Wilfred the Rat

by James Stevenson and Christine Bloxham

Book Overview

A lonely rat is befriended by a chipmunk and squirrel at an amusement park and when his fortunes change he must decide how important that friendship is. This description may be from another edition of this product.

• Format: Hardcover
• Language: English
• ISBN: 068880103X
• ISBN13: 9780688801038
• Release Date: January 1977
• Publisher: Greenwillow Books
• Length: 32 Pages
• Weight: 0.85 lbs.
• Age Range: 4 to 8 years
• Grade Range: Preschool to Grade 3

Customer Reviews

4 1/2 Rat Passes up Money for Friendship

The amazing James Stevenson doles up this warm story about cold, lost, and lonely Wilfred, a rat on the run, dodging the police--though his only crime is being a rat. There's an unmistakable film noir feeling to the illustrations and the text: "He didn't know where he was headed--he only hoped it would be better than where he had been," and "When night came, Wilfred stopped. He leaned against a highway sign. He shivered, and went to sleep, and dreamed he was being chased again by big dogs." Wilfred fortuitously happens upon a seasonally closed amusement park, and his luck begins to change. There are bags of peanuts, and, most importantly, two new friends, a squirrel and chipmunk who make "Pleasure Beach" their winter hangout. The three rodent-relatives play games, climb roller coasters, play hide-and-seek, and slide down the ice-covered slide. Summer comes, and the two new friends warn Wilfred that now is the time to leave. The owner isn't too fond of animals, and has a big dog to chase them. Wilfred decides to stay, and while trying to escape the dog and owner, makes a spectacular leap off the roller coaster into a pail of popcorn. As the crowd goes nuts, the owner pretends this was all planned, and offers Wilfred a lucrative job. Now Wilfred must choose between money, fame, and the attractions of Pleasure Beach, versus returning to his newfound friends (who summer around a pizza place near the beach). Wilfred makes the friendship choice, and the three have fun at the beach, looking forward to their return to Pleasure Beach in the winter. There's a fair amount of action, and the soft black and white illustrations of Pleasure Beach are enchanting and almost mystical. The black and white pictures lends complement the opening noirish aspect, but overall, I missed Stevenson's color illustrations. (There's an example on the book's cover.) The friends' play at the close Pleasure Beach is imaginative, but the story is a bit too linear compared to the great "Grandpa and Wainey" series by Stevenson. Still, another excellent book that will appeal those who enjoy animal stories, roller coasters and other amusement staples, and fans of Stevenson.