Fred Stays With Me! [Hardcover]

Nancy Coffelt (Author), Tricia Tusa (Illustrator)

Book Description

Publication Date: June 1, 2007 | Grade Level: P and up

Told from the point of view of a young child whose parents are divorced, Fred Stays with Me follows a girl and her dog, Fred, from one parent's house to the other's, giving her a sense of continuity and stability. With a simple text and childlike language, the story expresses and addresses a child's concerns, highlights the friendship between child and pet, presents a common ground for the parents, and resolves conflict in a positive way. Tricia Tusa's charming and whimsical artwork adds a light, happy feel to this poignant--but not overly sentimental--story.

Editorial Reviews

From School Library Journal

Starred Review. Kindergarten-Grade 3—Coffelt and Tusa have teamed up to create a charming book that meshes text and illustrations seamlessly. A young girl moves back and forth between her divorced parents' homes, along with her canine companion, Fred, who has several bad habits that neither parent appreciates. When the dog wears out his welcome at both homes, the child must forcefully remind the adults that, "Fred stays with me!" and help work out solutions for his naughty behavior. The story unfolds through the voice of the child: "Sometimes I live with my mom. Sometimes I live with my dad. My dog, Fred, stays with me." Her descriptions of what she does at each residence and Fred's constant affection and consistent bad behavior can be read independently by the intended audience. The text, for the most part, appears against a simple white backdrop. Tusa uses gold and brown hues with occasional splashes of red to create a warm tone. The narrator is drawn with a doll-like charm, but it is Fred, with his perky ears and perpetually wagging tail, that holds the most appeal.—Maura Bresnahan, High Plain Elementary School, Andover, MA
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

From Booklist

A small girl's bond with her beloved pet helps her handle the disruption of her parents' divorce. She has to sleep in two different beds in two different homes, but wherever she goes, her dog, Fred, stays with her. He does make trouble--barking at the poodle that lives next door to Mom's house, shaking mud all over her car seats, eating Dad's socks--but when the grown-ups object, she is adamant that she will never let him go. Kids will enjoy the simple, first-person narrative and the playful art, in shades of brown and red, that shows the mayhem Fred causes and the power he gives the child because he will never leave her. Shown from the girl's viewpoint, the pictures do not include the grown-ups. For more picture books about shuttling between parents' homes, pair this with the titles in the Read-alikes "Mom's House, Dad's House," in the March 1, 2003, issue of Booklist. Hazel Rochman
Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Hardcover: 32 pages
• Publisher: Little, Brown Books for Young Readers (June 1, 2007)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0316882690
• ISBN-13: 978-0316882699
• Product Dimensions: 8.4 x 0.8 x 9.4 inches
• Shipping Weight: 10.4 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (7 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #916,011 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Nancy Coffelt began her career as a fine artist and soon branched out into illustration and writing for young people. While she is known for her bright oil pastel imagery and humorous picture books, Nancy's young adult work has an edgier side. Her books have garnered praise ranging from starred reviews from Kirkus, Horn Book and SLJ as well as her FRED STAYS WITH ME receiving an ALA Notable mention as well as the Boston Globe/Horn Book Honor Award.
Nancy lives, paints, writes, teaches and obeys the whims of her family's two small dogs in Portland, Oregon.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

10 of 11 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars The book stays with you as well, November 4, 2006

By 

E. R. Bird "Ramseelbird" (Manhattan, NY) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Fred Stays With Me! (Hardcover)

Maybe it's a little too soon to start cooing loudly over a 2007 title. And not just any 2007 title but a JUNE 2007 title. Maybe. And maybe it's too soon to start mentioning it to my patrons when they ask for picture books that concern a topic all too common in American today; divorce. Maybe. And maybe it's too soon to start whispering words like "fabulous pictures" and "sensible touching plot" and "must-own title" around Nancy Coffelt's, "Fred Stays With Me". Maybe. Or maybe a blogger like myself should start as early as possible to help rustle up some support for what I strongly believe to be a must-have 2007 pick. Picture books come and picture books go but I think there's gonna be one thing we can all agree on in the upcoming 2007 season... "Fred Stays With Me!"

Says the young girl hero of this book, life can be inconsistent but not when it comes to her dog Fred's living status. Whether she's living with her mom one day or her dad the next, "Fred stays with me!". Of course, it's not as if Fred is a perfect pet at all times. When they're at her mom's he likes to bark at the next door neighbor's poodle. When they're at her dad's, Fred eats every sock you can find. Still, the pup is a constant in the little girl's life. So much so that when each of her parents make the point that Fred can't stay with them, our heroine declares long and loud that there is no question of Fred staying with one parent or another. After all, "Fred stays with ME!" Realizing this, her mom and dad find ways to work around or change Fred's less than desirable habits and all is well in the end.

Now you would think with the sheer number of children of divorce living in America today that there would be a plethora of excellent picture book titles out there reflecting those kids' living situations. Now I'm going to sit you down and ask you a question. Have a seat. You ready? Okay. Look me in the eye and name five books written for young children that are really excellent, talk about divorce, and are instantly relatable. Can't come up with five? I'll make it easy on you then. Come up with three. No, wait, two. Come up with just two titles. Remember, they have to be "good". Not the usual Mommy-And-Daddy-Don't-Live-Here-Anymore Mr. Rodgers knock-offs clogging bookstore shelves nationwide. Honest-to-goodness smart books of divorce are as uncommon as sweet summer rains in December. They can happen, but they're rare. "Fred Stays With Me!" is the very definition of rare too. Few books really capture the heart of a character's story like this book manages to do. The little girl in this book accepts her situation. It's not perfect but she has something constant in her life that she can always count on. Her Fred. And Fred's no saint himself, but with a little pushing on the girl's part, her parents can learn to adapt to the dog's messy ways. He doesn't fit perfectly into their lives but he fits perfectly into their daughter's, and they simply are going to have to accept that. "Fred doesn't stay with either of you. Fred stays with ME!" Says it all right there, it does.

Extra points to the person who roped illustrator Tricia Tusa into this project as well. Ms. Tusa is a memorable illustrator. Even if you've never read any of her picture books, you'll recognize her style from innumerable book covers. Here, Tusa works with a purposefully limited palette. In an era of increased glam and glitz in the children's book industry, Tusa's muted autumnal colors come as a truly gorgeous compliment to Coffelt's low-key action. The entire book is told in golden brown, saffron, and peach watercolors. Tusa then creates characters that are sweet but never maudlin. She manages to create truly amiable people and animals that win your heart with just the slightest of glances at the cover. But when you see the little girl sitting in a tree showing Fred her paper dolls or holding Fred in a kind of makeshift spotlight as she explains that her pet is HER pet, you don't feel overwhelmed by sticky sweet emotions. You are instead facing actual honest-to-goodness raw and realistic feelings that Coffelt and Tusa offer up to you honestly. Add in the details Tusa is able to sneak in here and there (like the footwear-devouring Fred staring lovingly up at a single sock hanging on a line) and you've got yourself the only artist I can imagine Coffelt's book ever pairing with.

This isn't a book that unfairly plays with your heartstrings. It wins your heart fair and square and manages to be the number one best picture book about divorce ever written as a result. On that you can quote me. By far one of the strongest picture books you'll see on your shelves, and a book you should write down the title of right now so that you can remember it's shining face later on down the line. A strong remarkable creation.

5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Fred Stays With Me, June 7, 2007

By 

G. Auxier (Gainesville, Florida) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Fred Stays With Me! (Hardcover)

For the last 14 years I have taught Positive Divorce Resolution, a 4 hour course for divorcing parents in Florida and this book is my all time favorite. It is simple, clear, a real pleasure to read.

Fred Stays With Me is the first and only book that has you pulling for the child every step of the way. Very well written, well illustrated and complete in its message: kids need to be considered, kids need consistency, kids need support. I would like for every judge in family law and every attorney who practices family law to have a copy in their waiting rooms. I will keep Fred Stays with me on my list of recommended reading for parents.
Thank you Nancy Coffelt, for writing this book!

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Fred Stays with Me, September 12, 2007

By 

A. M. Brown (Kansas City, Missouri United States) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Fred Stays With Me! (Hardcover)

I have searched for books to help my 4 year old daughter better understand life after divorce. I have not found a book yet that shed a positive family dynamic until Fred Stays with Me! Our family experience was fortunately far more positive than many of the books on the market that deal with divorce suggest. We tried a few others and the father always seems disinterested or abusive. While I recognize these subjects are important for some families, I applaud the author and illustrator for making divorce the background. My daughter adores the book. It has sparked wonderful conversations about our family situation.