Shoebag Returns [Library Binding]

Mary James (Author)

Book Description

Age Level: 8 and up

Shoebag, a cockroach who has the ability to become human, concocts a hilarious prank to help the only boy in an all-girls' school wreak revenge on The Betters, a club for snobs.

Editorial Reviews

From School Library Journal

Grade 3-7. A book told from the cockroach point of view is unusual?even more so when the roaches have better sense and family values than the humans. Shoebag, a cockroach who can turn himself into a boy, befriends rich Stanley Sweetsong, the first male to attend Miss Rattray's School for Girls (and now one boy). Terribly lonely, Stanley is incensed that there is an exclusive school club, "The Betters," that he will never be good enough to join; neither will his new friend, Josephine Jiminez, known as the "Doll Smasher." Shoebag, in his human form of Stuart Bagg, suggests that they create their own secret club, "The Butters," which is soon banned by Miss Rattray and forced underground. As these "losers" become "Butters," their self-confidence soars and they plan to save the tarantula trapped in the science lab. In an improbable, fast-paced series of events, they rescue it, almost kill Shoebag by unknowingly feeding him (in cockroach form) to the spider, and embarrass the Better's leader. Rescued by Josephine, Shoebag loyally follows her to her new home when her parents, worried about her self-image, take her out of school. James uses deadpan humor and sharp observations to skewer her targets: secret clubs, unfeeling adults in many guises, and pomposity. The importance of friendship and compassion for others is clearly, but nondidactically presented. Outsiders everywhere will enjoy the melodramatic adventures, wryly told, of Shoebag and his boarding school friends.?Anne Connor, Los Angeles Public Library
Copyright 1997 Reed Business Information, Inc.

From Booklist

Gr. 3^-6. Shoebag, the cockroach who can magically transform himself into a (yuck!) boy, returns in another off-the-wall, Kafkaesque adventure. Sympathy for poor Stanley Sweetsong, the only boy student at Miss Rattray's exclusive School for Girls, is Shoebag's motivation for once again metamorphosing into that small boy named Stuart Bagg. Complications involving computers, clubs, and caged creatures quickly ensue; Gregor Samsa, who has abandoned roachdom for stardom, makes a cameo appearance on Career Day; and Shoebag's family, which has taken up residence in a Macintosh (computer, not apple), gets shipped off to Tennessee. M. E. Kerr, writing here as Mary James, seems to have undergone her own metamorphosis--into a more benign Roald Dahl. Readers may expect a lot of laughs as a result, and, no doubt, another sequel. Michael Cart

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Product Details

• Reading level: Ages 8 and up
  
• Library Binding: 144 pages
• Publisher: Scholastic Trade (November 1996)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0590487116
• ISBN-13: 978-0590487115
• Product Dimensions: 8.3 x 5.6 x 0.8 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 3.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (1 customer review)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,021,293 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

3.0 out of 5 stars Sequel Not As Good As Original, January 23, 2012

By 

Shoebag Fan - See all my reviews

This review is from: Shoebag Returns (Library Binding)

"Shoebag Returns" is the sequel to "Shoebag". Although the sequel is a fun read, it is not as good as the original. The original was mainly about Shoebag and his hilarious cockroach family.
The sequel pushes Shoebag aside, making him a side character, which I didn't like. A new boy is the main character, but he does not possess the power to go from human to roach, and from roach to human.
The sequel moves too much like the author is speeding thru the story, rather than telling it, and let it flow smoothly as she did in the first one.
There are no fun spider characters for Shoebag and his family to be fearful of, although there is a tarantula character that has a good, small part in the story.
I was upset that Shoebag's family was removed from the sequel too soon. As the pages got thinner, I realized they were not returning. That was a shame.
The book leaves the door wide open for a third book, but as of January 2012, I'm unaware of another.