Tangle Town [Hardcover]

Kurt Cyrus (Author, Illustrator)

Book Description

Publication Date: April 15, 1997 | Age Level: 3 and up

"One morning the mayor of Tangle Town gets himself stuck in his own office, while mayhem ensues outside. It's Roxy Toppler to the rescue! Much fun."-The New York Times Book Review

"Good slaphappy wordplay."-Kirkus Reviews

Editorial Reviews

From School Library Journal

PreSchool-Grade 3. When the silly mayor of Tangle Town can't open his door (he's pushing when he should be pulling) and calls for help, confusion and trouble follow. The mayor tells a policeman he's getting plenty of blisters, but as the news spreads through Tangle Town, blisters get misinterpreted as blasters, plasterers, and disaster. The foolish citizens storm the streets in a wild stampede. Meanwhile, a sensible girl named Roxy tries to track down her cow, Mosey, who has wandered into the chaos of Tangle Town. Roxy's "barnyard instincts" take over and she herds the stampeding mob of people through the city in search of Mosey. The cow winds up at the pretzel mill, and when she pushes through a door, she saves the mayor. Lively illustrations feature "tangled" elements throughout, from the twisted roads and pretzel patterns on buildings to the intertwined limbs of the fleeing crowd. The visual humor does not reach the hilarious levels of David Legge's Bamboozled (Scholastic, 1995) or William Joyce's A Day with Wilbur Robinson (HarperCollins, 1990). Similarly, the serendipitous ending is not quite as delightful as those in David Macaulay's Shortcut (1995) and Black and White (1990, both Houghton). Still, this "typical day in Tangle Town" has enough nonsense and wit to amuse most readers.?Steven Engelfried, West Linn Public Library, OR
Copyright 1997 Reed Business Information, Inc.

From Kirkus Reviews

The glass door says ``pull,'' but the mayor is pushing, and he's getting blisters. This he tells to a passing policeman who offers help: ``Blisters . . . plenty of them.'' But the cop hears wrong, and he shouts, ``We need blasters! Twenty of them,'' to the gathering crowd. The crowd hears ``disaster,'' and mass panic ensues. So it goes in Tangle Town. Into the hubbub strolls Roxy Toppler, a farm girl looking for her wayward cow. ``What's going on?'' she asks, and the answers come fast. `` `The mayor!'--`The mayor got blistered!'--`Plastered!'--`Blasted to bits by twenty twisters!'--`Big, big disaster!' '' Swinging into action, Roxy deploys her ``barnyard instincts'' to herd the crazed mob, attain a semblance of order (defined in Tangle Town as anything other than total chaos), and find her cow. Cyrus's first book creates good slaphappy wordplay--the text can be read aloud in either a bark or a lilt--and his illustrations aptly convey both the frantic behavior of the crowd and the bird's nest of streets, overpasses, and buildings that make up this twisted city. (Picture book. 4-8) -- Copyright ©1997, Kirkus Associates, LP. All rights reserved.

Product Details

• Reading level: Ages 3 and up
  
• Hardcover: 32 pages
• Publisher: Farrar, Straus and Giroux (BYR); 1st edition (April 15, 1997)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0374373841
• ISBN-13: 978-0374373849
• Product Dimensions: 10.2 x 8.1 x 0.5 inches
• Shipping Weight: 13.6 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (2 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #2,668,793 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Quite a Find!, April 12, 2001

By A Customer

This review is from: Tangle Town (Hardcover)

In this, his first published book, Cyrus reveals to the world his ingenious illustrations and magnificent story-telling. Such detail and color in pictures are rare; every time I read this story to my children before bed it seems we find something new in the illustrations. It has been a favorite around our home for years, and I greatly anticipate any more work he produces. Thank you!

5.0 out of 5 stars A VERY FUN READ, September 2, 2007

By 

Oregon Reader "oregonreader" (Oregon) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Tangle Town (Hardcover)

Tangle Town is a fun,fun read. My grandchilren loved it, and sat and looked at the pictures longer! Kurt Cyrus wonderful illustrations and delightful story about this town would please any child! Carsen,Conner & Colton and I look forward to seeing any new books he does, as I feel reading to children is so very importent.