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This is just one of the Tin Tin stories that graced the shelves of the St. Joseph's School library in Coaldale in the '80s. Source: en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Prisoners_of_the_Sun (May be subject to copyright) |
They blended adventure with intrigue and comedy, detailing the adventures of a journalist, his trusty dog and, a diverse cast of characters.
I was on Vancouver Island last week and there, sitting on my spouse’s uncle’s kitchen table was a coffee cup with Tin Tin staring back at me.
It brought back all those memories of Tin Tin, and how important reading was back then.
In the beginning
My first exposure to “Tin Tin” was through two classmates – Jack Braat and Mike Uytdewilligen. I always saw Jack reading them whenever we had free reading in class. Mike was my neighbour and, at the time, I rode the school bus with him. We sat together and, for a time there, he always had a different Tin Tin adventure with him when I got on the bus.
My first exposure to “Tin Tin” was through two classmates – Jack Braat and Mike Uytdewilligen. I always saw Jack reading them whenever we had free reading in class. Mike was my neighbour and, at the time, I rode the school bus with him. We sat together and, for a time there, he always had a different Tin Tin adventure with him when I got on the bus.
He would tell me about the different characters, whether it was Tin Tin, his dog Snowy, Captain Haddock who always swore using the word “barnacles”, or Professor Calculus.
They would go on these wild adventures, across the desert, down the river, and even to the moon.
Accessubility
However, I read very few because they were always signed out. I can still picture the place in the old St. Joseph’s School library where the Tin Tins were put. Every week, our class would go down to the library to sign out a new book. My classmates would race to that section, like they were actually in a Tin Tin adventure and, invariably, always got to the Tin Tins first.
However, I read very few because they were always signed out. I can still picture the place in the old St. Joseph’s School library where the Tin Tins were put. Every week, our class would go down to the library to sign out a new book. My classmates would race to that section, like they were actually in a Tin Tin adventure and, invariably, always got to the Tin Tins first.
You could only sign out a book for a week. This happened to me every week, at the same time, until something else caught my attention.
Still, I wanted to read Tin Tin. Eventually, I was in town with my Mom one Saturday and they were selling Tin Tins at Coles Book Store in the Woodward’s Mall. So I finally got one of my own – and it was for keeps.
Reading for money
The MS Read-a-thon came to our school one year, and everyone was excited. At one point, one of the guys in my class asked if Tin Tins would count as books, because our teacher made it clear comic books did not. She looked at Tin Tin and said, sure enough, Tin Tins counted.
The MS Read-a-thon came to our school one year, and everyone was excited. At one point, one of the guys in my class asked if Tin Tins would count as books, because our teacher made it clear comic books did not. She looked at Tin Tin and said, sure enough, Tin Tins counted.
Mike, like the rest of us, had not done as much reading as he pledged to. So, in a last second flurry on the school bus – and Mike was renowned for last-minute homework and assignment heroics on the bus – he filled out his pledge sheet with 10 Tin Tin books.
To this day, I applaude his efforts to get the sheet and the pledges in. Not many others did.
Parting thoughts
When I looked up Tin Tin on Wikipedia, and they had the covers of all 24 stories, I recognized them all. It showed just how much Tin Tin had sunk in when I was a kid.
To this day, I applaude his efforts to get the sheet and the pledges in. Not many others did.
Parting thoughts
When I looked up Tin Tin on Wikipedia, and they had the covers of all 24 stories, I recognized them all. It showed just how much Tin Tin had sunk in when I was a kid.
I think as an adult, I’ll try and find all the Tin Tins and finally read them.
Maybe I’ll start by finding the one I already own.
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