The Trouble With Normal - Hardcover

Charise Mericle Harper

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 0618156267 ISBN 13: 9780618156269

Publisher: Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, 2003

Synopsis

Finnigan, a Secret Service squirrel in training, reports on the unusual activities at Normal Towers, the apartment building across from his park.

About this title

About the Author

Charise Mericle Harper is the author and illustrator of many books for children, including the “Just” Grace series. In a starred review, Booklist called Just Grace “hilarious” and said, “The kids come alive in the story, and Harper enhances the comical goings-on with sparkling cartoon sketches. Give this to . . . anyone looking for a funny book.” Charise lives in New York City.

Reviews

Kindergarten-Grade 2-Doug has an unusual best friend. "He has a fantastic memory. He notices new things.-[and he] is a squirrel with exceptional character." Finnigan knows he has all the qualities to become a Secret Service squirrel. However, he is missing the one thing secret agents always wear when on the lookout-dark glasses. When Doug gives his pal a pair for his birthday, everyone who lives in Normal Towers, across from the park where Finnigan lives, is now under surveillance. Can becoming a Secret Service squirrel in the White House be far away? The acrylic-and-collage illustrations are full of color and have lots of activity on every page. The text is just the right size for beginning readers, but the story is a bit convoluted for this age group, and older children might find the story of a squirrel walking to Washington to pursue his dreams a bit of a stretch.
Wanda Meyers-Hines, Ridgecrest Elementary School, Huntsville, AL
Copyright 2003 Reed Business Information, Inc.

K-Gr. 3. Finnegan is a squirrel with a dream: he wants to work for the president as a Secret Service squirrel. Consequently, he wears Secret Service-style dark glasses and carries a notebook in which he writes the suspicious activities taking place in the Normal Towers apartments, right across the street from his tree. It's Finnegan's friend, Doug, who recounts the squirrel's efforts to reach his goal, which means taking note of a man buying flowers for his bee and a boy wearing a dish towel as a cape. The vibrant collages, packed with outlandish and charming details, look like a child's artwork, and maps and cut-out photos enhance the zany goings-on. Counting, sequencing, and labeling are part of the story as well, as the squirrel moves his observation from window to window, cataloging his nutty deductions. Funny and fun, with an underlying friendship theme. Connie Fletcher
Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved

Edition details

• Publisher: Houghton Mifflin Harcourt
• Publication date: 2003
• Language: English
• ISBN 10: 0618156267
• ISBN 13: 9780618156269
• Binding: Hardcover
• Number of pages: 32