When Pa brings a turkey poult home to fatten for Christmas dinner, he assures Ma that it will be no trouble since it can live in a box by the stov...
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Nov 22, 2011
Richie
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Richie's Picks: THE MONEY WE'LL SAVE by Brock Cole, Farrar Straus Giroux, October 2011, 40p., ISBN: 978-0-374-35011-6
All of the children are constructively engaged in their assigned tasks so...
"So Ma decided to send Pa.
"'Now just buy two eggs and a half pound of flour,' she told him. "'Remember, Christmas is not far off, and we must save every penny.'
"'I'll remember,' said Pa, and he set off with a shopping basket and purse."
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All of the children are constructively engaged in their assigned tasks so...
"So Ma decided to send Pa.
"'Now just buy two eggs and a half pound of flour,' she told him. "'Remember, Christmas is not far off, and we must save every penny.'
"'I'll remember,' said Pa, and he set off with a shopping basket and purse."
More...
Jan 06, 2012
David
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The Money We'll Save by Brock Cole follows the attempt by Pa to save money for Christmas by bringing home a young turkey to fatten up for Christmas dinner.
Set in a 19th century New York City tenement, this humorous family story finds Pa buying a young turkey when sent out by busy Ma to the market. Fed table scraps, the turkey soon outgrows its box, gets into everything, and makes stinky messes in the apartment. Keeping the turkey on the fire escape or suspending it in a pen don't w More...
Set in a 19th century New York City tenement, this humorous family story finds Pa buying a young turkey when sent out by busy Ma to the market. Fed table scraps, the turkey soon outgrows its box, gets into everything, and makes stinky messes in the apartment. Keeping the turkey on the fire escape or suspending it in a pen don't w More...
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Nov 23, 2011
Debbie (Readerbuzz)
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Pa brings home a little turkey baby, assuring Ma that this will save the family money in the difficult times of a nineteenth century New York tenement building. But will the turkey save the family money, when he messes up the ironing and steals the baby’s biscuits?
“There were so many complaints and so much extra washing that when Pa and the children caught Alfred there was nothing to do but bring him back into the flat.
‘It’s just for a few days, now,’ Pa explained to Ma. More...
“There were so many complaints and so much extra washing that when Pa and the children caught Alfred there was nothing to do but bring him back into the flat.
‘It’s just for a few days, now,’ Pa explained to Ma. More...
Nov 16, 2011
Susie
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I requested this once I saw it was included on an SLJ Newbery prediction post. Yes, they said this was a flyer and would surprise people by its inclusion. Yup, it surprised me. The story is not that original, and I found the illustrations somewhat distracting. It is definitely a departure from The Goats, one of Cole's novels. A family struggles with providing for the family as Christmas approaches. Pa goes to the store for eggs and flour and comes back with a live turkey as well, planning
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Jan 17, 2012
Alissa
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A clever Christmas story where the mother sends the father to the store to with very specific instructions. The father comes home with the things on the list and...a turkey. He keeps emphasizing the money they will save since they can use it for their Christmas dinner. We laughed at the trouble this silly turkey caused and yet the family was so attached they could not use him for their dinner. Usually children's stories are fairly predictable, but I never would have guessed this ending! Very det
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Jan 09, 2012
Kathryn
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When a nineteenth-century New York City tenement family struggling to make ends meet dreams of a wonderful Christmas, Pa takes matters into his own hands and buys a young turkey to grow into their Christmas turkey. He soothes his shocked and somewhat disgruntled wife by telling her to think of the money they would save, fattening up the turkey with table scraps vs. spending all that money on a turkey come Christmas time. But, things go awry as the turkey wreaks havoc around the apartments and
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Nov 09, 2011
Tasha
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When Ma is forced to send Pa to the store for eggs and flour, she warns him to just buy those two items. But Pa is talked into purchasing a turkey poult at the market because of the money he’ll save. They plan on having the turkey for Christmas dinner after feeding it on scraps and letting it live in a box by the stove. But their nineteenth century apartment was definitely not designed to raise poultry. Alfred, the turkey, grew and grew and soon started to eat much more than table scraps. T
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Nov 07, 2011
Erica -
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Ma sends Pa out to the market to get just two things and comes home with a turkey to save some money for Christmas dinner. Pa says the turkey can live in a box next to the stove. Well, things don't seem to go as planned with the turkey living all over the small apartment and outside the apartment as well. The neighbors aren't happy about the turkey living in the apartment.
I won't give away the ending but this is a silly book with several laugh out loud opportunities.
I won't give away the ending but this is a silly book with several laugh out loud opportunities.
Oct 07, 2011
Erica
rated it:
Ma sends Pa out to the market to get just two things and comes home with a turkey to save some money for Christmas dinner. Pa says the turkey can live in a box next to the stove. Well, things don't seem to go as planned with the turkey living all over the small apartment and outside the apartment as well. The neighbors aren't happy about the turkey living in the apartment.
I won't give away the ending but this is a silly book with several laugh out loud opportunities.
I won't give away the ending but this is a silly book with several laugh out loud opportunities.
Nov 25, 2011
Teresa
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As usual when Pa is sent to the store for the ingredients for pancakes he picks up something extra a turkey poult. He explains they will save money raising the turkey to be Christmas dinner. He doesn't take into account the fact they are living in a small three room flat and have very little money to feed another mouth. The children in the story name the turkey Alfred and all kinds of turkey problems keep cropping up.
Jan 02, 2012
Destinee
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I brought this out at Christmas for a reading. My four-year-old niece listened patiently, but was not into it. I could tell she was bored and not following the story. However, my seven-year-old niece liked it. She didn't laugh out loud or anything, but I think she was amused by it and picked up on the moral. This made the shortlist for SLJ's Mock Newbery blog, so I think my expectations were way too high going in.
Dec 22, 2011
Allison
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Charming and humorous; I liked it, but I'm not sure I see why it's getting so much award buzz. (I should ammend that statement- I could see it for Caldecott. The illustrations are wonderful, and do a great deal to establish the setting and time period... but I'm puzzled over the Newbery buzz.)
Would make a great elementary school read-aloud, in any case!
Would make a great elementary school read-aloud, in any case!
Dec 21, 2011
Joella
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A family is trying to save money for Christmas. So they buy a small turkey and feed it so that it will grow to be nice and big in time for Christmas dinner. Of course even though the family doesn't like the mess and trouble that the turkey brings the kids still don't want to eat the turkey for Christmas dinner.
Dec 20, 2011
Cheryl in CC NV
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Not too much surprising or creative, but a nice little story. The appeal of the illustrations is definitely individual - count me on the side that didn't care for how busy and carefree they were. And of course, I'm a mom, and I'm exhausted on her behalf, even though she wisely makes the kids pitch in.
Jan 12, 2012
babyhippoface
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In an attempt to save money for Christmas, Papa buys a young turkey with the intention of fattening it up for Christmas dinner. Unfortunately, there isn't really room inside a nineteenth-century tenement flat to raise a turkey. The smell is bad, the noise is bad, and the mess is bad. Papa tries all sorts of remedies--build the bird a pen, move the pen to the fire escape, hang the pen over the alley privies by the clothesline--but every remedy fails, and every remedy costs him more money. The phr
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Feb 16, 2012
Christine
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Never send Pa to the market for eggs and flour, you never know what he'll come home with. A fun and frolicsome times ensues as the family deals with Alfred's (the turkey) antics and messes leading up to Christmas Eve when it's time to serve him for dinner.
Feb 22, 2012
Shelli
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A course in financial savvyness is something the father of this family may want to look into. Purchasing a turkey a month or more before Christmas to fatten up for Christmas dinner may not be the best way to pinch the families pennies.
Jan 18, 2012
Tpretz
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I wish this had arrived in time to display before the Christmas holidays. Definitely worth a read aloud next year during a second or third grade library class visit. Although, set at the turn of the century in NYC, I think that the students will appreciate the humor in this story.
Nov 02, 2011
Chelsea
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This has the feel of a classic Christmas story, and would make a great read aloud. The text is perfectly paced, repetitive in the right places, and engaging. I could see this one becoming an annual favorite.
Jan 12, 2012
Sarah
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Great story. It seems more accessible to adults than kids, but I'm sure kids would appreciate the chaos of the turkey in the house.
Nov 16, 2011
A 19th century New York City tenement family face the humorous dilemma of raising a turkey for Christmas dinner to save some money. K-2.
Dec 07, 2011
Mark
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The illustrative style catches my eye more than the story. The words were overtaken by the artist's beautiful style.
Jan 15, 2012
Lesley
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Not a new story (so you can kinda predict the ending), but I thought the illustrations were cute.
Dec 27, 2011
Wendy
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My reading of this suffered from my own heightened expectations--I'd somehow convinced myself this was going to be a masterpiece (and hilarious), but it isn't. (Just funny, not hilarious.) When I stepped back, I recognized that I think it's way better than most of the longer-story picture books I've read of the last few years, so. I mean, there's nothing cheesy in it at all, so that alone bumps it up above the crowd.
Feb 14, 2012
Shazzer
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Predictable, but oh so enjoyable. Sure to be a Christmas classic in years to come.
Dec 24, 2011
Cynthia
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I really enjoyed this book. It's a funny and playful tale about a family's misadventures with a "pet". As you read it, you will laugh out loud. Very enjoyable.
Dec 14, 2011
Samantha
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Sometimes your attempts to save money actually cost you money in the end.
Nov 04, 2011
Rachel
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Loved the historical setting and language use. A good Christmas story as well.
