Armadilly Chili [Hardcover]

Helen Ketteman (Author), Will Terry (Illustrator)

Book Description

Grade Level: K and up

A blue norther's a-blowing', and Miss Billie Armadilly is hankering to make a pot of chili! Only she needs to fix it all by herself because Tex the tarantula, Mackie the bluebird, and Taffy the horned toad are too busy to lend a hand.

Editorial Reviews

From School Library Journal

PreSchool-Grade 2-When the winds of a Texas "blue norther" bend cactuses to the curves of the desert hills, Miss Billie Armadilly decides to make a pot of chili. Modeled after the Little Red Hen, the task-focused armadillo asks for assistance from Tex the tarantula, Mackie the bluebird, and Taffy the horned toad, but all three are too busy to help. Ever resourceful, Miss Billie single-handedly gathers a bunch of beetles, picks a peck of peppers, chops up prickly pear cactus, and cooks up her specialty. That evening, her hungry pals ask for a taste, but she tells them, "No workin' with Billie, no sharin' the chili!" However, when the proud and somewhat angry armadillo sits down to eat, she sadly discovers one precious ingredient missing from the concoction-the love of her friends. Terry's vibrant cartoon artwork adds personality to Billie and her large-eyed companions. Done in jewel tones, the scenes depict the warmth of the desert landscape as well as that of the creatures' friendship. The rhythmic text reads aloud well and the dialogue has a western flavor. Pair this variant of the classic story with Janet Stevens and Susan Stevens Crummel's Cook-a-Doodle-Doo! (Harcourt, 1999) to spark a discussion of colorful characters in traditional tales.
Mary Elam, Forman Elementary School, Plano, TX
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

From Booklist

K-Gr. 3. Yee haw! This Texas-style takeoff on "The Little Red Hen" bubbles with southwestern flavor. Miss Billie Armadilly is hankerin' for a pot of hot armadilly chili but her friends--tarantula Tex, bluebird Mackie, and horned Taffy the toad--have excuses for not helping her gather a boxful of beetles, pick a peck of peppers, and chop prickly pear cactus. "No workin' with Billie, no sharin' the chili," is Miss Billie's retort when the smell of the bubbling chili brings her friends to her door, but the chili tastes flat until her buddies return bringing sacks of apologies and goodies; friends, it seems were the missing ingredient. Ketteman flavors the tale and message with plenty of pizzazz. Terry uses hot, intensely saturated, southwestern colors to spice the comedy, and embellishes each critter's characteristics with clever details, such as Tex's bolo tie. A surefire hit for the lap-sit crowd. Julie Cummins
Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved

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Product Details

• Hardcover: 32 pages
• Publisher: Albert Whitman & Company (January 1, 2004)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0807504572
• ISBN-13: 978-0807504574
• Product Dimensions: 8.8 x 11.1 x 0.3 inches
• Shipping Weight: 13.6 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (9 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #310,957 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Colorful and Fun, July 28, 2004

By 

Jammie Marie Schulte "Jammie Marie Schulte" (Eugene, OR USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Armadilly Chili (Hardcover)

Review By Priscilla Ing, Howard Elementary, Eugene SD
For more reviews visit www.lane.k12.or.us/bookreview

This is a colorful and fun story set in the Southwest where an armadillo named Billie Armadilly is preparing to make a big pot of chili. In the same pattern as The Little Red Hen, Billie meets her friends, Tex the tarantula, Mackie the bluebird, and Taffy the horned toad, and asks each to help. All are too busy but want to help eat the chili when its finished, and Billie refuses. In the end, the friends realize their error and bring other items to share in the meal as well as their apologies. The story is not only fun to read and view the vivid pictures painted by Will Terry, but could also be a good discussion starter when discussing friendships and relationships.

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Get warm with Armadilly Chili!, May 3, 2004

By 

John Berry (Wellsville, UT United States) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Armadilly Chili (Hardcover)

Mr. Terry has wonderfully illustrated a great book. The illustrations carry the nicely written text. Children will fall in love with the colorful exciting book, and it will become a nighttime classic, overnight! Kudos to Mr. Will Terry.

5.0 out of 5 stars Great Find for Kindergarten, March 31, 2011

By 

kindergarten teacher - See all my reviews

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Armadilly Chili (Albert Whitman Prairie Books) (Paperback)

My kindergarten students really loved this book. I did it in conjunction with our Western theme. It had very eye-catching pictures and a wonderful story.