This Newbery-Honor winning tale introduces Whittington, a roughneck Tom who arrives one day at a barn full of rescued animals and asks for a place there. He spins for the animals—as well as for Ben and Abby, the kids whose grandfather does the rescuing—a yarn about his ancestor, the nameless cat who brought Dick Whittington to the heights of wealth and power in 16th-century England. This is an unforgettable tale about the healing, transcendent power of storytelling, and how learning to read saves one little boy.
On sale: December 26, 2006
Age: 8-12 years
Grade: Grades 3-7
Page count: 208 Pages
ISBN: 9780375828652
Reading level: Lexile: 740L | Fountas/Pinnell: T
Alan Armstrong started volunteering in a friend’s bookshop when he was eight. At 14, he was selling books at Brentano’s. As an adult, every so often, he takes to the road in a VW bus named Zora to peddle used books. He is the editor of
Forget Not Mee & My Garden, a collection of the letters of Peter Collinson, the 18th-century mercer and amateur botanist. He lives with his wife, Martha, a painter, in Massachusetts.
"This superior novel interweaves animal fantasy and family story with a retelling of the English folktale “Dick Whittington and His Cat.” Teachers and librarians…take note: Whittington reads aloud beautifully, and the extended happy ending will leave everyone smiling in delight."
--School Library Journal, starred
