Tough Cookie [Hardcover]

David Wisniewski (Author)

Book Description

Age Level: 5 and up | Grade Level: K and up

Sam Spade, move over! In his years on the force, Tough Cookie Busted the Ginger Snaps and broke up the Macaroons. Now living as a private eye at the bottom of the cookie jar, he learns that Fingers has gotten his old partner, Chips. With his best girl, Pecan Sandy, at his side, Tough Cookie sets out to put Fingers away, for keeps! This hilarious spoof will have readers rolling in the aisles.

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Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

Film noir informs Wisniewski's narrative and artwork in this hard-boiled crime story, which details life in "the Jar," where cookies prosper or perish "based on freshness and quality." The Bogart-like narrator, whose chocolate chip-pocked face is half-hidden by his yellow trench coat and fedora, has been around long enough to lose his soft spots. "They call me a tough cookie," he begins. "I guess I am. Came from a regular batch. Lots of dough." Now he's at the bottom of the Jar with a bunch of crumbs. To make matters worse, a blonde bombshell named Pecan Sandy has some bad news about his ex-partner, Chips. Seems Chips has tussled with Fingers, a giant human hand that occasionally reaches into the Jar. The tough cookie knows he must someday fight Fingers himself; luckily, Pecan Sandy mobilizes hundreds of unappreciated crumbs for the final battle. Wisniewski, who satirized cloak-and-dagger conspiracies in The Secret Knowledge of Grown-Ups, effectively lampoons the detective genre. He achieves a different effect with his signature cut-paper illustrations by shading them with colored pencil, and fittingly connotes the gritty subterranean cookie world. The perfectly crisp edges of his artwork in books like Workshop here take on gradations, with folds as rumpled-looking as the narrator's trench coat, off-setting the character's purportedly hard edges. A parting shot of a Robert Mitchum-esque silhouette of the hero and his girl will satisfy any sweet tooth. Ages 6-up. (Sept.)
Copyright 1999 Reed Business Information, Inc.

From School Library Journal

Grade 1-4 This crime caper set in a cookie jar filled with cookie characters is a delicious spoof on detective stories complete with a trench-coat clad hero and staccato dialogue. "Life is tough at the bottom of the cookie jar. It's a long ride to the Top of the Jar. I begin to think maybe I'm a nutbar ." Will Tough Cookie be able to rescue his friend Chips, who has been snatched and chewed by Fingers, and reunite with his true love, Pecan Sandy? Wisniewski's cut-paper illustrations play to the drama and lend dimension to the tongue-in-cheek lampoon. The level of humor is similar to that in The Secret Knowledge of Grown-ups (Lothrop, 1998), and children will giggle over the obvious. However, the subtleties of movie and mystery references are adult punnery. No adult will be able to read TC's first-person account aloud without using a deep Bogart-like voice. Move over Sam Spade. Julie Cummins, New York Public Library
Copyright 1999 Reed Business Information, Inc.

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Product Details

• Reading level: Ages 5 and up
  
• Hardcover: 32 pages
• Publisher: HarperCollins (September 29, 1999)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0688153372
• ISBN-13: 978-0688153373
• Product Dimensions: 11.3 x 9.6 x 0.4 inches
• Shipping Weight: 14.7 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.8 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (9 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #563,160 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

9 of 9 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars That's How the Cookie Crumbles, March 11, 2001

By 

Donald Mitchell "Jesus Loves You!" (Thanks for Providing My Reviews over 109,000 Helpful Votes Globally) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Tough Cookie (Hardcover)

This book is hard to rate. If it were for adults, as a novelty, it would clearly be five stars. For teenagers who have discovered "hard-boiled" detective fiction, this book would also be five stars. I have to believe that most of the story and humor would blow past the 4-8 year old set, that is the book's ostensible audience.

The illustrations, on the other hand, fit the age grouping nicely. They are done by cutting vividly-colored paper, creating constructions with the cut-outs, and then photographing the results.

The whole story takes place in a cookie jar, from the perspective of the cookies who have been around for awhile (don't think of them as stale, think of them as experienced). As is usual, putting a new viewpoint in place creates the potential for interesting new ideas. How do you stop depredations against the other cookies?

I wish that the classic noir novels from the thirties had the humor of this book. "I kiss her. 'You're a smart cookie,' I say. 'Maybe being a tough cookie isn't enough.'"

Now, if you have a child with great imagination, and you explain humor well, it may work for a younger child. But be prepared for the difficulty of explaining a satire of something you child has not yet seen or read.

You should also think about ways that low lifes (crumbs) can make all of the difference in real life.

Look at life from a new angle to see its potential!

12 of 13 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Creatively superb!, November 17, 1999

By A Customer

This review is from: Tough Cookie (Hardcover)

TOUGH COOKIE is one of the most creative and humorous books I have read. Because of its mix of adult humor with children's imagination, I think it is best suited for children ages 11 and up. What an excellent use of language and humor!

7 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars On My Top Five Favorite Children's Book List, March 23, 2000

By A Customer

This review is from: Tough Cookie (Hardcover)

I work in a children's library, and I read children's books all the time; this book stands out above and beyond many others. It's funny and cleverly illustrated with paper cut-outs, a specialty of the author. I've shared this book with all ages (including my co-workers) and it has been well received by all of them!