When Gus was a Mexican ghost... it was epic

Gus is a museum curator ghost

Recently I went through and read my children's books to see what I'd be keeping and what I'd be giving away.  I did a previous blog post about what I found from that read through, here.  But this post today is much lighter and less scandalous.  This post is about Gus the Friendly Ghost.  There were three books and I adored them when I was a kid.  

The first, titled Gus the Friendly Ghost, is about Gus living in the attic of a home.  A family resides there through the spring and summer months.  In this story, when the family leaves for autumn, a mouse moves in.  Mouse and Gus have a lot of fun, but Mouse shows jealousy when the family returns and Gus has to mediate and say they all have to get along.  Great story, but rather boring.  

I'm guessing things didn't go as smoothly as Gus intended in the mediation, or else him and Mouse have amnesia, because a few years later, Gus and The Baby Ghost shows that Gus and Mouse live in a museum... with a cat.  The museums owner, well, he appears to be able to see Gus, but I'm not entirely sure about the continuity of that.  Anyway, Gus is allowed to co-curate.  But then a baby ghost shows up.

Feeding Baby Ghost during museum hours.

The museums owner can't see Baby Ghost, but he can hear him and is furious that it will drive away customers.  But if Gus promises to keep it quiet it can stay.  So, Gus rocks in the rocking chair, in the middle of the museum, during business hours and feeds Baby Ghost.  

Invisible Baby Ghost

Earlier in the book, we the readers, can see Gus and Baby Ghost.  When Baby Ghost is heard, however, it is quite clear that he is invisible and the patrons can only hear baby noises coming from the crib.  But we are still allowed to see Gus.  But Gus is quite invisible to the museum patrons.  I suppose it's a 'children's book-show the lead character' sort of the thing.  It's still iffy if the owner can see Gus or only knows the general vicinity of where to look and talk to Gus.  But we have ascertained that white New England patrons can not see ghosts.

Gus is adorable in Mexico

Gus Was a Mexican Ghost, is by far the cutest of the three books.  He's still working at the museum and the owner decides to take a holiday to Mexico.  Gus, Cat, and Baby Ghost are lonely, however, so Gus packs them up and they go for holiday in Mexico as well, after receiving a postcard that said, 'Wish you were here!'

Buying food from a street vendor for Cat.

They sight see a little.  Gus shops for a sombrero and rebozo from the market.  Later he is seen buying food for cat.  Hold the phone right here.  He's interacting with people.  There's been dialogue and money/goods exchanges.  The people of Mexico City are not going to accept seeing a rebozo and sombrero simply hovering in the air; bobbing down the street, nor are they going to have dialogue and money/goods exchanges with someone they can not see.  

Gus being shown to his room

Gus even rents a room for his holiday.  Both the food vender and hotel owner, as shown in the illustrations, can see Gus, as well as Baby Ghost.  They are not afraid, they are even drawn to appear as if it's not a big deal to see a ghost wearing a sombrero and rebozo complete with Baby Ghost and carrying a basket with a cat in it, who buys taco's and rents hotel rooms.  They are drawn to appear as if this is perfectly natural.

Which leads me to believe, just plainly from the 'facts' presented in this children's story,  that Mexican people are AWESOME!!  Renting rooms and selling taco's to ghosts and they're cool with it.  Reading this story now makes it so much better than when I was a kid.  When I was a kid it just looked prettier and I thought Gus was adorable dressed in clothes.  But, now seeing the implications of the way the Mexican people are drawn actually interacting with Gus just makes it so much better!

Mexico has secret powers...or Museum Owner is a void.

However, when the group finally does find the museum owner, he is painting with a friend.  Neither the owner nor the friend can see Gus.  Apparently they also can not see a flying sombrero and rebozo.  This either means that Mexico has secret powers where only Mexican people can see ghosts... or else Museum Owner causes a cloud of confusion and when he is around, no one near him can see ghosts, seeing as he was present and walking people through his museum and he is present in this scene.  

I like to think it is both.  While probably wrong, I like to think that Mexican people can see ghost and are therefor awesome and that the land of Mexico has secret powers.  Also that Museum Owner is a void of all knowing and clouds others minds to his own deception.  

But don't take my word for it!