Available:*
Library | Call Number | Status |
|---|---|---|
Searching... Park Grove Library (Cottage Grove) | EASY READER GAN | Searching... Unknown |
Searching... R.H. Stafford Library (Woodbury) | EASY READER GAN | Searching... Unknown |
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Summary
Summary
"To thine own self be true."
The cat show is coming to town and Rotten Ralph is hungry for glory - and desperate to defeat his perfect cousin Percy, whatever it takes. According to Sarah, Ralph has to stop being a lazy scoundrel and follow her regimen to achieve poise and polish. When the competition gets under way, Ralph pretends to be something he's not, and fails. Just in time, Ralph decides victory can be his only if he stops pretending and really lets the fur fly.
With eye-popping art and an ingeniously comic text, this fourth book in the appealing series for beginning readers follows everyone's favorite red-furred rascal on his path to a wholly satisfying last laugh
Author Notes
Jack Gantos was born in Mount Pleasant, Pennsylvania on July 2, 1951. He received a BFA and a MA from Emerson College. While in college, he and an illustrator friend, Nicole Rubel, began working on picture books. After a series of rejections, they published their first book, Rotten Ralph, in 1976. His other books include Joey Pigza Swallowed the Key, a National Book Award Finalist, Joey Pigza Loses Control, a Newbery Honor book, and Dead End in Norvelt, which won the 2012 Newbery Medal. His memoir, Hole in My Life, won the Michael L. Printz and Robert F. Sibert Honors. Jack's follow-up to Hole in My Life is The Trouble in Me He also teaches courses in children's book writing and children's literature. He dev.eloped the master's degree program in children's book writing at Emerson College and the Vermont College M.F.A. program for children's book writers.
(Bowker Author Biography)
Reviews (3)
School Library Journal Review
Gr 1-3-Rotten Ralph has his eye on the prize: the coveted "Best in Show" cup at the cat show, but his cousin has entered the competition, too. Ralph knows his chances are next to nil against Perfect Percy, the overachieving orange tabby who even has his own cheering squad. When Sarah tries to whip the rascally red feline into shape, it's a little bit Rocky, a little bit My Fair Lady, and none of it really seems to do Ralph a bit of good. He comes to realize that he can never become the sort of cat who recites "A Tale of Two Kitties" by rote: "One was the best of kitties./The other was the worst of kitties-." What Ralph does best is to be his own rotten self. This fourth "Rotten Ralph Rotten Reader" is every bit as lively and entertaining as the previous books. Rubel's wonderfully wonky and bright color illustrations add character expression and humor. Gantos gives kids everything they want in an early reader: a plotline with plenty of laughs, interesting characters, and a manageable reading experience. Divided into four short chapters, this story is perfect for beginning readers who are itching for, but not quite ready to make, the transition to lengthier chapter books.-Carol L. MacKay, Camrose Public Library, Alberta, Canada (c) Copyright 2010. Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
Horn Book Review
(Primary) There's nothing like a cat show to get Rotten Ralph's competitive juices flowing; after all, he'll be competing against his longtime nemesis, the near-perfect Percy. ""If you want to be a winner, you have to train like one,"" Sarah tells Ralph as she starts him on a fitness routine and helps build his confidence. But all the confidence in the world won't help when the judges compare Percy's and Ralph's lineage, listen to both cats meow, and grade the two on their elocution. Sarah gives Ralph some sage advice for the final competition (skills and hobbies): ""Just be yourself."" Acknowledging that ""my special skill is being rotten,"" Ralph pulls out all the stops to upstage Percy. There are no surprises here for youngsters familiar with the series, and therein lies the strength of this entry: Ralph is rotten to the core, and the joy for beginning readers comes from seeing just how rotten rotten can be. (c) Copyright 2010. The Horn Book, Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted. All rights reserved.
Booklist Review
Gr. 1-3. In the fourth installment of the popular Rotten Ralph Rotten Reader series, bad Ralph wants to beat his smarmy cousin Percy in the cat show, so he lets Sarah help him get in shape. She drags him off the couch (It is so sad when a cat has gone to the dogs ) and makes him do push-ups and sit-ups. One very funny picture shows him entangled on the floor after trying to jump rope. On the day of the contest, even though his whiskers are waxed and his posture is proper, he can't compete with Percy's fancy pedigree and skills. OK, Percy wins the prize, but Ralph gets a huge trophy for being the Worst at Being Best, and like the contest judges, new readers will be won over by the hilarious antics of the individual who stays true to his irrepressible self. --Hazel Rochman Copyright 2005 Booklist
Table of Contents
| Cat-Show Jitters | p. 7 |
| Bird-Beak Blahs | p. 17 |
| A Tale of Two Kitties | p. 29 |
| I Gotta Be Me! | p. 39 |
