Albert, the Dog Who Liked to Ride in Taxis - Hardcover

Zarin, Cynthia

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 0689847629 ISBN 13: 9780689847622

Publisher: Atheneum/Richard Jackson Books, 2004

Synopsis

Always Albert hopes for rain. On rainy days Mrs. Crabtree takes him with her for taxi rides. So much better than walks.
One day -- brilliantly sunny, for a surprise -- Albert hops a taxi alone. More than one taxi, actually.
You will never guess where he goes!

About this title

About the Author

Cynthia Zarin is a staff writer at The New Yorker magazine and an Artist-in-Residence at the Cathedral of Saint John the Divine in New York City.

She is the author of several books of poetry and four picture books for children: Rose and Sebastian; What Do You See When You Shut Your Eyes?; Wallace Hoskins, the Boy Who Grew Down; and Albert, the Dog Who Liked to Ride in Taxis. She lives with her family in Manhattan.

Reviews

Grade 1-3--Most of the time, Albert the dachshund and Mrs. Crabtree walk the streets of New York City, but they occasionally take taxis, and thus is born the dog's simple pleasure. One day, he sneaks into a cab alone, but is soon dumped back onto the sidewalk by the driver. Next, he enters a car with a "very old lady" who offers to take him on an adventure. Though interested, he jumps out of the window and begins a third escapade with a couple of airport-bound boys. When they arrive at the terminal, the hyperactive pooch is overwhelmed by travel possibilities, until he runs into Mr. Crabtree, who is returning from a business trip, and the man takes his pet home in a cab (though now Albert daydreams of airplanes instead of automobiles). Young urbanites will relate to scenes of Central Park and the Brooklyn Bridge, but may not share Albert's delight in traveling alone and being lost in a big city. The lengthy text requires an audience of independent readers; young listeners will have trouble following the jumpy narrative with its confusing character cameos. Pratt's witty illustrations, rendered in quick broad strokes and vibrant washes of color, aptly reflect the bustling vitality of the city but are not enough to elevate Albert to more than a secondary purchase.--Mary Ann Carcich, Hampton Bays Public Library, NY
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Edition details

• Publisher: Atheneum/Richard Jackson Books
• Publication date: 2004
• Language: English
• ISBN 10: 0689847629
• ISBN 13: 9780689847622
• Binding: Hardcover
• Illustrator: Pratt Pierre
• Edition number: 1
• Number of pages: 32