Dirty Gert - Hardcover

Arnold, Tedd

3.39

444 ratings by Goodreads

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 0823424049 ISBN 13: 9780823424047

Publisher: Holiday House, 2013

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Gert loves dirt. She rolls in it, digs in it, even tastes it.

But one day, while she's making mud pies, all that dirt changes her. Gert sprouts leaves, grows roots, and begins to photosynthesize in the sunlight! Gert is delighted, but the neighborhood can’t believe it. . . and soon the notoriety becomes too much for the grungy, green girl.

Luckily, Mom and Dad know just what to do!

Told in rhythm and rhyme and full of fun, tongue-twisting vocabulary, Dirty Gert is a celebration of individuality and unconditional love. . . and, of course, of the fun of playing in the dirt. Tedd Arnold’s cartoonish illustrations—complete with a cast of whispering worm commentators—express the joy of making mudpies, playing with worms, and most importantly, spending time with your loving family.

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About the Author:

Tedd Arnold is the best-selling author-illustrator of the Fly Guy series, with two Theodor Seuss Geisel Award Honor books and more than 18.5 million books in print. He is author and illustrator of Dirty Gert, Vincent Paints His House, and Fix This Mess, an I Like to Read book. He is co-author and illustrator of the Noodleheads series, including Noodleheads See the Future, a Theodor Seuss Geisel Award Honor Book, an American Library Association Notable Book, and winner of the American Folklore Society's Aesop Prize.

From School Library Journal:

PreS-K-Gert loves playing in dirt: digging holes, making mud pies, even eating it. Her parents indulge her earth-loving ways, leaving their daughter to spend most of her time with the chatty worms. While eating mud in the rain one day, the combination of soil and water causes Gert to put down roots and develop treelike appendages. Others are not so enthusiastic about her changes: her brother covers her with a trash can; the neighbors think she needs to be cleaned; and then the lawyers, news reporters, and Hollywood crews show up to capitalize on Gert's strange transformation. "The lawyers called. They were appalled!/No one had legalized her." The little girl-tree begins to wilt under all of the attention, so, in an anticlimactic ending, her parents bring Gert in to the safety of the house for a meal: dirt, of course. Arnold's cartoonlike big-eyed, big-headed characters give the story his signature touch of humor and are the book's strength. Gert's wild nature is evident in her three askew ponytails and the smudges of dirt that cover her face in nearly every illustration. The story is set almost completely in the backyard, but Gert is still seen from a variety of perspectives, including as a giant from a worm's-eye view. The rhyming text introduces great vocabulary words, like "photosynthesize" and "botanist," but readers never actually hear from Gert or learn of her thoughts about her transformation, which limits the depth of the story.-Marian McLeod, Darien Library, CTα(c) Copyright 2013. Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.

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