Multiple books using the exact same premise? O_o

Tchaikovsky

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I know ideas are a dime a dozen, but recently I saw this in Publishers Weekly:

Christianne Jones at Capstone has acquired world English rights to Pacho Nacho, a picture book by Silvia López, illustrated by Pablo Pino. Mamá and Papá could not agree on a name for their first baby, so they name him Pacho-Nacho-Nico-Tico-Melo-Felo-Kiko-Rico. But when Pacho finds himself in trouble, his younger brother, Juan, must quickly find help, which isn't easy when you have to keep saying Pacho-Nacho-Nico-Tico-Melo-Felo-Kiko-Rico.

Isn't this the EXACT premise to the picture book Tikki Tikki Tembo?

Quote from Wikipedia:
A boy named Tikki Tikki Tembo-no Sa Rembo-chari Bari Ruchi-pip Peri Pembo and his little brother Chang are playing very close to a well at their house that their mother has warned them to avoid. The older brother falls in. Chang breathlessly repeats his brother's predicament... is out of breath and mispronounces the [long] name.

I'm kind of surprised this happened, since Tikki Tikki Tembo is quite well known (published in 1980s). I also thought for picture books, the premise is the most important part, since the texts are relatively short, whereas novels can have the same idea but differ wildly in the execution. How often does this happen?
 

lizmonster

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Tikki Tikki Tembo came out in 1968, and is essentially a folk tale retold. I think this isn't quite the same thing as two books with similar original stories.
 

frimble3

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Tikki-tikki-tembo or some variation is older than that. I remember someone teaching me a variant of the name 'Nicki-nicki-tembo-no-so-rembo-ooh-ma-goochi-gamma-gamma-goochi' back in the early-60's. I was born in 1960, and I never saw the book, just remember saying the name. If it had come out when I was 8, I would have read it for myself.
 

cornflake

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Rikki-Tikki-Tavi.

Where'd Shakespeare get the idea for Romeo & Juliet? A poem about Romeo and Juliet.

What'd Jane Smiley win a Pulitzer for? Putting King Lear on a farm.

There's nothing new under the sun.
 

Tchaikovsky

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Rikki-Tikki-Tavi.

Where'd Shakespeare get the idea for Romeo & Juliet? A poem about Romeo and Juliet.

What'd Jane Smiley win a Pulitzer for? Putting King Lear on a farm.

There's nothing new under the sun.

Good point. :) Shakespeare essentially borrowed all his stories...
 

Myrealana

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Good point. :) Shakespeare essentially borrowed all his stories...
My son just had to write a compare-and-contrast essay for Macbeth vs. Holinshed's Chronicles of England, Scotland, and Ireland.

Macbeth is basically a mashup of King Macbeth and King Duffe from Holinshed with enough intrigue thrown in to keep the audience entertained.

There really is nothing new under the sun.