Loretta: Ace Pinky Scout - Hardcover

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 0439368316 ISBN 13: 9780439368315

Publisher: Scholastic Press, 2002

Synopsis

She can save the world - but she can't roast a marshmallow!
An hilarious story about a heroic young Scout who is plagued by her desire for perfection.
Loretta is perfect. From knowing the scout manual by heart, to pressing 375 pounds -- to saving the world every Tuesday -- there is nothing Loretta doesn't excel in. She has earned every known merit badge in the universe - except for one -- The Golden Marshmallow Badge. She can't roast a marshmallow to save her life. Overcome by her failure to acheive, Loretta is reminded by her grandmother that even the most perfect people are flawed. With this new-found knowledge, Loretta gains the courage to accept her imperfect self -- and go on saving the world.

About this title

From School Library Journal

Kindergarten-Grade 3-Meet Loretta, with her scout badges, pink beret and gloves, and her lineage of perfection. She's gung ho all right, in more ways than one, as she works hard to be just like her Gran, who had been the "most perfect Pinky of all," and who speaks to her through a picture frame on the wall. The child memorizes her scout manual, flosses her teeth, bench-presses 375 pounds, and saves the world once a week from terrors like an oversized hen. She has earned every badge a Pinky Scout can earn, except one: the Golden Marshmallow Badge, which involves preparing perfectly browned confections over an open fire. When she fails, for the first time in her life, she learns from Granny that no one is perfect. But give up? Never! She may not be able to toast marshmallows, but she sure can save the world from robotlike creatures, and she earns a Congressional Medal. Loretta's can-do attitude, humor, and enthusiasm for life make her a heroine whom readers will admire. Wonderful caricatures are a perfect accompaniment to the text. Loretta's disproportionate body with a larger-than-life head captures her over-the-top personality. The colorful, rowdy illustrations do her justice, and bring her to life as a persistent perfectionist. A great read-aloud.
Leslie Barban, Richland County Public Library, Columbia, SC
Copyright 2002 Reed Business Information, Inc.

From Publishers Weekly

"All-around gung ho gal" Loretta measures her worth by the number of Pinky Scout merits she achieves. Her pink sash and lavender beret are studded with pins that attest to her accomplishments, and she "save[s] the world every Thursday." The only thing between Loretta and perfection is the Golden Marshmallow Badge, for which she practices faithfully. "Then the unthinkable happened. Foof!" During the official test, Loretta chars her marshmallows. She goes to weep in shame before a portrait of her four-star-general Gran, "the most perfect Pinky of all." In a twinkling, a vision of Gran appears (via her portrait) in a military-green vortex to console the overachiever: "Well, girlfriend, stinking is a part of life. Everyone stinks at something. Even me." Gran admits she never could knot a ribbon; her neat bow-tie is a clip-on. Graves (Frank Was a Monster Who Wanted to Dance) skewers Loretta for her marshmallow mania, and depicts her with licorice-thin arms, tiny army boots and a pageant contestant's pained smile. No (live) family members, troop leaders or other Pinky Scouts are in evidence, so Loretta seems friendless but for Gran and a portrait gallery of Pinkies. The nerdy scout has a valuable epiphany about talent, but will not rouse much sympathy from readers in this awkward blend of irony and earnestness. Ages 7-10.
Copyright 2002 Reed Business Information, Inc.

About this edition

• Publisher: Scholastic Press
• Publication date: 2002
• ISBN 10: 0439368316
• ISBN 13: 9780439368315
• Binding: Hardcover
• Language: English
• Edition number: 1
• Number of pages: 40
• Illustrator: Graves Keith