Rereading: CALL ME BANDICOOT by William Pène du Bois

Another book for young readers, 63 pages with many color illustrations by the author, in the same series as “Lazy Tommy Pumpkinhead.” Each of these focuses on a particular sin, and here the sin is greed. The author has a talent for writing charming con-men, and in this book that’s the teenage boy the author says he meets on the Staten Island Ferry. The boy is full of charm and intriguing stories about his “friend” Ermine Bandicoot, and for the price of food and drink at the snack bar, he tells the story of a giant cigarette created from Bandicoot’s collection of cigarette butts, used as a prop and advertisement next to the Statue of Liberty. The author is so fascinated by this hard to believe tale, he continues to ply the boy with food and drink, and even buys postcards of the stunt from him. But who is the boy really? The author is determined to find out.

Clever, funny, an excellent read.

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