How to Save Your Tail

June 1, 2007
Gr 2-5 -A book-loving, cookie-baking rat gives Scheherazade a run for her money in this whimsical collection. When a book on a bench catches his eye, Bob, the castle rat, becomes distracted and soon finds himself in the clutches of the Queen's cats. As the felines prepare to devour the savory rodent morsel, Bob attempts to postpone his fate by plying them with a batch of his fresh-baked cookies and regaling them with his ancestral tales. All of his stories are parodies of classic fairy tales, such as "The Three Pigs," "Jack and the Beanstalk," and "Rumpelstiltskin." Clever wordplay and large doses of humor make this a most enjoyable selection that has great potential as a read-aloud. The black-and-white cartoon-style illustrations add to the fun and will captivate even the most reluctant of young readers.Debbie Lewis O'Donnell, Alachua County Library District, Gainesville, FL

Copyright 2007 School Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

April 1, 2007
A rats twin passions for books and baking bail him out of serious trouble in this decidedly entertaining story. Nabbed by palace cats Brutus and Muffin, Bob the rat saves himself from gruesome extinction first by offering a tray of cookies fresh from the oven, and then by going on to tell a set of fractured talesone about his great-great-grandfather climbing a beanstalk to fetch a magic cookie-making spoon from a giant puss in boots; another in which his grandma gave Rumpelstiltskin more than he bargained for by handing over her entire litter of newborns. Bob escapes at last by offering to write the tales down for his now-eager feline audience; Bobs human fans, however, may be a little disappointed that hes able to get away so soon. The easy reading chapters are well supplied with humorous line drawingsbut no recipes, alas.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2007, American Library Association.)