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Product Description
One of a series of top-quality fiction for schools. Tom's encounters with a black fox and her cub culminate in his efforts to save them from being destroyed by his uncle. ... Read more

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Attack of the giant...goldfish?

Warren Otis wants to be a horror movie director, so he spends a lot of time making upt monster movies in his head. He's really beginning to enjoy his latest creation -- starring Bubbles, an innocent goldfish flushed down the toilet into the sewers, where she turns into an enormous, flesh-eating creature with a special craving for human beings. Then reality intrudes. Warren sees his sister crying in a phone booth and suspects that she's talking to their mother, a political activist on the run from the FBI. And even though Warren hasn't seen his mother for three years, he's convinced that she'll come back someday and make everything okay. Could Warren possibly be right? Or is his greatest wish just a daydream -- like his movies?

Customer Reviews (2)

matty's revew
In the sewers of L.A. there is a 2,000 lb. Gold fish that craves humans because it ate XX-109.This book is about an 8 year old kid that daydreams bizarre movie scripts (this movie is about a 2,000 lb.Gold fish that lives in the sewer) the boy is name is Warren and misses his mom who is on the run from the FBI.
This book is fine but has some unexciting parts.And it can get very perplexing at times.It varies at times from a 3* to a 5* but more often than not incredibly first-class more than ever at the end.I give the end a faultless 5*.You would have to remember things to get the story line of warrens movie but if you concentrate and remember things it�s a great book.

Warren misses his mom
This is a pretty good book Betsy Byars wrote.At first I was wondering about the title of the book and the connections it has with the story.Later on I figured out that it represented Warren's anguish about an absentee mom. The author has effectively made us feel the depth of Warren's inner emotions by switching back and forth from his imaginative movie productionto his real life situation.I was deeply touched by how Warren understood his family's situation and came to grips with his anger and sense of abandonment. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (7)

mcmummy
it is about a boy who is on a trip to the green house. And meets up with a big plant. that is all i can tell you but it is a funny book. you would like to read.get it

Mcmummy
I liked this book but I had to stop alot and re-read. it was kind of hard to understand. The book is mainly about a green house. The thing I didn't like about it was it was a little hard to understand and that it was a little hard for me. Other than that I really liked it.

Close to good author, anti-climactic book.
This books just doesn't have a lot to offer. It is clearly written by a lady who knows how to set a stage, really get you into the story, you can feel and smell the world that the characters inhabit, but once she has you there, I'm not sure that she knows what to do with you. The overall story itself is a bit stereotypical, at this point, but even that could be forgiven if the work had included some good action, which it unforgivably fails to offer up. Not wanting to give any of the plot away, I'll simply say that the entire book seems to build to something that never happens. The work is extremely anti-climactic; It feels more like this book is a prequel to a better, more interesting work. I get the feeling that Betsy never really plotted out all that she wanted to have happen in the work, I wouldn't be surprised if she just sat down and wrote, letting the story go wherever it "wanted" to go, then when she got closer to her deadline, she wrapped things up without remembering to throw in any of what a reader would like to have included.

Unfortunately, I have to say that I do not recommend this book.

If you want to read some genuinely fun scary stories, I'd direct you to anything early from R.L. Stine's Goosebumps series.

"McMummy" is a Charming Read
I discovered this book while browsing around our local library one day.I had never read any books by Betsy Byars (I haven't yet read her award-winning book, "Summer of the Swans," but I plan on it), so I figured I'd give it a whirl.Not expecting much, I plunged head-first into the thing.The only problem with that was that once I got started, I couldn't pull myself away.

"McMummy" is a delightfully charming read.All the characters in the book -- from the zany Battie Batson, to the deadpan funny Mozie Mozer, and the has-her-head-in-the-clouds-but-is-still-a-sweet-gal Valvoline (yes, that's REALLY her name) -- are a joy to interact with.Even Professor Orloff, who only makes a couple of minor appearances in the book, is interesting: "Vat is vrong vit da wegetables?"

Mozie Mozer is in charge of looking over Professor Orloff's super-large vegetables greenhouse while the professor is away.Only Mozie is afraid to go there alone.One day he comes across a human-sized pod, which he swears turns toward him as if to acknowledge him!And now the pod is beginning to open up; what could be inside?

The storyline is off the wall, but the character interaction and quick pace of the plot keep the reader well-engaged.I just can't say enough about the characters in this book; maybe the reason I like them so much is because they are all goofy like me.I can relate, you know?

I would recommend this book to anyone who wants to spend a couple of hours reading a plain fun book.It doesn't take itself seriously at all, and that's part of the appeal.

I look forward to reading "Summer of the Swans" from Betsy Byars, as well as other books she has written.

It was mostly boring
The first half of the book was hardly exciting.There was no humor either.The first chapter was odd and uninteresting.Reading the first half wasn't worth it.The second half was pretty much the same exceptit was worth reading it.In the 23rd chapter, the McMummy is on the looseat the women's beauty contest.It was sad when it died.However, theending was a happy ending when Mozie planted the two baby mummy pods. ... Read more

Product Description
An overweight, sensitive boy gains the insight and strength to overcome his problems through his search for and discovery of a friend's grandfather, known as the Goat Man. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (1)

Awsome book!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
After the goat man
Andrew Clements
This book is about Figgie who fell from his bike while going down the hill. He was bleeding all over his face. He almost broke his neck and had to be sent in an ambulance to the hospital. Harold was ok so as Ada because she was way behind so she stopped and looked at them. She told Harold to look for help.He had told many people until he told his mom.
The main character in this book is Figgie. He is always wearing a rabbit's foot as if was a necklace.
He has a grandfather that screams at him every time he sees him. He is about 10 years old.
The genre for this book is realistic- fiction.
I can connect Harold and my cousin Juan Carlos because once he fell in his bicycle. He was fine because he was a little fat so he got protected from being fat and he protect his own organs. What I like about this book was that during the contest in the book the author described the inside and the outside of the school. Also he described the main characters well. I could imagine what Figgie, Adam, and Harold looked like in my head.
People will like this book because there are many true facts people will learn about life from reading the book. I can compare this author to Betsy Byers because they have both the same type of writing. I like the author's language because it is easy to understand.I could understand the dialogue very well.
This is a good book.You should read it because if you are hanging with 3 best friends and somebody gets hurt it tells you what you should do. Also you should read the book because it also tells you to eat healthy food so you don't get fat like Harold.
... Read more

Product Description
Ten-year-old Kate begins a communication exchange on a computer with someone purporting to be from outer space, who says he is going to pay a visit to Earth soon. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (11)

mystery story
The Computer Nut is about this girl named Kate who was using her dad's computer in his office for homework. Suddenly, a message pop up from nowhere. THEY WEREN'T EVEN ONLINE WITH CHATTING PEOPLE! SHE FOUND OUT THAT BB-9 WAS AN ALIEN!!!!!!!!!!WANT TO KNOW MORE ABOUT THE BOOK, THEN RUN TO THE LIBRARY AND BORROW THE COMPUTER NUT BY BETSY BYARS>>>

"I will never Touch Down Again!"
corny, but entertaining. This book was a classic. A girl, finishing up homework on a buisness computer gets contacted by an extraterrestrial life form who suggests that he is visiting earth soon. They keep in comunication throughout the whole book. Whether the alien is real or just a prank is really up to the reader to decide.

Not for Children under 10
While this book is fantasy and a good read, my wife and I pre-read the book due to it being assigned by our sons elementary school.He is 9 and in the 4th grade.I wasn't ready for him to be exposed to some of the underlying issues in the book.First, THE BOOK STATES that the tale of Santa Claus is a lie.So if you aren't ready for your kid to stop believing.Skip this book.The book is also based on someone that the children meet online by themselves.While it is funny to me as an adult, there are concerns about children surfing the net meeting very bad people who will try to convince them to come meet them just like the "Alien" does in this book.So if you are going to by a book for a young child to read on there own, buy something else.

She's a Nut Alright...
The computer nut is great, and that is all I have to say. You can't read the story here. Go ahead! Buy it!

The Computer Nut
The Computer Nut by Betsy Byars was funny and interesting, becuase Kate told jokes in the book. The charater BB-9 was funny too. Kate met BB-9 on her dads office computer when she was drawing a self-portrait for fun. I think, the author wrote this book for people who are into Fantasy. BB-9 was a robot that come down from a weird sounding planet. I give this book three stars becuase, the character BB-9 talked way diffrent from people from earth and, he acted weird so, that made it difficult to understand. ... Read more

Product Description
Meet Ant, the little brother who's big on laughs. In four upbeat stories, Ant and his big brother confront the monster under the bed, recreate the story of the three little pigs, and write a letter to Santa-in July! Sometimes funny, always endearing, Ant is invariably entertaining."A great storyteller and a great illustrator are at their very best in this tender, funny easy-to-read." -Booklist, starred reviewAmazon.com Review
Ages 5 & up. This book for beginning readers is a perfectmatch between a Newbery award-winning author and a Caldecottaward-winning illustrator. Told in the first person, the four shortchapters depict a warm, funny relationship between a boy and his sweetbut sometimes pesky younger brother. Readers will enjoy the dry humorof the narrative, the likeable characters and the expressive andfanciful illustrations. In a starred review, Booklist wrote,"The pictures are achingly affectionate... the economy of line andlanguage will grab new readers." ... Read more

Customer Reviews (5)

My brother antby pluto
My Brother Ant was a good book because it was scary!I love scary books He was crying because he thought there was a moster under his bed. If youwant to know more Read the book.

Manster under my bed
My Brother, Ant
By Betsy Byars

If you have a little brother you,might be interested in this book. This piece of realistic fiction has four mini stories that tell about Ant, an annoying younger brother.
Why does Ant have a monster under his bed?
Why does Ant draw a spider on his brother's spelling paper?
Why does brother keep calling pigs figs?
Why does Ant want to write Santa a letter in July?
If you are looking for easy reading you will be very interested in this entertaining book. Open My Brother, Antand you will find the answers to all the questions in this review!


Written by Sara Walter

My 6 year old son was roaring with laughter!
What a delight!This book humerously delivers anecdotes of "brotherly love"! As a mother of two boys, I found it very endearing.My oldest son must have been able to relate to Ant's big brother's methods of tender teasing.I've never seen him laugh so hard. Hurray Besty Cromer Byars, we'll be looking for more of your cleverlywritten "brother" stories!

Appeals to two ages of readers
"My Brother, Ant" has the stories of the boy who is afraid of the monster under his bed, who draws a picture on his brother's homework, who insists his brother read a story the way it's written, and who writes a thank you letter to Santa in July. It is also the story of his older brother who vanquishes the monster, who finds a solution to the picture on his homework, who finally begins to read the story the way it's written, and who takes dictation of the letter to Santa. This book accomplishes something that most easy readers do not: it appeals to the younger child for whom this level of readers are generally written, but it also appeals to a slower reader of an age group several years older. Ingeniously, it has all of the best features of an easy reader: many sight words but an easy vocabulary--including recognizable compound words, and short sentences amidst a lot of space on the pages. Best of all, it's funny, and the dialog and pictures are magnificent!

Small words, BIG story...
My Brother, Ant, written by the great Betsy Byars, and Illustrated by Marc Simont, is sure to be just the ticket to encourage your child to enjoy reading.Unlike the sing-songy, uneventful easy readers of days past, this story is delightful and engaging.

Ant's older brother tells the story, and while he is often exasperated by his younger siblings "ANT-ics", the love shines through.The words are simple, but they are woven skillfully to create an enjoyable read.Mix that with the humorous, jump off the page illustrations and you've got a winner! ... Read more

Product Description
GO AND HUSH THE BABY by Betsy Byars, illustrated by Emily A. McCully. Hardcover 1971 Viking Press ... Read more

Product Description
When the toughest boy in school swears to kill him, twelve year-old Mouse finds little help from friends and must prepare for this emergency alone. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (8)

The 18th Emergency
ISBN 0140314512 - Previous reviews indicate that everyone thinks the story is predictable, and I have an issue with that. One problem is that I've never read a kids' book that wasn't predictable; second, I find it surprising that people think the way Benjie goes about handling his problem was really all that predictable!

Benjie, aka Mouse, likes to write funny notes with arrows pointing to things. On a crack in the wall of his apartment building he wrote "To open building, tear along this line" and, on a picture of a Neanderthal man, he wrote the name of the school bully. Now he's running for his life, certain that Marv Hammerman will kill him when he catches him! Benjie and his friend, Ezzie, once created a list of emergencies and solutions but none of that prepared him for this emergency. Boa constrictors and gorillas, maybe, but not Hammerman.

In the end, Benjie learns a little about honor and realizes that even bullies have feelings that can be hurt. What he does to make right what he's done wrong takes all the courage he's got. Really not as awful as other reviewers would have you believe - the worst of the book is Benjie's mother's apparent lack of interest in her son, but even that is something most kids can relate to on some level.

- AnnaLovesBooks

Give kids more credit - don't make them read this.
One of the worst children's books I've ever read. Used for reading material in a year 5-6 class, it was predictable and dull. I would not recommend it to anyone - young or old - kids have more brains. The very obvious moral is not supported by any humor or interesting writing.

Bold but Boring
The 18th Emergency had bold and interesting characters. I liked how the author expressed the characteristic traits through metaphors and simlies. The author also did a nice job relateing the charaters to a real life. The problem with the book was it was to predictable and not as exciting as I hoped it would be.

18th Emergency
This story is about a boy who loves making little notes onthings. One day he writes a note on a science poster about ealyman. He puts the name of the school bully with an arrow pointing to the neanderthal man. The school bully was right behind him and saw him write it! He runs from the bully throughout the story and... well you can find out for yourself.END

Another gem from one of the best children's author
Betsy at her best: funny, original, perceptive, and sensitive. This book does a highly comendable job at teaching an admirable lesson, by focusing on the humorous idiosyncracies of her main character and the sympatheticplight he finds himself in rather than being preachy and heavy-handed, andslips the lesson in quietly and slyly at the end.

Apparently, however,not everyone catches Byars' perceptive humor, though this book is anamusement park of wonderful wit. If you don't find her funny, then it isprobable that the story will not hold your attention. Most of the bookstays inside of Mouse's (the protagonist) head, so if you aren't charmed byMouse, then you will quickly lose interest.

My reaction was one ofcomplete enthrallment in Mouse's perception of and grappling with hispredicament. Byars draws the supporting cast and environment of her heroeswith the familiarity and perspective of their ages. I frequently findmyself laughing in recognition and remembrance of similar childhoodperceptions and people. Her humor, also, runs freely and easily andfrequently and compellingly.

Don't let this author pass you by. The 18thEmergency is a wonderful introduction to her, and a must for familiar fans! ... Read more

Customer Reviews (3)

Terrific Tales for an Early Reader
2 women with spunk, humor and caracter go west to make their fortunes. Each chapter is a self-contained story that has good dialogue, character and keeps you laughing. My 6 year old daughter loves these stories.

Excellent for beginning readers
My seven year old daughter has had this book for a year and loves it.I started reading it to her and now she reads it herself; its one of her favorites.The characters of the two sisters are easy for her to identifywith and she finds the stories very funny.Her favorite chapter is aboutthe sisters competing for the princess role in a proposed play, ThePrincess and the Troll.

Excellent for beginning readers
My seven year old daughter has had this book for a year and loves it.I started reading it to her and now she reads it herself; its one of her favorites.The characters of the two sisters are easy for her to identifywith and she finds the stories very funny.Her favorite chapter is aboutthe sisters competing for the princess role in a proposed play, ThePrincess and the Troll. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (1)

Great book...great service
The book arrived in great condition & my granddaughter has finished reading it & she really liked it.Thanks for a great job! ... Read more

Product Description
'My Hero' to Be Chosen: Eight finalists will compete tonight for the title My Hero. The winner will wear the coveted gold Hero medal. These brave and courageous dogs will each appear with their nominator who will tell their story.

There's Smiley, who fought a giant bull. Bear used his giant paws to save the life of another dog. Munchkin warned a gardener of a poisonous snake about to strike. Old Dog helped find people buried under rubble after a tornado. Buster pulled a baby carriage out of the path of a careening truck. Blue, who had never been known to bark, used his voice to bring help to his wounded master. Dopey's constant barking saved the life of a baby left in a sweltering car. Little Bit brought love and companionship to a nursing home resident.

Each story is told in the unique, sometimes humorous, but always Compelling voice of the person whose life was changed by the heroic action of a very extraordinary dog. Betsy Byars and her daughters Betsy Duffey and Laurie Myers have joined forces to create dog stories full of adventure and suspense. Loren Long's paintings capture the heroic dignity of each of the dogs and heighten the drama of their special stories.
... Read more

Customer Reviews (5)

My students love this book!
I am a librarian at an elementary school and I always read this book out loud to my third graders. The other reviewers tell about this book so I will skip that part and say that my students love it. I know how much they love it because it because I have numerous copies and they are continually checked out with numerous holds on each copy--copies rarely make it to the shelves during the school year.The third graders are not the only students who check it out, though.Fourth and fifth graders also request it and I have had middle school students who get a dreamy-eyed look when they come back to visit and see the book in the hold basket. They invariably say: "My Dog, My Hero!Do you still read it to the third graders?"My Dog, My Hero is, in my opinion, a "magic" book.

An awesome review by Ti'Anna Scott
Anyone who likes to read about dogs, here's a book for you! "My Dog, My Hero" is by Betsy Byers and is set in Mr.Frankie's trailer park.The main characters were Smiley, Bear, Munchkin, Old Dog, Buster, Blue, Little Bit and Dopey who were all great dogs. In the story the main characters saved people's lives and other dogs' lives. The main characters also ran into problems like: bulls getting out of gates, helping a man not to get a snake bite, helping another dog from frozen ice, preventing a car that almost ran over a baby who was in a stroller,and more. My favorite character is Dopey because when he barks it means that something is out of place.
Dopey reminds me of myself. I can relate to him because I also react when something is out of place. The only difference is instead of barking,I speak my mind. I have a connection that's a text to text: When our class read a book called "Escaping the Giant Wave," Pansy (Norm and Josie's pet) warned Bee Bee and Kyle that another wave was coming, just like Dopey warned his friend that a baby was in a car by himself.
I liked the book because it was about helfpul dogs who became heroes. The book was very interesting and it reminded me of the saying that "Dogs are man's best friend." Any kids who are 8-10 years old and loves dogs will enjoy reading about the adventures of these brave dogs.

THIS IS THE BEST BOOK EVER!!!!!!!
LOVE THIS BOOK!!! IT CAN BE SAD AT SOME POINTS! MY FAVORITE DOG IN THE BOOK IS BUSTER!! I LOVED HOW HE SAVED THE LITTLE BABY NEXT DOOR!!! I HIGHLY RECCOMEND IT FOR ANIMAL LOVERS AND PEOPLE WHO LIKE STORIES WITH HAPPY ENDINGS!!!AWESOME!!!

GreatBook
My Dog My Hero is a collection of hero dog stories.All of the stories are true. Some of the stories are sad, but they all have a happy ending. I love this book because it is about dogs. It is easy to read and the pictures are nice. I would highly recommend this book to anyone who love animals like me.

My Dog, My Hero ..... The best book ever!
There are many, many, many books that I love to read, but most of all I love to read the book, My Dog My Hero. It is my favorite book. Even though it is short, it is wonderful. One reason it is my favorite book is because it is an animal book. I love animal books, especially dog books. They just give me that feeling . That really good feeling. Next, I like this book so much because the dogs are so brave. One example is when a small dog is on ice, but the ice breaks .The puppy is stuck in the freezing cold water. Then, the big heroic dog leaped into the icy lake only to save the small puppy. I absolutely love this book. Finally, the third reason I like this book so much is because.......well......I don't know, I guess its because these dogs risk their lives for their owner or another dog. This is truly my favorite book. ... Read more

Product Description
One of a series of top quality-fiction for schools, this is an exploration of a young boy's reaction to his uncle's death. By the author of "The Eighteenth Emergency". ... Read more

Product Description
This digital document, covering the life and work of Betsy (Byars) Duffey, is an entry from Contemporary Authors, a reference volume published by Thompson Gale. The length of the entry is 3446 words. The page length listed above is based on a typical 300-word page. Although the exact content of each entry from this volume can vary, typical entries include the following information:

• Place and date of birth and death (if deceased)
• Family members
• Education
• Professional associations and honors
• Employment
• Writings, including books and periodicals
• A description of the author's work
• References to further readings about the author