Tag Archives: mr putter and tabby

Series to Know: Mr. Putter & Tabby

Series Info

mrputterandtabby

Books:

  1. Mr. Putter & Tabby Pour the Tea
  2. Mr. Putter & Tabby Walk the Dog
  3. Mr. Putter & Tabby Bake the Cake
  4. Mr. Putter & Tabby Pick the Pears
  5. Mr. Putter & Tabby Fly the Plane
  6. Mr. Putter & Tabby Row the Boat
  7. Mr. Putter & Tabby Toot the Horn
  8. Mr. Putter & Tabby Take the Train
  9. Mr. Putter & Tabby Paint the Porch
  10. Mr. Putter & Tabby Feed the Fish
  11. Mr. Putter & Tabby Catch the Cold
  12. Mr. Putter & Tabby Stir the Soup
  13. Mr. Putter & Tabby Write the Book
  14. Mr. Putter & Tabby Make a Wish
  15. Mr. Putter & Tabby Spin the Yarn
  16. Mr. Putter & Tabby See the Stars
  17. Mr. Putter & Tabby Run the Race
  18. Mr. Putter & Tabby Spill the Beans
  19. Mr. Putter & Tabby Clear the Decks
  20. Mr. Putter & Tabby Ring the Bell
  21. Mr. Putter & Tabby Dance the Dance
  22. Mr. Putter & Tabby Drop the Ball
  23. Mr. Putter & Tabby Turn the Page

Links: Publisher Page || Author Site (Cynthia Rylant) || Illustrator Profile (Arthur Howard)

Reviews: Horn Book, Kirkus Reviews, School Library Jouranl

Awards: Geisel Honor 2015 (Mr. Putter & Tabby Turn the Page)

Difficulty

A higher-level beginning reader series. Mr. Putter & Tabby books are told in multiple chapters that converge into a single storyline. Stories are simplistic and easy to understand: painting the porch, reading a book at the library, having a birthday, going on a boat, etc.

The series has a Lexile average of 467L and an Accelerated Reader average of 2.5. Most online resources put Mr. Putter & Tabby at Guided Reading Level J, although none of the books have the rating on the back covers. Make a Wish has 213 unique words and Pour the Tea has 194 unique words. This is a great series for 2nd graders.

Thoughts

I am not a cat person. I’m typing this while playing ball with one dog and another one laying at my feet. And yet…there is something so endearing about Mr. Putter and Tabby. I love the universal things they represent — we all want good company and companionship and that’s exactly what Mr. Putter and Tabby are.

More Mr. Putter & Tabby?

Give fans of Mr. Putter & Tabby either of Cynthia Rylant’s other beginning series: Brownie & Pearl, Henry & Mudge, or Annie & Snowball.

Dates to Remember

The past few years indicate a yearly release, sometime in the fall or winter.

Geisel 2015 Award & Honors

For more information about the Geisel Award, visit the Theodor Seuss Geisel Award homepage.

youarenotsmall
Winner: You Are (Not) Small by Anna Kang, illustrated by Christopher Weyant

Two different groups of furry creatures cannot decide which one of them is big and which one of them is small. A engaging and energetic picture book, written by a husband and wife team. I purchased this for my library and after reading it cataloged it as “Picture/Basics/Opposites/Kang”. You can imagine my surprise when I heard it announced as the Geisel Award winner that cold February morning!

After the announcements, I took the time to read through You Are (Not) Small carefully, looking at it through the eyes of a beginning reader.

The font size is absolute perfection if you ask me. The illustrations fill the majority of the page, but there is still more than enough white space for a beginning reader to use. The vocabulary is very limited, but easy enough for a beginning reader to handle on their own. The characters convey the change in emotion from inquisitive to argumentative to angry perfectly.

I laughed out loud the first time that I read the book myself. And I had quite a few preschoolers who enjoyed it at my family storytime. I would definitely encourage librarians to get this into the hands of beginning readers — to make sure it doesn’t become lost in the picture books!

geisel2015honors

Honor: Mr. Putter and Tabby Turn the Page by Cynthia Rylant and Arthur Howard

This sweet story will touch the hearts of librarians everywhere. Mr. Putter and Tabby sign up to read books together at the library, but when Mrs. Teaberry and Zeke the dog also sign up, they become nervous about the event. Will Zeke manage to stay out of trouble?

A more advanced beginning reader, this will charm many existing fans of the series and will draw in new fans!

Honor: Waiting Is Not Easy! by Mo Willems

Piggie has a suprise for Gerald, but he must wait. Can he wait until Piggie’s surprise arrives?

I often think that there is no greater fan of Elephant and Piggie than myself. And then I immediately meet a child that has connected with Piggie and Gerald on a perfect childhood level and I gladly relinquish my title as “Number One Fan”. This is a fabulous addition to the series, one that nearly eclipsed We Are In a Book! as my favorite.