We (unintentionally) started a debate about the origin of the word “buckaroo” with our quiz Can you speak American? last week. Richard Bailey, author of Speaking American, argues that it comes from the West African language Efik. Here OED editor Dr. Katrin Thier argues that the origin isn’t quite so clear.

By Dr. Katrin Thier

The origin of the word buckaroo is difficult to establish and is still a matter of debate. In the sense ‘cowboy’ it first appears in the early 19th century, written bakhara in the earliest source currently known to us, but used alongside other words of clearly Spanish origin. Later variants include baccaro, buccahro, and buckhara. On the face of it, a derivation from Spanish vaquero ‘cowboy’ looks likely, especially as the initial sound of the Spanish word is essentially the same as b- in English. The stress of the English word was apparently originally on the second syllable, as in Spanish, and only shifted to the final syllable later.

However, there is evidence from the Caribbean for a number of very similar and much earlier forms, such as bacchararo (1684), bockorau (1737), and backaroes (1740, plural), used by people of African descent to denote white people. This word then spreads from the Caribbean islands to the south of the North American continent. From the end of the 18th century, it is often contracted and now usually appears as buckra or backra, but trisyllablic forms such as buckera still occur in the 19th century. This word was brought from Africa and derives from the trisyllabic Efik word mbakára ‘white man, European’. Efik is a (non-Bantu) Niger-Congo language spoken around Calabar, a former slave port in what is now southern Nigeria.

Given the multi-ethnic and multilingual make-up of the south of the United States, it seems conceivable that similar words of different origin could meet and interact, influencing each other to generate new forms and meanings. However, a number of difficulties remain in explaining the change of sense and also the varying stress pattern if the word of Efik origin is assumed to be the sole origin of buckaroo ‘cowboy’.

This is a word that we look forward very much to researching in detail for the new edition of the Oxford English Dictionary currently in progress. We would welcome any earlier examples of the word in the meaning ‘cowboy’, if any readers know of any.

Dr. Katrin Thier is Senior Etymology Editor at the Oxford English Dictionary.

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The Weed That Strings the Hangman’s Bag

 Bradley, Alan. (2010) The Weed That Strings the Hangman’s Bag. (The Flavia de Luce Series) Bantam, division of Random House. ISBN 978-0385343459. Litland recommends ages 14-100!

 Publisher’s description:  Flavia de Luce, a dangerously smart eleven-year-old with a passion for chemistry and a genius for solving murders, thinks that her days of crime-solving in the bucolic English hamlet of Bishop’s Lacey are over—until beloved puppeteer Rupert Porson has his own strings sizzled in an unfortunate rendezvous with electricity. But who’d do such a thing, and why? Does the madwoman who lives in Gibbet Wood know more than she’s letting on? What about Porson’s charming but erratic assistant? All clues point toward a suspicious death years earlier and a case the local constables can’t solve—without Flavia’s help. But in getting so close to who’s secretly pulling the strings of this dance of death, has our precocious heroine finally gotten in way over her head? (Bantam Books)

 Our thoughts:

 Flavia De Luce is back and in full force! Still precocious. Still brilliant. Still holding an unfortunate fascination with poisons…

 As with the first book of the series, The Sweetness at the Bottom of the Pie, we begin with a seemingly urgent, if not sheer emergency, situation that once again turns out to be Flavia’s form of play.  We also see the depth of her sister’s cruelty as they emotionally badger their little sister, and Flavia’s immediate plan for the most cruel of poisoned deaths as revenge. Readers will find themselves chuckling throughout the book!

 And while the family does not present the best of role models (smile), our little heroine does demonstrate good character here and there as she progresses through this adventure. As explained in my first review on this series, the protagonist may be 11 but that doesn’t mean the book was written for 11-year olds :>) For readers who are parents, however (myself included), we shudder to wonder what might have happened if we had bought that chemistry kit for our own kids!

 Alas, the story has much more to it than mere chemistry. The author’s writing style is incredibly rich and entertaining, with too many amusing moments to even give example of here. From page 1 the reader is engaged and intrigued, and our imagination is easily transported into  the 1950’s Post WWII England village. In this edition of the series, we have more perspective of Flavia as filled in by what the neighbors know and think of her. Quite the manipulative character as she flits  around Bishop’s Lacy on her mother’s old bike, Flavia may think she goes unnoticed but begins to learn not all are fooled…

 The interesting treatment of perceptions around German prisoners of war from WWII add historical perspective, and Flavia’s critical view of villagers, such as the Vicar’s mean wife and their sad relationship, fill in character profiles with deep colors. Coupled with her attention to detail that helps her unveil the little white lies told by antagonists, not a word is wasted in this story.

 I admit to being enviou

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 The Wild West: 365 days

 

 Wallis, Michael. (2011) The Wild West: 365 days. New York, NY: Abrams Press. ISBN 978-0810996892 All ages.

 Publisher’s description: The Wild West: 365 Days is a day-by-day adventure that tells the stories of pioneers and cowboys, gold rushes and saloon shoot-outs in America’s frontier. The lure of land rich in minerals, fertile for farming, and plentiful with buffalo bred an all-out obsession with heading westward. The Wild West: 365 Days takes the reader back to these booming frontier towns that became the stuff of American legend, breeding characters such as Butch Cassidy and Jesse James. Author Michael Wallis spins a colorful narrative, separating myth from fact, in 365 vignettes. The reader will learn the stories of Davy Crockett, Wild Bill Hickok, and Annie Oakley; travel to the O.K. Corral and Dodge City; ride with the Pony Express; and witness the invention of the Colt revolver. The images are drawn from Robert G. McCubbin’s extensive collection of Western memorabilia, encompassing rare books, photographs, ephemera, and artifacts, including Billy the Kid’s knife.

 Our thoughts:

 This is one of the neatest books I’ve seen in a long time. The entire family will love it. Keep it on the coffee table but don’t let it gather dust!

 Every page is a look back into history with a well-known cowboy, pioneer, outlaw, native American or other adventurer tale complete with numerous authentic art and photo reproductions. The book is worth owning just for the original pictures.  But there is more…an index of its contents for easy reference too! Not only is this fun for the family, it is excellent for the school or home classroom use too. A really fun way to study the 19^th century too and also well received as a gift.  I highly recommend this captivating collection! See for yourself at the Litland.com Bookstore.

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Elliot may have been no taller than a juice box, but he sure could perform some swell rope tricks.

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The Illustration Friday theme for this week… for another 2.5 hours, is “swell”. So I thought it would be swell to post another snippet of the dummy I just completed just in time for the SCBWI L.A. Conference.

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Despite his diminutive size, Elliot’s obsession was to become a cowboy hero.

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Frantically preparing for the L.A. SCWBI conference on Friday! It’s always down to the wire with me. Guess I love the drama!

Anywho, this little guy will be accompanying me to the conference in the form of a picture book dummy. He’s got a lot more confidence than I do, so hopefully he’ll keep me calm.

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I am working on something extra fun.

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My illustration is out for Elijah Wants to be a Cowboy story by David Roper, in the Stories for Children Magazine in the April Issue.

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La Bruja refused to reverse the shrinking spell she had cast. Undaunted, Elliot Malloy, now a tiny cowboy, hopped upon his trusty steed, Peanut and rode off into the sunset.

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Billy always wanted to be a leader but had no understanding of politics.
This is the finished drawing from the sketch I did last night.

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This is a 5 x 7 Watercolor titled: "Winter day's work". I used this one for my Studio Holiday postcard.
~Debbie

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I painted this one with cut up sponges (except the vampire). I painted the vampire with brushes to set him apart from the rest of the class. I thought the texture would be fun, and it is, except that the painting was too small (8.5 x 11) or the sponges were too big to make it look the way I wanted it to. Still, it's something I might play around with again in the future, or use brushes to try to re-create the texture. 

Eddie was out sick the day Ms. MacDonald's class decided to dress up as farm animals for the class party. Everyone forgot to tell Eddie when he came back.

 The chicken costume is my favorite. 

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Reviewed by Amy M. O’Quinn for the National Writing for Children Center

Title: Kick the Cowboy
Author: Joe Gribnau
Illustrator: Adrian Tans
Ages: 4-8
Publisher: Pelican Publishing Company (September 1, 2009)
ISBN-10: 1589806050
ISBN-13: 978-1589806054

Kick the Cowboy, a new Fall 2009 release by Pelican Publishing Company, is a delightful picture book written by Joe Gribnau and illustrated by Adrian Tans that is sure to lasso a lot of laughs from readers of all ages. In fact, the humorous twang and distinct Western flavor of the story will make this a first-rate read-aloud for the whole family!

Kick is a real cowboy’s cowboy. In fact, he’s the greatest cowboy ever! He can rope a dozen longhorns in one loop and drive a thousand cattle from Texas to Montana. At least that’s what the other cowboys say—that is, until Kick gets too big for his britches and too far above his raisin’! Then he turns into the meanest cowboy in the whole state of Texas, sporting a terrible stare, a cruel growl, and a scary snarl to boot. Yessirree, Kick is so
mean that no one dares to cross him or tell him that the horse he claims is the fastest and finest in the state is actually a stick horse.

As Kick’s meanness grows, his greatness diminishes in the eyes of the other cowboys and they all find excuses not to be around. But no matter, Kick just gets meaner and meaner, until the day he finally meets his match!

When a sweet little girl named Belle taps Kick on his back and asks for help finding her lost puppy, Poo, Kick acts just as mean and ornery as ever as he laughs and scoffs at her request with a nasty reply. But Belle does what no man alive has dared to do—she kicks him in the knee. Not once, but twice! And in the process she brings him down to her eye level. They stare at each other until a single tear rolls down Belle’s cheek. A little of the meanness melts from Kick’s heart, and soon they are both crying.

Kick realizes that he doesn’t want to be mean anymore. With Belle’s encouragement and advice, he mends his fences by apologizing to all the other cowboys. “Never met a greater cowboy”, they all agree once more as Kick and Belle ride away on their stick horses.

Joe Gribnau has done a splendid job with the story of Kick the Cowboy. The tale is funny and entertaining, yet meaningful because as his character Belle says to Kick, “…most folks are like barb wire…they have their good points.” What a great reminder that everyone deserves a second chance!

Adrian Tans’ illustrations are spectacular! The colors really pop, and he uses unusual perspectives and artistic angles to create one-of-a-kind pictures that really capture the essence of the story. The details are amazing, and the expressions on the characters’ faces are priceless. Young readers will definitely enjoy perusing the illustrations as they progress through the book. Gribnau and Tan make a great team!

You can find out more about Kick the Cowboy and other Pelican Publishing titles at www.pelicanpub.com.

About the Author: Joe Gribnau is a teacher and author. A native of Montana, he and his family now make their home in Walla Walla, Washington where they enjoy spending time outdoors. Joe is also the author of another Pelican Publishing title, Rocky Mountain Night Before Christmas.

About the Illustrator: Adrian Tans is an accomplished illustrator whose art has been exhibited in a variety of galleries. He also illustrated Pelican’s Pirate Treasure Hunt! and Witches Night Before Halloween. He and his family live in Vermont. You can visit his website at www.adriantansart.com.

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Visit Amy at www.amyoquinn.com or at
www.homeschoolblogger.com/picketfencemom.

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Benny & Wild Horse Harry
enjoying Texas Bluebonnets!

For the upcoming May Arkansas SCBWI conference, I'm working on these characters, trying to create a picture book with them...I'll be "pitching" my idea to an art director! So, I thought I'd try an image for "Spring".

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Howdy, all! Welcome to another post in which I regale you with tales from illustation's underbelly. Just kidding! Illustration's fun!

Best Place to See Fake Wrestling: We wouldn't be surprised if Doomsday sent one of its "wrestlers" to our door to fake beat us up for this award. We tested fate last year by naming the athletic-comedy-acting troupe as Best Comedy Show. But we'll take our chances once again in order to tip our hat to antics that would either piss off the wrestlers of WWF or make them laugh so hard they pee their pants. Forget the fights — the competitors alone will have you in stitches before the bell for round one. Doomsday's roster includes Bill "The Thrill" Korczynski, a geriatric has-been who's been defeated in the ring by more heart attacks than opponents. Kosher Killer, Russian Bear and The Stormin' Mormons make up the ever-increasing variety of beefed-up stereotypes and other fighters we're not so sure about, including Precious Jewels, a gender-bending oppressor who dons a head-to-toe, sparkly pink S&M suit and defeats his opponents by dry-humping them. These guys and more are matched up for bouts that result in both headlocks and hilarity. Ding! (the art director and I agreed this illustrated itself and a more documentary approach was appropriate)



The final:
So there you go. These were alot of fun, and I also enjoyed experimenting while coloring them. I think these sports images really add some diversity to the website. Now i just need some more recognizable celebrities.



I switched up the rider's position, and I think it made the piece much stronger. A bonus is th art director like the piece as well as my being generous and submitting two versions (one with a blue background). He said he will look for a cover for as I have helped him out in a pinch. Nice!

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My second experiment involving 'pixeling' in 3D.

More stuff at Sevensheaven.nl

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