Parts (Picture Puffins) (Paperback)

by Tedd Arnold (Author) "Then yesterday, before my bath, As I took off my clothes A chunk of something gray and wet Fell right out of my nose..." (more)

Editorial Reviews

From Booklist
Ages 5^-8. The poetry doesn't quite scan, but that's more than balanced by Arnold's unusual topic and his hilarious illustrations. A pop-eyed youngster is having a hard time. He seems to be falling apart. After losing a few hairs, he thinks he's going bald; his belly button lint is his stuffing coming out; "a chunk of something gray and wet" from his nose is none other than a piece of his brain; and a loose tooth puts him into shock. "Quite soon I'll be in pieces in / A pile without a shape. / Thank goodness Dad keeps lots and lots / And lots of masking tape." The gross factor is a key ingredient here, with Arnold exploiting it nicely in bold, comical illustrations that catch the full-blown anxieties of the imaginative narrator. When Mom and Dad intervene, little boy and audience alike breathe a sigh of relief. A zany, ultimately reassuring take on something that may indeed be a child's bugaboo. Stephanie Zvirin --This text refers to the Hardcover edition.

From Kirkus Reviews
Arnold (The Simple People, 1992, etc.) cashes in by grossing out the picture-book set in this story in rhyme, which kids with rough-and-ready sensibilities will relish and fastidious adults will shun, for the same reasons. The goggle-eyed narrator has noticed that he loses hairs, his skin peels, and a tooth is loose, not to mention his discoveries of belly-button lint and nose yuck. He comes to the alarming conclusion that he's going bald and toothless, shedding his skin, losing his stuffing, and his brains are leaking out his nose. His parents reassure him that all these lost parts renew themselves. His response: ``That's really good to hear! Then tell me, what's this yellow stuff I got out of my ear?'' Stupid, silly, and base, in equal measure, this has watercolor illustrations that are textured with colored-pencil curlicues in such a way that they look hairy--like the tangles that clog a shower drain. (Book-of-the- Month Club) (Picture book. 4-8) -- Copyright ©1997, Kirkus Associates, LP. All rights reserved. --This text refers to the Hardcover edition.

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Product Details

• Reading level: Ages 4-8
  
• Paperback: 32 pages
• Publisher: Puffin (October 1, 2000)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0140565337
• ISBN-13: 978-0140565331
• Product Dimensions: 9.1 x 8.2 x 0.1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.6 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.6 out of 5 stars See all reviews (56 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #17,241 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

6 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars We read it again and again, June 6, 2000

By	Nancy R. Woodington (Connecticut) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Parts (Hardcover)

This offbeat book has become a great favorite. We routinely pack it on vacations because it's lightweight and because we can read it several times in succession without boring anyone. It's also a good bedtime book when you need something short. Jokes in the illustrations make them worth looking at more than once, as well. And despite the premise--that the boy is coming to bits--even our nightmare-prone younger child has never been adversely affected.

5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars I -LOVE- reading this to my son!, November 23, 1999

By	David Bush (Myrtle Beach, SC) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

This review is from: Parts (Hardcover)

I'm not sure who enjoys this book more - me or my son. The story of the little kid who thinks he's falling apart had be laughing like a fool when I first read this in the library of the school I was working in at the time.

We've become fans of Tedd Arnold since buying this book. Parts, as well as any of the Huggly books or Arnold's Green Wilma, are sure to please your little readers!

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Great! Hilarious!, March 12, 2002

By A Customer

I bought this book not really knowing what to expect. I love it! My husband, on the onter hand, doesn't think he wants to read it to our daughter. She is too young for the book now, at 1 year old. It really addresses things that children tend to concern themselves with at one time or another -- in a very comical way! I thought it was great! I showed it to my mother (a second grade teacher) and she thought it was wonderful as well. She told my husband to "just wait!" Children can worry about the strangest things. If nothing else, buy it for yourself and get a good belly laugh!