The Beastly Arms [Hardcover]

Patrick Jennings (Author)

Book Description

Age Level: 10 and up

Nickel and his mother need t find a new apartment. When their search leads them to an unfamiliar part of the city, Nickel is drawn to a strange building at the end of an alley, a building called The Beastly Arms. Nickel¹s mom thinks the building is creepy. But Nickel‹an avid photographer who has a gift for seeing what others miss‹senses that The Beastly Arms houses a secret that only he can unearth. And that secret will leave you looking at the world in a whole new way.

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com Review

Mr. Beastly has a secret, there's no doubt about it. Or at least that's the conclusion sixth grader Nick Dill reaches after he and his mom stumble across this strange man's little building--the Beastly Arms--while apartment-hunting.

Like his mom, who teaches photography at City College, Nick always seems to be looking at the world through a camera lens. Everyone looks like an animal: His best friend, Inez, is a spider monkey; his teacher, Mr. Kirkaby, reminds him of a gray fox; and Sixto, the guy at the newsstand with big circles under his eyes and the same white vest over a black T-shirt every day, is a panda. But Nick just can't figure out what sort of animal Mr. Beastly looks like--or why he has such a fondness for Miriam, the kangaroo rat who travels around in Nick's shirt pocket.

For better or worse, Nick is about to find out a whole lot more about the mysterious Mr. Beastly, and not just because of the interview assignment that Mr. Kirkaby gives Nick and his class. As it turns out, Mr. Beastly has a very attractive vacancy in the Beastly Arms--and Nick and his mom have no idea what they're getting into. But, as Mr. Beastly himself says, sometimes you just have to follow your gut. (Ages 10 and older) --Paul Hughes

From Publishers Weekly

Featuring colorful characters, a hint of mystery and an unusual perspective on urban life, Jennings's (Faith and the Electric Dogs; Putnam and Pennyroyal) winsome novel traces the remarkable discoveries of Nickel Dill, an 11-year-old nature lover and photography buff. Walking around the city with his camera (passed down by his grandfather), Nickel looks beyond the crowds and grime. His artist's eye allows him to see wildlife in cloud formations ("There's a mud puppy, catching a ball.... And the shrew who threw it!") and he gives each of his neighbors an animal identity ("Mr. Huddleston, the flower-stand man, was a bobcat, with his goatee and hairy ears, and Agatha, the pie lady, was a walrus"). When the rent goes up on their apartment, the boy and his mother are forced to move. One day while they are apartment hunting, they come across a mysterious man named Mr. Beastly (Nickel "couldn't put his finger on what kind of animal he was"), who offers them an apartment in his building for an incredibly low rent. Jennings doles out just enough clues to the Beastly Arms' history such as Mr. Beastly's fascination with Nick's pet kangaroo rat and the litter box smell that permeates the building to keep pages turning at a rapid rate. Nickel's passion for photography and his touching relationships with both his mother and his best friend, Inez, lay the groundwork for his ability to recognize and appreciate Mr. Beastly's gifts. Readers will remain alert and entertained as they wait to find out what secrets the young hero will uncover. Ages 10-up. (May)
Copyright 2001 Reed Business Information, Inc.

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Reading level: Ages 10 and up
  
• Hardcover: 320 pages
• Publisher: Scholastic; 1st edition (May 1, 2001)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 043916589X
• ISBN-13: 978-0439165891
• Product Dimensions: 8.6 x 5.8 x 1.1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.1 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 4.2 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (4 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #3,501,804 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

As a kid Patrick Jennings was afraid of African black mambas and tigers. He grew up in Northwestern Indiana.

He got his first pair of glasses when he was eight, and always wished he had a nickname like his friend, Mike. Mike was called "Tiger" by everyone, even the teachers. Wow.

Patrick Jennings may be called "Tiger," if you wish, or "Tigersnack." Both names are hidden inside his name. (As is "Rat" and "Ratpick," but he's not as fond of those and discourages their use. "Jetpack" is fine.)

Before he became a professional writer, in 1995, Tigersnack was a paperboy, a busboy, a fry cook, a hoddy, a record store clerk, a courier, a teacher, and a librarian. He has since published sixteen books for young readers. Can you find them somewhere on this site?

Jetpack's books have featured such creatures as electric dogs, rocket cats, grebes, coots, kangaroo rats, werewolves, scorpions, horses grown from seed, teenagers, gopher snakes, guinea dogs, and a lucky (or perhaps unlucky) sixth grader. Stinking Carp (he doesn't like this one) is currently working on books about a bat, a rat, alien dognappers, an owl in a suit, and, naturally, a tiger.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

7 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A Sure-Fire Winner With Kids, December 6, 2001

By A Customer

This review is from: The Beastly Arms (Hardcover)

The Beastly Arms is a highly engaging, very enjoyable read. Patrick Jennings has come up with a quirky, interesting protagonist: Nickel, an imaginative young city boy who photographs clouds. The writing shines: unique, well-observed details; vivid scenes; spare, yet rich and believable dialogue. Like photographs, the images are so rich and sensitive they live on in the memory. There's a subtle wit and wisdom to the book and an avoidance of cuteness or cliche that kids (and adults) will appreciate. Nickel's closest relationships-with his single mom, with his school friend and her parents, with his pet kangaroo rat, Miriam-are all well-drawn and sympathetic. When Nickel and his mother move into a mysterious building called The Beastly Arms, the story leads to an exciting, unexpected, and fantastic (in the best sense) conclusion.

8 of 10 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Another great book by Patrick Jennings, April 30, 2001

By A Customer

This review is from: The Beastly Arms (Hardcover)

I absolutely love this book, really couldn't put it down! Like "Faith and the Rocket Dogs" and "Faith and the Electric Cat", this book inspires further reseach while being completely intertaining. I wasn't a reader as a kid and at 39 I am really enjoying books written for a younger audience. Both for myself and to read aloud to my not yet reading kids. This book is as wildly imaginitive as Holes but with so much more researched detail. I think kids will learn so much from reading this book and want to know more about some things in the story that they may not be familial with. It is the story of a boy and his mom who move into a new building as a result of a rent increase and the things they learn about The Beastly Arms. For more you'll have to read the book.

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Fun read, August 5, 2006

A Kid's Review

This review is from: The Beastly Arms (Mass Market Paperback)

The Beastly Arms by Patrick Jennings has well developed characters and an interesting plot, but given how short the book is (227 pages), I was surprised by its slow pace. I'm enjoyed reading it, but unlike some other books I read this summer (for example, Dragon Rider, by Cornelia Funke and Shipwreck at the Bottom of the World: The Extraordinary True Story of Shackleton and the Endurance by Jennifer Armstrong), it wasn't a book that I wanted to read straight through without stopping.
The Beastly Arms tells the story of an 11-year-old photographer named Nickel who sees the world in a unique and interesting way. To his eye, everything looks like animals. His best friend looks like a spider monkey; a woman who sells pies looks like a walrus; and a cloud looks like a camel sitting on a dune. Nickel and his mother must move when their landlord raises their rent, so they set out to find an apartment. A brass sign on a building tucked away in the back of an alley catches his attention. The sign reads: The Beastly Arms.
The owner of the building, Mr. Beastly, initially tells Nickel that he has no vacant apartments, but when he sees Nickel's pet kangaroo rat poking out of his pocket, he abruptly changes his story and offers them an apartment at a very low rent. Nickel thinks there is something odd and mysterious about Mr. Beastly, and to his surprise, he cannot imagine what type of animal Mr. Beastly is.
Mr. Beastly does have a secret, and Nickel decides to find out what it is. In the end, he does, but if you want to discover Mr. Beastly's secret, you have to read the book.
I would recommend this book to my friends, but only if they have already read Dragon Rider.