by Frank Asch & illustrated by John Kanzler ‧ RELEASE DATE: June 1, 2003
Mice siblings Jake and Molly are looking for a home, and Miss Clark’s classroom is as inviting as anywhere else. But Jake is not so sure he wants to be confined to a cage. Set in the friendly and familiar confines of a classroom, Asch’s tale turns confusing when he introduces more characters than the average new reader can keep up with: Gino, the ghost hamster with X-ray vision; Gerald, the hermit crab; Peaches, the current pet mouse; Prince and Princess, the lovebirds; and Big Gray, the cat who terrorizes all of them. With rather esoteric references for an early chapter book (ectoplasm, cauldron of emotional soup, murderous snare, slaves to the vast breeding machine), this becomes more difficult to follow as it slowly moves toward the inevitable battle of its title. While it’s one thing to imagine class pets having after-hours adventures, it’s a little harder to imagine them cavorting with a ghost from Hamster Heaven, employing the use of X-ray vision, and being rescued from a ketchup bottle prison by a homeless boy who just happens to be in Miss Clark’s room. Disappointing. (Fiction. 7-11)
Pub Date: June 1, 2003
ISBN: 0-689-84655-X
Page Count: 96
Publisher: Simon & Schuster
Review Posted Online: June 24, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: June 1, 2003
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by Frank Asch ; illustrated by Frank Asch
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by Frank Asch ; illustrated by Frank Asch
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by Frank Asch ; illustrated by Frank Asch
by Claudia Mills ; illustrated by Rob Shepperson ‧ RELEASE DATE: June 14, 2016
Another winner from Mills, equally well suited to reading aloud and independent reading.
When Franklin School principal Mr. Boone announces a pet-show fundraiser, white third-grader Cody—whose lack of skill and interest in academics is matched by keen enthusiasm for and knowledge of animals—discovers his time to shine.
As with other books in this series, the children and adults are believable and well-rounded. Even the dialogue is natural—no small feat for a text easily accessible to intermediate readers. Character growth occurs, organically and believably. Students occasionally, humorously, show annoyance with teachers: “He made mad squinty eyes at Mrs. Molina, which fortunately she didn’t see.” Readers will be kept entertained by Cody’s various problems and the eventual solutions. His problems include needing to raise $10 to enter one of his nine pets in the show (he really wants to enter all of them), his troublesome dog Angus—“a dog who ate homework—actually, who ate everything and then threw up afterward”—struggles with homework, and grappling with his best friend’s apparently uncaring behavior toward a squirrel. Serious values and issues are explored with a light touch. The cheery pencil illustrations show the school’s racially diverse population as well as the memorable image of Mr. Boone wearing an elephant costume. A minor oddity: why does a child so immersed in animal facts call his male chicken a rooster but his female chickens chickens?
Another winner from Mills, equally well suited to reading aloud and independent reading. (Fiction. 7-10)Pub Date: June 14, 2016
ISBN: 978-0-374-30223-8
Page Count: 144
Publisher: Farrar, Straus and Giroux
Review Posted Online: March 15, 2016
Kirkus Reviews Issue: April 1, 2016
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by Claudia Mills ; illustrated by Grace Zong
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by Claudia Mills ; illustrated by Grace Zong
by Kwame Alexander & illustrated by Tim Bowers ‧ RELEASE DATE: Sept. 1, 2011
Having put together a band with renowned cousin Duck Ellington and singer “Bee” Holiday, Rooster’s chances sure look...
Winning actually isn’t everything, as jazz-happy Rooster learns when he goes up against the legendary likes of Mules Davis and Ella Finchgerald at the barnyard talent show.
Having put together a band with renowned cousin Duck Ellington and singer “Bee” Holiday, Rooster’s chances sure look good—particularly after his “ ‘Hen from Ipanema’ [makes] / the barnyard chickies swoon.”—but in the end the competition is just too stiff. No matter: A compliment from cool Mules and the conviction that he still has the world’s best band soon puts the strut back in his stride. Alexander’s versifying isn’t always in tune (“So, he went to see his cousin, / a pianist of great fame…”), and despite his moniker Rooster plays an electric bass in Bower’s canted country scenes. Children are unlikely to get most of the jokes liberally sprinkled through the text, of course, so the adults sharing it with them should be ready to consult the backmatter, which consists of closing notes on jazz’s instruments, history and best-known musicians.Pub Date: Sept. 1, 2011
ISBN: 978-1-58536-688-0
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Sleeping Bear Press
Review Posted Online: July 19, 2011
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Aug. 1, 2011
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by Kwame Alexander & Deanna Nikaido ; illustrated by Melissa Sweet
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by Kwame Alexander ; illustrated by Dare Coulter
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