Spider Boy - Hardcover

Fletcher, Ralph

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 0395776066 ISBN 13: 9780395776063

Publisher: Clarion Books, 1997

Synopsis

Spider-loving Bobby gets an opportunity for revenge on Chick Hall, the bully at his new school, who tortures him, but Chick's cruel retaliation turns out to be more than Bobby had bargained for.

About this title

About the Author

Ralph Fletcher is the author of many well-received books for children, including (for Clarion) the novels FIG PUDDING, and FLYING SOLO, and picture books TWILIGHT COMES TWICE, GRANDPA NEVER LIES and CIRCUS SURPRISE. He lives with his family in New Hampshire.

Reviews

Grade 5-7. Bobby loves spiders and keeps a journal in which he records interesting facts about them, as well as some personal reflections. He is worried about his pet tarantula because she hasn't eaten since the family moved from Illinois to New Paltz, NY. The boy doesn't have much of an appetite himself. He doesn't fit in with the rest of the seventh graders at his new school. A group of his classmates call him "Spider Boy" and make his life difficult. The use of spiders in Bobby's journal and in the plot is a unique unifying theme of this novel. However, the character development is less successful. It takes awhile for readers to care about Bobby. The supporting characters are stereotypes (bully, understanding teacher, confident older sister). The story moves slowly and is limited in intensity until a final crisis. The resolution is predictable but upbeat. Bobby finds a niche for his unique interests, new friends with whom to play football, and even a little romance.?Adele Greenlee, Bethel College, St. Paul, MN
Copyright 1997 Reed Business Information, Inc.

In a story every bit as engaging as Fletcher's Fig Pudding (1995), and less of an emotional rollercoaster to boot, a seventh- grade arachnophile and his beloved tarantula take some time adjusting to a family move. Between missing his old home and worrying about Thelma (the spider), who has stopped eating, Bobby feels suspended, unable to accept the change in his life long enough to unpack. His parents give him plenty of room and support, plus a huge, ferocious king baboon spider he dubs ``Monk'' as an early birthday present. Not until two new friends take him firmly in hand, and a bully's harassment escalates into spidercide, does Bobby snap out of it. So does Thelma, who molts and once again takes to pouncing on hapless crickets. Capable of telling wild but utterly convincing tall tales about his family at school, courageous enough to make handsome apologies later (and to face his nemesis without fear), Bobby is a beguiling character who fills his notebook with fascinating spider facts (a bibliography is appended) and trenchant observations: ``The female [black widow] allows the male to mate with her. And to show her appreciation she kills him. Eats him. . . . It's lucky human girls aren't this dangerous. Or who knows--maybe they are.'' Creating and guiding a winning cast with a light, sure hand, Fletcher puts a fine, fresh spin on a familiar premise. (Fiction. 10-13) -- Copyright ©1997, Kirkus Associates, LP. All rights reserved.

Gr. 5-8. Bobby Ballenger, a walking encyclopedia on spider lore, is quickly dubbed the "Spider Boy from Illinois" by his new seventh-grade classmates. With his watch and his heart still set on Midwest time, Bobby struggles with homesickness and finding his place in New Paltz, New York. Fletcher portrays the new-kid-on-the-block syndrome honestly by making Bobby a sympathetic but not perfect character who starts out spinning spider tales and ends up accepting his new life. Along the way, Bobby believably faces down the taunts, cheating, and cruelty of the class bully and finds his own sense of worth. Packed with juicy tidbits guaranteed to make arachnophobics squirm, this appealing story will be an easy sell to middle-school readers. Candace Smith

Edition details

• Publisher: Clarion Books
• Publication date: 1997
• Language: English
• ISBN 10: 0395776066
• ISBN 13: 9780395776063
• Binding: Hardcover
• Edition number: 1
• Number of pages: 183