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Summary
Summary
Children become cats and birds, a once-invisible young woman pieces herself back together, and the identity of a mysterious baseball mascot is uncovered--all within this eclectic collection from master storyteller Avi. By turns chilling, ethereal, and surreal, these thought-provoking tales are sure to engage anyone who has ever wondered what it would be like to become someone--or something--else.
Author Notes
Avi was born in 1937, in the city of New York and raised in Brooklyn. He began his writing career as a playwright, and didn't start writing childrens books until he had kids of his own.
(Bowker Author Biography)
Reviews (5)
Publisher's Weekly Review
Avi (Poppy's Return) turns the multifaceted theme of transformation this way and that in five provocative tales. In "Bored Tom," a listless 12-year-old, envying his cat's nap-filled existence, agrees to swap lives via the intercession of Maggie, a "wizard-cat," who ultimately one-ups both former boy and former pet. The witty premise of "Babette the Beautiful" involves a 16-year-old princess born invisible after a crone abets a vain queen's wish for a flawless daughter; Babette struggles toward self-knowledge, literally piecing herself together in mirrored rooms full of human parts. The stories nimbly incorporate folkloric motifs and archetypes, and feature a pleasing assortment of talking animals. Characters suffer moral consequences for their greed, vanity and dominion over the powerless, whether human, bird or beast. In the first and last pairs of stories, deft narratives consciously incorporate the wry omniscience and plainspoken diction of traditional folk tellings For the centerpiece, "Curious," Avi, while still probing an ancient moral ("curiosity killed the cat") adopts a matter-of-fact tone and modern setting. With its clever mix of magic, mystery and a soupcon of sci-fi (plus a captivating cover, to boot), this collection will please Avi's fans and may well draw new ones. Ages 8-12. (May) Copyright 2006 Reed Business Information.
Horn Book Review
(Intermediate, Middle School) In five dark, eminently discussable stories, unrepentant characters get well-deserved comeuppances, and even the relatively innocent protagonist of ""Curious"" is doomed by his defining attribute. A shoemaker who reneges on a bargain almost tricks shape-changing ""Old Scratch"" in classic folkloric tradition; however, it's the devil who triumphs here. Schoolboy ""Bored Tom,"" too, changes shape, trading bodies with a cat whose undemanding lifestyle he covets only to find himself trapped -- unless he can trick another lazybones into trading with him. Her royal parents' foolish wish for perfection is the reason ""Babette the Beautiful"" is, in an ironic twist on ""The Emperor's New Clothes,"" invisible; when she eventually recognizes the truth, she constitutes her own appearance in an intriguingly original way. In ""Simon,"" finally, contrition earns a selfish man a second chance. Avi recounts these bizarre events in the quiet, well-honed voice of a campfire storyteller who knows his audience. Offbeat characters, brief but vivid descriptions, and unexpected plot twists all recommend these tales for reading aloud or alone. Nifty jacket art of an enigmatic cat whose pool-reflected image is a startled boy makes a perfect lead-in for booktalking. (c) Copyright 2010. The Horn Book, Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted. All rights reserved.
Booklist Review
Gr. 4-7. In this short story collection, Avi offers five fantastical tales, set in both contemporary and fairy-tale lands, that explore the notion of transformation. In some stories, the shape-shifting takes place between everyday creatures: from boy to cat, and from bird to man. In others, the changes are more mysterious: a princess, whose parents wished her to be flawless, is born invisible and must choose her own imperfect features from a dreamlike gallery of parts. The story elements don't always knit together smoothly, and some of the heavy moral messages and symbolism, particularly in a tale about the devil, may fly over the heads of children. But the pieces are vividly imagined and shot through with a captivating, edgy spookiness, which, along with their brevity and some droll, crackling dialogue, makes them great choices for sharing aloud in class or as inspiration in creative-writing units. For another body-switching tale, suggest Blake Nelson's Gender Blender (2006). --Gillian Engberg Copyright 2006 Booklist
School Library Journal Review
Gr 6-8-These stories vary in tone from grimly humorous to quietly ironic to stately formal. In "The Shoemaker and Old Scratch," a tightfisted tradesman tries to outwit the Devil, but discovers too late that Satan has many guises. In "Bored Tom," a boy wants excitement, so when a talking cat offers to switch places, he agrees-but then the cat refuses to switch back. "Curious" combines sports and science fiction. Jeff wants to know more about the Alien, the mascot for the local baseball team-particularly since no one seems to like it or to know how it was employed in the first place. "Babette the Beautiful" and "Simon" incorporate folkloric elements. After her queen mother asked a wise woman for a flawless baby, Babette is born invisible. Mirrors are banished from the land, and no one will admit that the princess can't be seen. Greedy, selfish Simon hunts the fabulous Queen-of-All-the-Birds and finds himself changed into a half-bird monster until he learns compassion. These stories don't have conventional "happy endings," but the conclusions fit the individual styles-sly, mystical, or gruesome, as appropriate. Fantasy fans with a taste for the unusual will enjoy this challenging collection.-Elaine E. Knight, Lincoln Elementary Schools, IL (c) Copyright 2010. Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
Kirkus Review
Strange, indeed--these tales are actually startling. Avi continues to surprise by adding new styles, genres and topics to his storehouse of writing, rarely repeating himself. The lead story, "Bored Tom," sets the tenor when a bored boy trades places with a cat because he wants to sleep a lot. "Babette the Beautiful" transmogrifies familiar fairytale elements into a story of a princess who is picture perfect but can't see herself in a mirror. Booktalk the middle story, "Curious," and kids will be hooked. Jeff Marley is most curious about the baseball team mascot called "The Alien," but trying to find out his identity leads him to a point of no return. "The Shoemaker and Old Scratch" pits a greedy shoemaker against the Devil in a bargain of souls versus soles. The titular character in "Simon" is so vain, his goal in life is to have the world gaze upon him with admiration and envy. His solipsism turns him into a birdbrain--that is, a man with a bird's head. The mix of contemporary and fantasy settings is effective and eerie enough to produce a shiver or two. (Short stories. 8-12) Copyright ©Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.
Excerpts
Excerpts
Bored Tom At the age of twelve, Thomas Osborn Pitzhugh better known as Tom had few interests, little desire, and almost no energy. This was so despite a family mother, father, older brother, and sister that loved him. As for school, his teachers treated him fairly; he did what he was supposed to do and received passable grades. But if you were to ask Tom what the future held for him, he would have replied that, other than getting older, and hopefully taller, he expected no change. In short, Thomas Osborn Pitzhugh better known as Tom found life boring. One day Tom was sitting on the front steps of his city house doing what he usually did: nothing. As he sat there a short-haired, black-and-gray cat with gray eyes approached and sat down in front of him. For a while the two boy and cat stared at each other. The cat spoke first. Whats happening? he asked. Not much, Tom replied. Doing anything? the cat asked. Nope. Just hanging out? I guess. That something you do often? Yeah. How come? the cat inquired. I'm bored. The cat considered this remark and then said, You look like my kind of friend. How about adopting me? Why should I? Got anything better to do? I don't know. Well then Tom asked, Whats your name? Charley. Okay. It was not long before Charley the cat became part of Toms household. So familiar did he become that when Tom went to sleep, Charley slept next to his head on an extra pillow. For a brief time, Tom having a new friend was almost not bored. After a while, however, his life settled back into its old, boring routine. Hey, man, Tom said to Charley one afternoon two months after the cat had moved in. Its not fair! You get to sleep all day, but I have to go to school. Disgusted, he flung his schoolbooks onto his bed. It was the statement more than the thump of books that awoke Charley from a sound nap. He studied Tom, and then stretched his back to curve like a McDonalds arch. I am a cat, he said. You are a boy. Some would say you had it better. Tom sighed. If you had to go to school every day like I do, you wouldn't say that. Don't you like school? Charley asked. Oh, I like it all right, Tom replied. The kids are okay. The teachers are all right. Once in a while it almost gets interesting. Mostly, though, its just boring. Id rather do nothing. Like you. What about after school? Boring, Tom insisted. Doesn't anything interest you? Tom considered the question. Television, he said at last. On TV there's something happening. Its my life that's dull. A cats life, said Charley, can be dull, too. Your life is supposed to be dull, Tom said. See, people are always telling me that I should get up and do something. Boy, wish I had permission to sleep all day the way you do. To which Charley said, How about you becoming me, a cat, while I become you, a boy? Tom sighed with regret. Not possible, he said. Don't be so sure, said Charley. Most people wouldn't believe that you and I could hold a conversation, but he Excerpted from Strange Happenings: Five Tales of Transformation by Avi All rights reserved by the original copyright owners. Excerpts are provided for display purposes only and may not be reproduced, reprinted or distributed without the written permission of the publisher.
