Mr. Putter & Tabby Paint the Porch

Mr. Putter & Tabby #9

by Cynthia Rylant, Arthur Howard (Illustrator)

Mr. Putter wants to paint his porch. He has a bucket of pink paint, a big brush, and some rags. And he has Tabby to keep him company. Everything is perfect, until a squirrel scampers onto the porch and catches Tabby's eye. . . .

Genres: Childrens, Picture Books, Cats, Animals, Humor, Chapter Books, Fiction

44 pages, Paperback

First published February 28, 2000

About the author

An author of fiction, nonfiction, and poetry for children and young adults as well as an author and author/illustrator of picture books for children, Cynthia Rylant is recognized as a gifted writer who has contributed memorably to several genres of juvenile literature. A prolific author who often bases her works on her own background, especially on her childhood in the West Virginia mountains, she is the creator of contemporary novels and historical fiction for young adults, middle-grade fiction and fantasy, lyrical prose poems, beginning readers, collections of short stories, volumes of poetry and verse, books of prayers and blessings, two autobiographies, and a biography of three well-known children's writers; several volumes of the author's fiction and picture books are published in series, including the popular "Henry and Mudge" easy readers about a small boy and his very large dog.

Rylant is perhaps most well known as a novelist. Characteristically, she portrays introspective, compassionate young people who live in rural settings or in small towns and who tend to be set apart from their peers.

from bookrags.com

Reviews

[Sharon · Rating 5 out of 5]

On a beautiful spring afternoon, Mr. Putter and his valued cat Tabby settle on their porch to read a story, but all they can focus on is how much the porch needs painting. When an uninvited chipmunk and squirrel show up, painting chaos reigns!! A humorous story for preschoolers and early elementary children.

[Melyna · Rating 5 out of 5]

The Mr. Putter and Tabby are one of our favorite childrens series. We laughed so much together and it made reading fun and was a wonderful way to spend time together. Cynthia Rylant is such a wonderful story teller. I would recommend any in this series for young children (and their parents)

[Alexandra Calaway · Rating 5 out of 5]

Mr. Rogers would really love these books and I can't think of a nicer thing to say of them.

[Becky · Rating 3 out of 5]

First sentence: It was springtime and Mr. Putter and his fine cat, Tabby, were feeling very chipper. The birds sang, the sun shone, the flowers bloomed.


Premise/plot: The book begins with Mr. Putter promising to read his cat, Tabby, a funny story. But he gets distracted when he notices the front porch needs painting. He decides to paint the porch and then read a funny story to Tabby. But does all go according to his plan? Not with Tabby and Zeke around! Or should I make that squirrels and chipmunks!


My thoughts: This is a funny early chapter book. I love, love, love Mr. Putter AND Tabby. This pair is well-suited--for each other and for me as a reader. This one is ACTION packed.

[Susan Heskin · Rating 5 out of 5]

I love reading this series to 2nd graders out loud. These are beginning reader series books but they don't seem simplified, the writing is engaging and the stories are funny. The students often look for these afterward to read on their own.

[Gordon Goodwin · Rating 5 out of 5]

Holly and I knocked out this one via an Internet Grandpa YouTube video. Banger as always fr fr.

[Jennifer Niles · Rating 4 out of 5]

Categories/Genres for this class fulfilled by this book: Easy Reader

Copyright date: 2001

Estimate of age level of interest: 5-8

Estimate of reading level: 2nd Grade

Brief description: Mr. Putter has difficulty painting his porch with his cat Tabby and some other neighborhood animals hanging around.

Identify at least 2 characteristics of this genre and subgenre and discuss how they appear in your book.
Easy Reader books are perfect for children just learning how to read or are becoming independent, more fluent readers. This book is an easy reader text; however, it is moving into more of an early reader for more fluent readers. The focus in this book is not entirely on decoding, but more on comprehension. Mr. Putter and Tabby Paint the Porch is an interesting and humorous story told in longer sentences with medium-sized text and more text on the page than a very early reader. There is a plot with a problem and a solution, allowing children to make predictions as they read. This book also has more pages than early readers and it is broken up into chapters. The pictures help tell the story of Mr. Putter’s painting disaster, but they are not solely used to comprehend the story.

In what ways and how well does the book as a whole serve its intended audience?
This is a perfect book for younger independent readers in an elementary school. Young readers in first and second grade will find this story humorous due the problems Mr. Putter runs into while trying to paint the porch. Using animals as some of the characters in this book will also make it a high interest read for elementary students. Since this book has chapters, first and second grade readers will gravitate more to it feeling as if it is an “older” book to be reading and will be proud to have read the book independently.

Awards: None found

Citations for published reviews:
School Library Journal, July 2000
BookList, April 2000
Horn Book, Fall 2000

[Little Miss and the Legomeister · Rating 4 out of 5]

Loved it!


I love these books, the whole series. They are warm and funny. Mr. Putter is so earnest, and kind, and polite. It’s just that funny things keep happening to him. The illustrations are very expressive, they really communicate the emotions of the characters, especially Tabby.

These books are written for children who have outgrown “early readers” but are not quite ready for “chapter” books. They’re still easy to read and have a picture on each page, but they have more words on each page, and an increased vocabulary. So I really, really recommend Mr. Putter if you have a child at that stage. I also recommend Mr. Putter for reading out loud.

Legomeister loved these books when he read them, and now Little Miss is reading them and she loves them too.

[Chantelle · Rating 5 out of 5]

My son and I both thoroughly enjoyed every book in this series (through #18; the rest weren't published / available at our library yet). Mrs. Rylant's sentence structure is simple enough for beginning readers to enjoy but don't let that fool you! Each book contains an engaging plot, clever & silly humor, and underlying themes of friendship, thoughtfulness, and responsibility. We spent many hours laughing together at the (mis)adventures of Mr. Putter, Tabby, and their friends. We were excited to find out what would happen as we started each book. HIGHLY recommend!!!

[Anthony · Rating 3 out of 5]

It's Spring again, and when Mr. Putter and his fine cat Tabby sit on the front porch to enjoy a story Mr. Putter realizes that his porch needs painting. While painting, a squirrel scampers on the railing, and Tabby gives chase, and the paint job is ruined. The next day a chipmunk scampers on the railing, and Zeke, Mrs. Teaberry's good dog, gives chase. In the end the porch is finally painted, and Mr. Putter, and Mrs. Teaberry enjoy a good laugh at what they both see.

[Libby · Rating 4 out of 5]

We've been reading a lot of Mr. Putter and Tabby recently, but this one particularly tickled Mae's funny bone. I don't know if she was more amused by the way the porch looked after Tabby or Zeke had chased off another critter or the reappearance of painted critters at the end of the story. Another fun read!

[Sam]

I like this book. The illustrations support the text and there is a detailed illustration on each page. The text is provided in short sentences. Some words might be unfamiliar to children. It has four chapters and each chapter is pretty short. There aren't too many words on a page to make a child feel overwhelmed. The story is easy to follow and full of funny situations that children will enjoy.

[Stephanie Littig · Rating 4 out of 5]

Cute book. I noticed there are a lot of Mr. Putter & Tabby books. These are great beginning reading books. This one is about how Tabby and Zeke chase a squirrel and chipmunk through a freshly painted porch. I think it will make kids giggle, it did me. The ptures are cute and brightly colored. Nice book.

[Dolly · Rating 4 out of 5]

We've really enjoyed the Mr. Putter and Tabby series and this is a funny story. The illustrations are colorful and the narrative is simple for beginning readers. We loved the pink squirrel and blue chipmunk!

[Arielle Feist]

This book is great for kids. It is filled with great illustrations and humor. It is about a man and his cat who end up painting more than just their porch.
Again this children's book is great for kids!!!!

[Christy · Rating 5 out of 5]

Mr. Putter wants to paint his porch. He has a bucket of pink paint, a big brush, and some rags. And he has Tabby to keep him company. Everything is perfect, until a squirrel scampers onto the porch and catches Tabby’s eye. .

[Shannon · Rating 5 out of 5]

Amazon Book Description:
Mr. Putter wants to paint his porch. He has a bucket of pink paint, a big brush, and some rags. And he has Tabby to keep him company. Everything is perfect, until a squirrel scampers onto the porch and catches Tabby’s eye. . . .

[Julia Orr · Rating 3 out of 5]

My favorite part of this book was when the squirrel and chipmunk ran around the porch and Tabby chased them around and there were lots of pawprints. At last when they painted the porch, a pink squirrel and a blue chipmunk walked by.

[Friend of Pixie · Rating 4 out of 5]

One of our favorites of this series. So funny! L read this aloud to me 2/28

[Schmobes · Rating 4 out of 5]

Great level 3. Very fun!

[Hillvan]

One of the best Mr. Putter's.

[Alaina Sloo · Rating 5 out of 5]

One of my favorite early reader series. Sweet, gentle stories that many kids love, perfect for kindergarten through 2d grade.

[Nora Ann · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book is in the collection of Mr. Pitter and Tabby books. I like all the Mr. Putter and Tabby books because they have great problems. The problems aren't scary and they are very easy to fix.

[Jill · Rating 5 out of 5]

Hahahahaha!

Oh my lands, if you have EVER painted anything, this book will be like balm to your soul.

Mr. Putter is a character I love more at every meeting.

[Trish · Rating 4 out of 5]

In this story the porch gets painted.

[Keeko · Rating 5 out of 5]

The author's humor, warm-heartedness, and comic timing keep me coming back. Funny and a page-turner.

[Josie · Rating 5 out of 5]

One of my favorite Mr. Putter and Tabby books! That chipmunk...

[Ann M. Noser · Rating 5 out of 5]

Painting the porch is a rough job, especially when wildlife intervenes. Charming as always, this series never disappoints. Love reading with my daughter.

[Audrey Houser · Rating 5 out of 5]

It was really great because he kept spilling the paint.

[Marie · Rating 5 out of 5]

Tabby, this porch needs some paint.