What do You think about The Last Of The Really Great Whangdoodles (1999)?
This was my all time favorite book growing up. Remembering saving my quarters to purchase it. I should have known I would become a bibliophile! It was great fun describing the machinations of actually BUYING the book to my children, pre internet, massive bookstore days. Managing to get out of the small farming town and having to walk down main street in Ventura CA to the ONLY bookstore around. Of course, they did not have the book so I had to place the order and wait, wait, wait for it to arrive. When I received the phone call, it was another wait for a free Saturday to drive and pick it up. I have been known to call my children by the wrong name but just as if it were yesterday, I can remember standing at the counter paying for my book and it being placed in a small white bag with the name of the bookshop elegantly written in black. Man, I'm old! The smell of the book when opened was like a drug and I was soon enveloped in the euphoria of being the very. first. reader. The story is delightful as well. An imaginary world that mimics our own, hopefully searching for what is good and beautiful. When I recently re read this book for my 10 yr old daughters book club, I was struck at how there were Christian themes that drew the reader in. The girls truly enjoyed discovering them. Since I read it as a pagan, I was not sure what my take would be now but I loved it just as I did when I was 10!
—Leslie
Review by Karen, intended for young readers:What’s a whangdoodle? According to my dictionary, it’s “a fanciful creature of undefined nature.” That’s not a lot of detail, so I think I’d really like to see one in person. Wouldn’t you? That’s definitely how the characters feel in The Last of the Really Great Whangdoodles by Julie Andrews Edwards!Lindy, Tom, Ben, and their friend Professor Savant are all determined to meet the only remaining whangdoodle in the world, and so they embark on a fantastic adventure through another land that’s both marvelous and dangerous.They encounter delights like a boat powered by jokes — with a magical ice cream machine on board, no less — but they also face terrifying monsters like the vicious Sidewinders and the bullying Flukes. Obviously, these obstacles are not great for the kids and the Professor, but they sure make for a gripping tale! Too bad for them; hooray for us!I first read The Last of the Really Great Whangdoodles when I was about your age. (Yes, I really was once a kid instead of the crusty old person I am now.) I looooooooved the book back then, and I’ve been meaning to re-read it for years — but unfortunately, I could never find my copy of the book in the depths of my childhood bedroom whenever I looked for it at my parents’ house. Then recently, I spotted a used copy at the bookstore where I volunteer and snatched it up right away.On the one hand, it probably would have been nice for me to leave the book for an actual kid to purchase and enjoy. On the other hand, now that I’ve finally re-read the book and written this review, I’m spreading the Whangdoodle word to everyone. And that’s a benefit to multiple kids, right? Yeah, I’m just going to go with that…This review also appears on Kidsmomo.com.
—Kidsmomo
Talk about painting a picture with words. The two siblings, introduced at the beginning of the story are similar to the brother and sister duo in Mary Poppins. They meet an interesting character, and renowned scientist, and he invites the children to be his helpers in saving the last of the really great whangdoodles. My students were riveted by this story as it allowed them to escape to Whangdoodle land. The brother and sister in the story meet all types of creatures and characters in Whangdoodle Land that try to stop them from getting to the kingdom where the Whangdoodle can be found. Read this book to learn all about their exciting journey. It is on their journey that they learn about friendship, the importance of imagination, and companionship.
—zabarj
