Max Cleans Up (Max and Ruby) [Paperback]

Rosemary Wells (Author, Illustrator)

Book Description

Age Level: 3 and up | Series: Max and Ruby

Max's room is a mess! There's a Popsicle melting in the closet, a tube of opened Miracle Bubbles on the floor, and the ant farm ants have escaped under the bed! It's definitely time to clean up. Max's sister, Ruby, is quick to take charge, and of course Max wants to help. But Max has his own ideas about picking up his room, so things don't turn out exactly as Ruby planned. Children will cheer as Max innocently and humorously outsmarts his older sister once again.

"Sure to draw plenty of giggles from the burgeoning Max and Ruby fan club." (Kirkus Reviews)

Editorial Reviews

From School Library Journal

PreSchool-The rabbit siblings are back, and they're just as lovable as ever. This time, Ruby is attempting to get Max to clean up his room. Instead of throwing away such things as dirt from his dump truck, ants from his ant farm, an old Easter egg, a melted Popsicle, and other gooey things, he deposits all of them in his front pocket. This, of course, leads to a messy discovery on the last page. The illustrations have more texture than those in the earlier stories; these mixed-media pictures include rubber ants, bird gravel, silver foil, and more, resulting in a new, different, and visually appealing look.
Christina F. Renaud, Attleboro Public Library, MA
Copyright 2000 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to the Hardcover edition.

From Booklist

Ages 3-8. Big sister Ruby is helping Max clean his room. Of course, Max is not being much help in conventional terms, but in his own way he does contribute. Into the front pocket of Max's overalls go pebbles and sand from his Power City Rocker Crusher dump truck, a few ants from his ant farm, his melting Popsicle, and well, you get the idea. Like all Max and Ruby books, this one does not disappoint. It's often hard for parents to find the humor in a child's messiness, but Wells reminds us that it's essential to try. Ruby says to Max, "There is a place for everything and everything is in its place." But how Max responds to that stock phrase is just one of the things that makes this book special. Kathy Broderick
Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved --This text refers to the Hardcover edition.

Product Details

• Reading level: Ages 3 and up
  
• Paperback: 32 pages
• Publisher: Puffin (May 27, 2002)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0142301337
• ISBN-13: 978-0142301333
• Product Dimensions: 9.1 x 8 x 0.1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 5.6 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 4.9 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (15 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #570,956 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
  • #51 in Books > 4-for-3 Books > Children's Books > Authors & Illustrators, A-Z > ( W ) > Wells, Rosemary

More About the Author

Born in New York City, Rosemary Wells grew up in a house "filled with books, dogs, and nineteenth-century music." Her childhood years were spent between her parents' home near Red Bank, New Jersey, and her grandmother's rambling stucco house on the Jersey Shore. Most of her sentimental memories, both good and bad, stem from that place and time. Her mother was a dancer in the Russian Ballet, and her father a playwright and actor. Mrs. Wells says, "Both my parents flooded me with books and stories. My grandmother took me on special trips to the theater and museums in New York. "Rosemary Wells's career as an author and illustrator spans more than 30 years and 60 books. She has won numerous awards, and has given readers such unforgettable characters as Max and Ruby, Noisy Nora, and Yoko. She has also given Mother Goose new life in two enormous, definitive editions, published by Candlewick. Wells wrote and illustrated Unfortunately Harriet, her first book with Dial, in 1972. One year later she wrote the popular Noisy Nora. "The children and our home life have inspired, in part, many of my books. Our West Highland white terrier, Angus, had the shape and expressions to become Benjamin and Tulip, Timothy, and all the other animals I have made up for my stories." Her daughters Victoria and Beezoo were constant inspirations, especially for the now famous "Max" board book series. "Simple incidents from childhood are universal," Wells says. "The dynamics between older and younger siblings are common to all families."But not all of Wells' ideas come from within the family circle. Many times when speaking, Mrs. Wells is asked where her ideas come from. She usually answers, "It's a writer's job to have ideas." Sometimes an idea comes from something she reads or hears about, as in the case of her recent book, Mary on Horseback, a story based on the life of Mary Breckenridge, who founded the Frontier Nursing Service. Timothy Goes to School was based on an incident in which her daughter was teased for wearing the wrong clothes to a Christmas concert. Her dogs, west highland terriers, Lucy and Snowy, work their way into her drawings in expression and body position. She admits, "I put into my books all of the things I remember. I am an accomplished eavesdropper in restaurants, trains, and gatherings of any kind. These remembrances are jumbled up and changed because fiction is always more palatable than truth. Memories become more true as they are honed and whittled into characters and stories."

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

6 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars What a darling book!, January 29, 2005

By 

c2 (Dublin, Ohio) - See all my reviews
(TOP 500 REVIEWER)    (VINE VOICE)   

This review is from: Max Cleans Up (Max and Ruby) (Hardcover)

This book is a great tool to use to help kids clean up their rooms. It is really cute, watching Ruby order Max around to get him to help her clean his room and, typical of curious little boys, Max's room is filled with all sorts of neat "boy things." Like the year-old Easter egg hidden in his underwear drawer (which he shoves into his pocket while his sister isn't looking), ants from his ant farm running loose (they get into the pocket too), gooey bubble making stuff, old chewing gum, etc. It's just so cute to see how big Max's pocket is growing with all the neat "stuff" he's hiding from Ruby because he's afraid that she'll throw it all away. This is certainly a must read for nothing else but the cuteness of the story. It reminded me of Linus and Lucy from Peanuts when I first read it, but Ruby isn't quite as "stern" as Lucy. This one is read all the time in our house and a definite keeper!

10 of 13 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars a valuable clean-up lesson, October 5, 2000

By 

W. K. Miller "kenmiller32" (NC, USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Max Cleans Up (Max and Ruby) (Hardcover)

Wells does a good job again with this book about cleaning up. Max's sister wants him to clean up his room, but Max keeps rescuing items that she is wanting to throw away.

It's funny, and it's just as good as the other Max books.

It also teaches a valuable lesson about cleaning up.

Good for ages 2-7.

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars As always Max and Ruby books are a joy, February 6, 2005

By 

Laurie L. Miller "alyssasmom" (Iowa City, IA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Max Cleans Up (Max and Ruby) (Paperback)

This book is as cute as the other Max and Ruby books. You can't go wrong with these stories!!!!!!!