What happens when a children’s book is written for adults who know better? Filmmaker and author Cevin Soling joins Alex to talk about his brilliantly twisted storybooks that hide sharp social commentary behind bright illustrations and dark comedy.
His Rumpelville Chronicles wrap heavy themes in playful visuals, inviting adults to laugh, cringe, and think at the same time. Soling’s been poking at cultural absurdities since childhood, and his books pull no punches:
• “The Jolly Elf” skewers bureaucracy through a murderous elf and a town more interested in TV rights than survival.
• “The Bomb That Followed Me Home” turns a walking bomb into a cuddly pet, highlighting how normalized violence has become.
Influenced by James Thurber and Tom Lehrer, Soling blends humor and critique with a light touch, creating stories that feel whimsical on the surface and subversive underneath.
Soling has written about outsiders, power, education, and cultural blind spots for years through books like “The Student Resistance Series,” “The People Who Fell,” and his satirical, surreal fiction that pokes holes in our neat little myths about society. So it tracks that when an esteemed anthropologist labeled a long-unseen tribe as “despicable,” Cevin didn’t buy it. He packed up, headed out, and tried to see the truth for himself.
Enjoy this fast, funny conversation about why absurdity makes the best mirror. DO NOT MISS IT.
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