The Best Place Hardcover - 1999

Details

• Title The Best Place
• Author Susan Meddaugh
• Binding Hardcover
• Edition Library Binding
• Pages 32
• Volumes 1
• Language ENG
• Publisher Houghton Mifflin, Wilmington, Massachusetts, U.S.A.
• Date 1999-10-25
• Illustrated Yes
• ISBN 9780395979945 / 0395979943
• Weight 0.8 lbs (0.36 kg)
• Dimensions 10.27 x 8.5 x 0.47 in (26.09 x 21.59 x 1.19 cm)
• Ages 04 to 07 years
• Grade levels P - 2
• Reading level 570
• Library of Congress subjects Animals - Fiction, Wolves - Fiction
• Library of Congress Catalog Number 98050184
• Dewey Decimal Code E

"Meddaugh combines understated humor with her expressive watercolor illustrations to produce a delightful book." School Library Journal, Starred

"A wolf loves to sit on his screened porch watching the world go by until he realizes that when he calls his porch the best place in the world, he has no basis for comparison. He sells his house to a rabbit family and begins traveling. Now he has a basis for comparison: the outside world has mosquitoes, hot sandy deserts, and rain. So he goes home, but the rabbits don't want to sell. He throws a temper tantrum, and suddenly his neighbors realize what big teeth he has. Ashamed, he tries to prepare his neighbors' dinner, but the animals think dinner is to be them and rout the wolf. The misunderstanding is resolved, and the wolf, who has climbed a tree, finds a new "best place" and builds a tree house--to which his animal friends are always invited. The story meanders a bit, but Meddaugh's pen-and-watercolor artwork is clever as usual. The focus is on the quixotic wolf, and the pictures are at their best as the wolf tries to put up with the vagaries of travel. Not as fresh as some of Meddaugh's books, but fun nonetheless." Booklist, ALA

Could it be that the grass really is greener on the other side of the porch? The wolf dearly loves his cozy screened-in sanctuary, but a seed of doubt planted by his friend, a bird who has seen more of the world, leads him to sell his house, pack his bags, and go searching for an even more idyllic spot. Humorous drawings capture the wolf's expressive reactions to his disappointing experiences, along with his frustration and wistfulness when he discovers that he can't go home; the rabbits love his old house too much to sell it back, even at twice the price. Several misunderstandings ensue before the wolf finds a perfect perch, and a way to make amends with his neighbors. Meddaugh (Martha Walks the Dog, 1998, etc.) tells a funny tale, with lesson that even young listeners will appreciate; the story's surprising twists and unpredictable outcome will make children turn to this one again.
Kirkus Reviews