Customer Reviews

The Elf of Union Square

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My ten year old daughter loved this book and read it in two nights!! It has been passed all around the fourth and fifth grades. Mystery, adventure, dog poop, what more could you want! An excellent choice for the 8 to 12 year old set.
Loved it!

The title is pretty much spot on; it's a story about an elf who lives in Union Square Park. Hiram, the elf, has lived there for many, many, many years and he isn't happy about all the people that are constantly walking, playing, and eating at his park. But what can one elf do about it? Well, actually he can do quite a lot and before you know it he has caused trouble for many of the park goers! Tempers are flared and the people of New York are becoming rude and inconsiderate of one another. Luckily Jack, a ten year old "detective", and his reporter friend Will begin to investigated the curious happenings at Union Square Park...but can they undo all the troublesome pranks that Hiram so cleverly planned and put into place?

All 166 pages of this book were fun to read! Each night I was excited about pulling this book off my shelf because I knew I was going to be reading more about that ol' rascally elf and I couldn't wait to see what else he had up his sleeve. Some of the stuff that he did made me think "uh-oh!" and I sometimes felt bad for those poor New Yorkers. As I continued to read I wondered just how these poor folks were going to outsmart his clever little elf...and when I finally got to the end of the book, I was happy about where the story lead me.

Interwoven into the story were morals for the children. Since Hiram was mischievous, the author balanced that by adding Jack and Will, and also Jack's mom Mimi. There were even secondary characters who helped teach the reader a few lessons such as courtesy, etiquette, and considering others and their feelings.

Yes, this is a book I would recommend to any aged reader who is looking for a fun adventure! The book is targeted for those readers who are between the ages of 8 to 12, but I think it's a great read for any person who is young at heart. If you have children then you should have a copy of this book on hand for them to read...or you can even read it aloud to them for story or quiet time.

I've been reading this to my 1st grade boy at night, a few chapters each night. He loves it! It's a bit advanced for him but the second I mention dog poop he is totally focused! A great introduction to chapter books for the younger crowd.