MR. HERMIT MISER AND THE NEIGHBORLY PUMPKIN

Ever have a pumpkin vine go traveling into your neighbor's gardens and provide them with the pumpkins you expected to harvest for yourself? Well, that's what happened to unneighborly Mr. Miser of the rackety packety house. How the pumpkins disappeared almost under his nose, when he thought he had them spotted; how an accident almost made the neighbors take a hand; and how his pitiful attempts to make pumpkin pies out of the three he salvaged from the road finally won over the neighborhood cooks, makes an engaging story which has an absurdity in adult behavior that appeals to young listeners. The Anne Merriman Peck pictures in green and pumpkin yellow are in keeping with the text. Again, I'd question the placing of this book at the 8-12 level indicated. It seems definitely a read aloud book for 6 -- 8.