Poppleton

Rylant, Cynthia

ISBN 10: 0613057236 ISBN 13: 9780613057233

Publisher: Turtleback Books, 1997

Synopsis

Poppleton the pig makes a friend, reads a library book about adventure, and helps a sick friend get better.;As a child in West Virginia, Cynthia Rylant never dreamed of becoming a writer. In her free time, she devoured Archie comic books and paperback romances and enjoyed the outdoors. But after taking one college English class, she was, "hooked on great writing… I didn't know about this part of me until I went to college-didn't know I loved beautiful stories." And one night, inspired by the Southern writer James Agee, she sat down and wrote When I Was Young in the Mountains. Named a Caldecott Honor Book and an ALA Notable Book, it was an instant success.Since that night, Rylant hasn't stopped creating wonderful books. Her stories explore friendship, love, grief, and other mysteries, and often draw on her memories of growing up in Appalachia. "I get a lot of personal gratification thinking of those people who don't get any attention in the world and making them really valuable in my fiction-making them absolutely shine with their beauty."She lives with her many pets in the Pacific Northwest.Mark Teague is an award-winning children's book author and illustrator whose books include the NEW YORK TIMES bestselling How Do Dinosaurs... series, the LaRue series, FIREHOUSE!, FUNNY FARM, and many other humorous picture books. Mark lives in New York state with his wife and their two daughters.

About this title

About the Author

As a child in West Virginia, Newbery Medalist Cynthia Rylant devoured comic books and paperback romances. She never dreamed of being a writer until she took one college English class. Then she became "hooked on great writing...I didn't know about this part of me until I went to college—didn't know that I loved beautiful stories." One night, inspired by the Southern writer, James Agee, she wrote her first picture book, When I Was Young in the Mountains, which was an instant success. Since then, she's written more than 60 children's books and received numerous awards, including the Newbery and the Boston Globe/Horn Book Award. With simplicity and grace, Rylant's books explore such subjects as aging, the trials of spirituality, the loss of a loved one, and the spirit and integrity of family life with all its joys and hardships. Rylant has said, "Books alter our hearts." Her books are a testament to this promise. Rylant lives in the Pacific Northwest. For more information about Cynthia Rylant, visit: scholastic.com/tradebooks

From Publishers Weekly

City pig Poppleton adjusts to small-town life in this understated and roundly appealing chapter book. In "Neighbors," the polite Poppleton tries to think up a polite way to say "no thanks" to Cherry Sue, a friendly llama who invites him to breakfast, lunch and dinner every single day. When his aggravation expresses itself as rudeness, Cherry Sue admits that she didn't know how to stop issuing invitations without hurting Poppleton's feelings, and the two become best friends. The second vignette, "The Library," details Poppleton's reading ritual, which demands solitude. Finally, "The Pill" introduces Fillmore, a sick goat who refuses to take his pill unless Poppleton hides it in a cake, whereupon the stubborn goat eats all the other slices until he reaches the one with the medicine: " 'I can't eat that one,' he said. 'It has a pill.' " As in Rylant's other series for beginning readers (Henry and Mudge; Mr. Potter and Tabby), her concise sentences mimic the characters' good manners and wryly point up the failures of etiquette. Teague contributes fetching watercolor-and-pencil images of the pudgy pig, slender llama and dignified goat; the compositions are airier and the palette lighter than in his Pigsty or The Secret Shortcut. The end pages offer a satisfying bird's-eye view of the quaint, cozy neighborhood, with all three characters strolling the sidewalks. Ages 4-7.
Copyright 1996 Reed Business Information, Inc.

Edition details

• Publisher: Turtleback Books
• Publication date: 1997
• Language: English
• ISBN 10: 0613057236
• ISBN 13: 9780613057233
• Binding: School & Library Binding
• Number of pages: 56