A Spree in Paree [Library Binding]

Catherine Stock (Author, Illustrator)

Book Description

Publication Date: March 2004 | Age Level: 5 and up | Grade Level: K and up

Monsieur Monmouton takes his farm animals to Paris, France, for a holiday.

Editorial Reviews

From School Library Journal

PreSchool-Grade 2-Parisians love to camp near Monsieur Monmouton's farm in the summer and regale him with stories of life in the city. "I have always wanted to visit Paris," the man says wistfully, "But who would look after my animals?" Never fear, when he opens the barn door the next morning he discovers that the animals have packed themselves into his truck and are ready to go. "Eh bien," he says, and they are off. The creatures have a wonderful day in the city, visiting the Louvre, the Luxembourg Gardens, the Eiffel Tower, and even the Follies BergŠre. However, their owner arrives home exhausted, and all he can say about traveling with his companions is "Never again.- holidays are far too much work for me." Meanwhile, the animals are planning their next big trip. Stock's illustrations, done in watercolor with several spreads, are exceptional. She has painted humorous expressions on the animals' faces as well as a befuddled look on that of Monsieur Monmouton. Nevertheless, readers are left waiting for a punch line that never really arrives. Acceptable as a supplemental purchase.
Roxanne Burg, Orange County Public Library, CA
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

From Booklist

Reviewed with Kate Banks' The Cat Who Walked across France .

PreS-Gr. 2. France is not just background but also focus in these two picture books by superb authors and artists. The appeal of the setting may sometimes be stronger for adults than for preschoolers, but in both books kids will identify with the animal characters in a strange new world.

In The Cat Who Walked across France , Banks uses simple, lovely words, to tell the elemental story of an outcast's journey home. "For many years the cat had lived in the stone house by the edge of the sea." Then his loving owner dies, and all her belongings "along with the cat" are shipped north. Kitty finds himself prowling the streets of a strange city, begging for scraps and fleeing from stray dogs. He leaves to walk home, and a map on the back cover charts his route. Hallensleben's gorgeous landscapes show the places from the cat's viewpoint. The Eiffel Tower looms over the park; thundering trains pass under the bridge; a castle is reflected in a pool. The paintings are exquisite, and the landmarks are famous, but what kids will like best is the cat's adventure and the loving welcome he receives from the new owners when he finally reaches the house he knows.

In contrast to that tenderness, Stock's A Spree in Paree is pure farce, with wild, colorful cartoon pictures in ink and watercolor and a story reminiscent of Doreen Cronin's Click Clack Moo (2000). The farm animals make the farmer Monsieur Monmouton take them on a day trip to Paris, and they all have a wonderful time. What's great is Stock's preserving the animals' body language, even when the critters become grotesque versions of other tourists, checking out the latest fashions, gawking at paintings of cows in the Louvre, screeching outrageously at the cancan dancers at the Follies Bergere. Adults who know Paris will probably get the most out of this, but kids will relish the slapstick of creatures acting as boss and taking over the hangouts of the posh elite. Hazel Rochman
Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved

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Product Details

• Reading level: Ages 5 and up
  
• Library Binding: 32 pages
• Publisher: Holiday House; 1 edition (March 2004)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0823417204
• ISBN-13: 978-0823417209
• Product Dimensions: 11.3 x 8.8 x 0.4 inches
• Shipping Weight: 13.6 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.5 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (4 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,326,575 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

7 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars WISH I WERE GOING TO PAREE ALSO, July 12, 2004

By 

A. L. Straayer (Illinois) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: A Spree in Paree (Library Binding)

The appeal to me was simple. The group (farmer and his animals)
were in the countryside of France and they were going to Paris.
Ms. Stock, as illustrator, does a fine job of giving a sense of
place in her illustrations. I have been to Paris and I think she
captures its essence. And like me, the animals are "already planning their next trip."

A child of picture-book age, would have to have some pretty serious wanderlust to love this book for the same reasons that I do. But my 3 year old granddaughter loves the illustrations of the animals, particularly when they are doing very human-like things, such as visiting a museum and eating in a restaurant. "They are so silly" she exclaims, and then chuckles.

That is a four-star recommendation in my book!

6 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars AN UPROARIOUS ADVENTURE, June 16, 2004

By 

Gail Cooke (TX, USA) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)    (COMMUNITY FORUM 04)    (HALL OF FAME REVIEWER)    (TOP 500 REVIEWER)    (REAL NAME)   

This review is from: A Spree in Paree (Library Binding)

"How are you gonna' keep `em down on the farm after they've seen Paree?" The answer to that question is you're not, at least in the case of Monsieur Monmouton's live stock.

Monsieur Monmouton is a farmer, and the proud owner of almost a dozen silly sheep, five inquiring geese, three avaricious goats, four almost contented cows, numerous pigeons, two plus size pigs, nine clucking chickens, a proud rooster, and one very put upon dog.

During the summer people would often flee Paris to picnic or camp in the farmer's pleasant fields. During the evenings some of his visitors would tell him about life in Paris, and when they left they invited him to visit them.

Much as Monsieur Monmouton wanted to visit that beautiful city and as much as he thought he needed a vacation, he had no one to look after his animals. The solution? He piled all of them into his old truck and took them with him.

What an adventure that was! The sheep couldn't wait to go to the Rue de Faubourg Saint-Honore to see the latest fashions, while the geese trotted off to the Seine for a boat ride. The Luxembourg Gardens were in peril when the goats arrived, and the cows strolled the Louvre.

Author/illustrator Stock pairs her story with glowing watercolor illustrations that fill the pages of this unlikely, uproarious adventure.

- Gail Cooke

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A blast!, December 23, 2007

By 

Catherine J. Stock "Catherine Stock" (Rignac, France) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: A Spree in Paree (Library Binding)

This book is a blast...but 'fessup time...I wrote and illustrated the book, which was inspired by my neighbour in my tiny village of Rignac, and had a great time doing so, so my review is a leeeeetle prejudicial.

Anyway, I rather wish Amazon had posted some of my other reviews, like Adam Gopnik's one in The New York Times. He (and his five-year-old son) also found the book a blast.

Catherine Stock