That Pesky Rat [Hardcover]

Lauren Child (Author, Illustrator)

Book Description

Publication Date: July 22, 2002 | Age Level: 4 and up | Grade Level: P and up

The creator of Clarice Bean has conjured up a clever alley critter so appealing—and so hilarious—that young readers will be begging to take him home.


Sometimes . . . I look up at all the cozy windows and wonder what it would be like to live with creature comforts . . . to be a real pet. Most of all I would like to have a name, instead of just that pesky rat.

A glamorous life in the lap of luxury like Pierre the chinchilla would be
very nice. But really, our hero’s not that fussy - he just wants to belong to somebody. With his cute, pointy brown face and beady eyes, why can’t he get someone to take him home? Even a notice posted at the local pet store seems fruitless, until one day a nearsighted old man stops in and speaks the amazing words: "I’ll take him." After all, he says, he’s been looking for ages for a brown cat as nice as this.

In her latest tour de force, acclaimed author-illustrator Lauren Child introduces a surprisingly endearing character, and assures young readers there’s enough love for all of us.

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com Review

Lauren Child, creator of the popular Clarice Bean books, lavishes her zany, ultramodern, mixed-media attentions on the animal kingdom in That Pesky Rat. This brown street rat lives in a trash can in Grubby Alley, longing to be someone's pet. He knows plenty of animals who are pets. Pierre, a chinchilla, lives in the lap of luxury with Madame Fifi who feeds him chocolates. Nibbles, a lop-eared rabbit, works in a circus with Mr. Hoopla. (With all the trapezes and such, she may have a life that's "a little too nerve-wracking," but at least she has a name other than that pesky rat.) Miss St. Clair does puzzles with her Scottie dog, Andrew, and makes him wear a little hat and coat. "I don't think clothes would suit me," says our rat. "But I would do anything to be somebody's pet." One day, the rat takes the matter into his own paws and posts a notice in Mrs. Trill's pet store: "Brown rat looking for a kindly owner with an interest in cheese." Fortunately, the myopic Mr. Fortesque thinks he is a cat, and of course, no one corrects him. They live happily ever after, Mr. Fortesque and... Tiddles. Child's funky, clashing-pattern collages complement this sweetly earnest story of a creature who wants to love and be loved, even if it means having to wear a little sweater. (Ages 4 to 8) --Karin Snelson

From Publishers Weekly

In this uplifting tale, a needle-nosed rodent yearns "to belong to somebody. To be a real pet. Most of all I would like to have a name, instead of just that pesky rat." The trash-can resident envies his apartment-dwelling buddies, like the chinchilla who grouses, "It's not all cushions and chocolates," and the Scottish terrier who doesn't like to wear a plaid coat: "It's kind of embarrassing when we go shopping." Undeterred by his friends' compromises, the rat posts a flyer ("looking for kindly owner with an interest in cheese") and hangs around a pet store, until a man with poor eyesight mistakes him for a cat and adopts him. Child (Beware of the Storybook Wolves) sketches her characters in a thick, loose black line, then uses these drawings in high-voltage photo-collages. Her crazy-quilt compositions, which include cutout pictures of furniture and bathroom tiles, patterned fabric and wood-grain wallpaper, suggest a skewed world where a city rat might endear himself to an eccentric fellow; it also helps that the sympathetic title character speaks in the first person. Instead of highlighting the rat's sneakiness, the redemptive ending conveys his devotion: "So what if I have to wear a sweater? Mr. Fortesque says, `Well, Tiddles, who's a pretty kittycat?' And I squeak, `I am!' " Ages 4-8.
Copyright 2002 Cahners Business Information, Inc.

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Reading level: Ages 4 and up
  
• Hardcover: 32 pages
• Publisher: Candlewick; First American Edition edition (July 22, 2002)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 076361873X
• ISBN-13: 978-0763618735
• Product Dimensions: 11.1 x 9.3 x 0.4 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 4.9 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (8 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,274,957 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Lauren Child is the multi-talented prize-winning creator of the characters Charlie and Lola, Clarice Bean and Hubert Horatio Bobton-Trent. She has won the Smarties Gold Award, Smarties Bronze Award, Kate Greenaway Medal and been shortlisted for the Children's Book of the Year at the British Book Awards. Lauren lives in London.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A Home, An Owner, and a Name....., November 5, 2002

By 

Roz Levine - See all my reviews

This review is from: That Pesky Rat (Hardcover)

That poor pesky rat. There he is living in trashcan number 3, Grubby Alley. He's all alone in the world wishing he was a real pet, with an owner, and creature comforts, and a name. His friend Pierre, the chinchilla, has a glamorous life eating chocolates, and Nibbles, the lop-eared rabbit, has an exciting life working in a circus. Even Andrew, the scottie dog, has a nice, quiet life with Miss St. Claire. She makes him wear a coat and hat when they go out, and that's embarrassing, but as that pesky rat tells us: "I would do almost anything to be somebody's pet." So he decides to take matters into his own little paws, and write an advertisement for the pet store window. He waits and waits and waits, and then one day old Mr Fortesque, with the very bad eyesight, stops by and reads..... Award winning author and illustrator, Lauren Child, has written a charming and humorous story that will have kids rooting and cheering for this unlikely and endearing want-to-be pet. Her engaging and witty text wraps itself creatively around her cleverly exuberant collage artwork, and children will enjoy all the colors, textures, and eye-catching details as they explore each playful illustration. With a satisfying, feel good ending, That Pesky Rat is perfect for youngsters 4-8, and a wonderful additional to all home libraries.

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars "that pesky rat" gets a home, a name, and a new identity, September 2, 2006

By 

M. Allen Greenbaum (California) - See all my reviews
(TOP 500 REVIEWER)    (VINE VOICE)    (HALL OF FAME REVIEWER)    (REAL NAME)   

This review is from: That Pesky Rat (Hardcover)

Author/illustrator Lauren Child has one of the most distinctive pictrial styles in kids' books today. Flipping through "that pesky rat," one notices ornate backgrounds, juxtaposed contrasting patterns, rococo curves, an assortment of polygons and other geometric shapes, collages, varying fonts and font sizes, and several pop art touches. However, while you may come for the look, you stay for the story. Child'a stories take you on meandering inner and outer voyages--they're not simple, linear narratives. Here, she probes pesky the rat's neighborhood, his disappointments, and his hopes.

Apparently, it's not easy being a rat. As with wolves and pigs, rats get a bad rap in many traditional stories. pesky is no exception: He loves in trash can #3 on Grubby Alley (and the contents of his home are collected every week), people say he smells (it's just the dirt), he's nobody's pet, and he doesn't really have a name other than "that pesky rat." His friends, like Pierre the chinchilla, OScar the siamese cat, NIbbles the rat, and Andrew the Scottie dog. pesky's complex mind graps that while each of these pampered pets has it relavtively easy, their domesticated life has a downside too (e.g., while Andrew is pampered, he also has to wear clothes, an idea which pesky finds appaling. Still, pesky wants a companion, some respectability perhaps, and so he admits that he'd do almost anything if he coud be someone's pet.

He goes to a pet store, but the owner, Mrs. Trill, isn't very encouraging about his prospects. pesky posts a (hilarious) personal ad at the store:

"Brown rat looking for kindly owner

with an interest in cheese

Hobbies include nibbling and chewing

would like a collar with my name on it..."

Good fortune arrives when in Mr. Fortesque, whose bad eyes lead him to read "rat" as "cat!" Mrs. Trill doesn't tell, pesky doesn;t tell, and Mr. Fortesque never knows the difference. pesky is very happy-- while there may be a few adjustments (like Scottie, he too wears a sweater sometimes), he's finally a real pet, and he has a real name-" Tiddles!" Ms. Child doesn't dumb down the conclusion, instead she offers a happy resolution that's just a little askew. Her writing is well-balanced and rhythmic, it's almost like prose poetry. As with all her books, this one gets an enthusiastic recommendation.

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars terrific picture book, October 13, 2002

By 

Paulis Waber (Washington,, DC United States) - See all my reviews

This review is from: That Pesky Rat (Hardcover)

I have never loved a rat more than this little pesky rat. He is sweet, brave, thoughtful, enterprising and wants only to be loved. My daughter and I spent a lot of time looking at this book at the book store and now we are actually buying it, so that we can give him a home, even though my children are past the age of picture books. We are also buying it because the illustrations are witty and interesting; being both straightforward and (using beautifully patterned photo collages) complex. The story is great fun. This rat is as appealing as a rat can be. As a mother of three kids who I've read many books to I am certain that this book is well worth owning. Your children will enjoy hearing this book over and over and you'll enjoy reading it every time.