers.[3] The confusion led to articles in The New York Times, The Wall Street Journal, and other publications.[4] In the original novel, Uncle Borgel tells another absurd fable about an eggplant and a rabbit having a race. The New York state exam changed the characters to a pineapple and a rabbit and then asked students a series of ambiguous multiple-choice questions based on the story.[5]
This book is out of print in its original form. However it is still in print as a part of 4 Fantastic Novels (ISBN 978-0689834882), a compilation of four popular Daniel Pinkwater books: Borgel; Yobgorgle: Mystery Monster of Lake Ontario; The Worms of Kukumlima; and The Snarkout Boys and the Baconburg Horror. It was reprinted in 1993 in the United Kingdom, under the title The Time Tourists.[citation needed]
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