My Pet Rattlesnake

May 15, 2014
The creators of The Gum Chewing Rattler (2006) concoct another outlandish episode with a twist in its tale.A dog in all but body, the snake that follows the young narrator home one day becomes a nearly inseparable companion. He sleeps at the foot of the bed, waits at the gate on school days and once even sounds the alarm when a burglar breaks in (shades of Crictor). Furthermore, all efforts to ditch the reptile at the behest of the lad's father and nervous neighbors come to naught; like the cat of the familiar folk song, the snake just comes back. Except for giving the rattler a big, doggy grin (or mournful, sad-dog face), the illustrator portrays figures and arid setting with fully appropriate, poker-faced realism. Ultimately the snake's habit of chasing cars leads to its demise-depicted in a final view of it "lying there in the middle of the street" (in deference to more tender sensibilities, the victim appears to be sleeping rather than flattened) that sets up a groaner of a punch line.A shaggy snake story certain to elicit hoots and hollers aplenty from young audiences. (Picture book. 6-8)

COPYRIGHT(2014) Kirkus Reviews, ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.

July 1, 2014

Gr 1-3-An unusual friendship develops when a boy saves a trapped rattlesnake, which follows him home. The snake, for all of its attempts at friendliness, only comes across as creepy and sinister, as it "nips" at the boy's feet in the morning and uses his fangs to scratch at the door. To appease their neighbors, the boy and his father try to leave the snake in the wild, but it always finds its way back. When the snake starts to chase cars, the boy worries about it getting run over, setting up a shocking image of the snake lying in the road, before the confusing final line, "Just like I have been lying to you the whole time!" The detailed, realistic illustrations are well drawn, but the snake's exaggerated expression of eagerness is jarringly cartoonish. There may be little kid appeal in either the story or illustrations and a few spreads that may be frightening to young readers. In one spread, the snake attacks a burglar who breaks into the house, resulting in the image of a pale, screaming man being choked by a real-looking rattlesnake. The text is wordy, with multiple small conflicts rather than a climax to the action. An unsuccessful attempt at an unusual pet story.-Marian McLeod, Convent of the Sacred Heart, Greenwich, CT

Copyright 2014 School Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.