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American Born Chinese by Gene Luen Yang
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A Busy Day at the Farm by Doreen Cronin
Calamity Jack by Shannon Hale, Dean Hale and Nathan Hale
The Cat in the Hat Comes Back by Dr. Seuss
The Cat Who Wasn't a Dog by Marian Babson
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Doctor Who and the Talons of Weng Chiang by Terrance Dicks
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The Far Shore by Elizabeth Hand
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Goodnight Goon by Michael Rex
Henry the Sailor Cat by Mary Calhoun
Henry's Show and Tell by Nancy Carlson
Her by Laura Zigman
I Love You, Mama, Any Time of the Year by Nancy Whilte Carlstrom
I Spy a School Bus by Jean Marzollo
The Knight at Dawn (Magic Tree House #2) by Mary Pope Osborne
Little Bo by Julie Andrews Edwards
Lost and Found by Jane Sigaloff
The Lost Symbol by Dan Brown
Monsters vs Aliens: Team Monster by Gale Herman
My First Time Board Book by Elizabeth Hester
Nana Volume 3 by Ai Yazawa
Nation by Terry Pratchett
Nick and Norah's Infinite Playlist by Rachel Cohn and David Levithan
Olivia Acts Out by Jodie Shepherd
Rules of the Net by Jennifer Guess McKerley
Shadowland (Mediator #1) by Meg Cabot
Shooting an Albatross by Steven R. Lundin
Sugar Time by Jane Adams
Time and Time Again by James Hilton
Ultimate Spider-Man Vol. 13: Hobgoblin by Brian Michael Bendis
Viking Ships Before Sunrise (Magic Tree House #15) by Mary Pope Osborne
Wally the Walking Fish Meets Madinson and Cooper by Gary Lamit
The Woman Who Wouldn't by Gene Wilder
Why I Will Never Ever Ever Ever Have Enough Time to Read This Book by Remy Charlip
Zak: The One-of-a-Kind Dog by Jane Lidz
Zombie Queen of Newbury High by Amanda Ashby

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Wally the Walking Fish Meets Madison and Cooper: 02/23/10

Wally the Walking Fish Meets Madison and Cooper by Gary Lamit was written for his grand-daughter and her dog.

Wally is a walking cat fish [Clarias batrachus]. Obviously the real ones don't walk upright like Wally does but they can stay out of water for a long time as long as they still moist.

Wally, Cooper and all the other animals of the forest can talk to each other and Madison. When Madison and Cooper let him go after catching him while fishing he decides to introduce them to some of his other wildlife friends (Betty Beaver, Frankie the Flying Fish and so forth). Their walks through the forest introduce children to the wonders of nature.

I read the book to both Harriet and Sean. Harriet liked the illustrations (especially Wally in his yellow galoshes) far more than she did the story. Sean on the other hand liked how the book was based on actual animals and wanted to look up more information on the animals listed in the book as we read through it. As he's in the target age group (6 to 10) I would say the book is a success.

As Heather mentions in her review the copies we received have confusing dialogue. It's all told as a Socratic discussion between Wally and Madison with Cooper popping in for comedic relief. Unfortunately this early edition doesn't give names to who is speaking. It takes one or two reads through to get the parts down. Apparently later editions have fixed this problem. Had I read a newer edition I would have rated the book higher than the two stars I gave it at GoodReads.

Walking Catfish Youtube video:

Comments (2)


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Comment #1: Wednesday, February, 24, 2010 at 00:04:54

Forgetfulone

A walking catfish? Hmmm! I use Goodreads, too. Love it.



Comment #2: Saturday, February 27, 2010 at 22:18:00

Pussreboots

Yup; a walking catfish.



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