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Overview
Dodsworth wanted adventure. He wanted to see the world. He especially wanted to visit New York City. What he didn’t want was to be joined by a duck. A crazy duck. A duck that misbehaves. Young readers will laugh out loud at the duck’s silly antics as Dodsworth has the unexpected adventure of his life in the Big Apple . . . and beyond.
Synopsis
Dodsworth wanted adventure. He wanted to see the world. He especially wanted to visit New York City. What he didn’t want was to be joined by a duck. A crazy duck. A duck that misbehaves. Young readers will laugh out loud at the duck’s silly antics as Dodsworth has the unexpected adventure of his life in the Big Apple . . . and beyond.
School Library Journal
K-Gr 3 In this humorous story, an unspecified animal named Dodsworth sets off to have an adventure. Before boarding a train to New York City, he stops to eat breakfast and say goodbye to his friend Hodges, a character previously encountered in Egan's Friday Night at Hodges' Cafe (Houghton, 1994). Later, on the train, Dodsworth opens his trunk and out pops Hodges's crazy duck. Dodsworth intends to send the stowaway back when they reach the Big Apple; instead, he ends up chasing it around the city. Egan slyly involves readers in admiring how the runaway inventively stays one step ahead of his pursuer; humorous scenes show the duck hiding in a window display, pretending to be part of a sculpture, and even jumping out of a magician's hat. The expressive ink-and-watercolor illustrations capture the comic aspects of the text; in one amusing depiction the duck lies with his wings behind his head and legs crossed atop a pile of Dodsworth's clothing, telling his angry host, "Whoa...calm down there, partner." Other colorful illustrations show animal characters flying kites, shopping, and playing instruments. Even the predictable ending waggishly fits the story. Sporting an inviting cover, this first chapter book will delight newly launched readers.-Kirsten Cutler, Sonoma County Library, CA
Editorials
School Library Journal
K-Gr 3 In this humorous story, an unspecified animal named Dodsworth sets off to have an adventure. Before boarding a train to New York City, he stops to eat breakfast and say goodbye to his friend Hodges, a character previously encountered in Egan's Friday Night at Hodges' Cafe (Houghton, 1994). Later, on the train, Dodsworth opens his trunk and out pops Hodges's crazy duck. Dodsworth intends to send the stowaway back when they reach the Big Apple; instead, he ends up chasing it around the city. Egan slyly involves readers in admiring how the runaway inventively stays one step ahead of his pursuer; humorous scenes show the duck hiding in a window display, pretending to be part of a sculpture, and even jumping out of a magician's hat. The expressive ink-and-watercolor illustrations capture the comic aspects of the text; in one amusing depiction the duck lies with his wings behind his head and legs crossed atop a pile of Dodsworth's clothing, telling his angry host, "Whoa...calm down there, partner." Other colorful illustrations show animal characters flying kites, shopping, and playing instruments. Even the predictable ending waggishly fits the story. Sporting an inviting cover, this first chapter book will delight newly launched readers.-Kirsten Cutler, Sonoma County Library, CA
Kirkus Reviews
Egan brings back characters from Friday Night at Hodges' Cafe (1994) and The Pink Refrigerator (April 2007) for a typically tongue-in-cheek outing. Dapper, formerly sedentary mouse Dodsworth sets off for Paris on a solo (he thinks) adventure, which is temporarily derailed by the discovery that Hodges's willful pet duck has stowed away in his suitcase. First stop: New York, where the duck escapes before the annoyed traveler can put him on a return train. The ensuing merry chase takes the pair from Coney Island to Yankee Stadium, with stops at Radio City Music Hall, the Metropolitan Museum of Art and several like locales. Egan depicts generic street scenes rather than recognizable landmarks in his small cartoon illustrations, but like James Marshall before him, gets an amazing amount of expression out of simply drawn body language and minimal facial features. Also like Marshall, his tale is driven more by character than theme, place or, for that matter, plot. In the end, the duck leads Dodsworth aboard a ship bound for, you guessed it, Paris-so, will further adventures ensue? Stay tuned. (Easy reader. 6-8)From the Publisher
"Egan keeps the hijinks low-key, preferring long pauses and slow burns to nutty slapstick...Dodsworth [is] the perfect screwball comedy foil..." PW Starred 9/10/07 Publishers Weekly, Starred"The troublemaking duck...is an amusing character...the matter-of-fact compact sentences gain readability as well as humor from their simplicity." Bulletin October2007 Bulletin of the Center for Children's Books
"Known for his quirky books, Egan does himself proud here... ." Booklist 10/15/07 Booklist, ALA
"The expressive ink-and-watercolor illustrations capture the comic aspects of the text... will delight newly launched readers." SLJ November 2007 School Library Journal