The Great Corgiville Kidnapping

Corgiville

by Tasha Tudor

Caleb Corgi, outstanding student and part-time private investigator, senses that something is amiss in Corgiville. He has noticed a sudden increase in the number of raccoons in town. They claim they are tourists just passing through, but Caleb feels secrecy and conspiracy in the air. And when Babe, Corgiville's prize rooster, is reported kidnapped, the raccoons are overheard arguing over the best way to stuff and roast a large fowl. The town is in a frenzy! Caleb knows he must find and rescue Babe, but how?

Tasha Tudor, the revered storyteller and illustrator, has invented another story about the wonderful denizens of Corgiville. The action is brisk, the details of both text and art charming and vivid. Here is book that both adults and children will want to read and savor repeatedly.

Genres: Picture Books, Childrens, Mystery, Fiction, Kids, Adventure

Hardcover

First published September 1, 1997

About the author

Tasha Tudor was an American illustrator and author of children's books.

Reviews

[Jane · Rating 3 out of 5]

An amusing mystery by Tasha Tudor - what's not to like? It reminded me a bit of John Goodall's wonderful books - and of course, Beatrix Potter's work. The artwork was ambitious, and unfortunately wasn't up to some of her other books. She is best in very small scale.

[Jen · Rating 5 out of 5]

I loved this story. Very detailed and full of unique words. I loved how it isn’t dumbed down for children and keeps one on the edge of their seat. A young corgi detective, by the name of Caleb, has the adventure of his lifetime, saving a large rooster named Babe, from a band of rascally raccoons.

[Natasha Marie · Rating 4 out of 5]

Humorous and charming, my family enjoyed this story very much! The illustrations weren’t as refined as Corgiville Fair, and it was a bit wordy, but utterly delightful.

[Erica · Rating 3 out of 5]

Not sure how "kid appropriate" this one is, you know, due to the swearing squirrel in the first few pages and all. But it is making me laugh, and reading it in a suspicious P.I. voice is fun for the kids.

Oh, and the swear words look like this "#*#*", with a note in brackets about how it's unprintable. My kids can't read, and don't even know that I'm either skipping parts of the story or making up my own words. They just know I'm laughing, so they think the story is interesting...win-win! Should be interesting to see what happens next.

[Dianna · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book was very long for reading out loud and especially for my four-year-old's attention. But I loved the charming style of the telling even if he didn't; I just think it's a better read-to-yourself than read-aloud. Also, the illustrations are lovely and imaginative and deserve lots of time and attention.

[Elizabeth · Rating 3 out of 5]

A lovely book written in a delightful old-fashioned way. It reminds me a little of Beatrix Potter’s books. It got a little wordy at times, but I enjoyed that the vocabulary was not “dumbed down” just because it was a children’s book. I am a firm believer that it is a good thing to expand children’s vocabularies.

There were funny moments, exciting moments, and a nice little ending all tied up. It was straightforward and exactly what you would expect to happen in a detective story. That being said, the story was a little boring at times for me, but for kids, I think they would find it enjoyable since they usually don’t mind predictability so much.

I have to admit, my favorite part was the swearing squirrel. (Note: the words are not spelled out. It’s just #*#*#* and then in parentheses it says, “quite unprintable” and “no censor would allow it!”) I found it quite funny.

[Miss Kelly · Rating 2 out of 5]

I checked out a few of Tasha Tudor's books, because someone asked if I was familiar with her illustrations which I was not. This book is classified as a picture book in our library. However, I would say it is more a children's fiction book with lots of sketch/watercolor illustrations. I found the story okay, but geared for more grades 3 on up. The illustrations were nice, but the story was too long and did not flow quickly enough I feel for younger kids' attention span. I could be wrong. I did enjoy the illustrations though.

[sincerely · Rating 1 out of 5]

Way too wordy for a picture book. And WHY is there a painting of a naked woman's rear end in a kids' book? Creepy and weird. Also weirded out by the squirrel needing to be censored (*****) because he was so mad. Like what is the reasoning for exposing children to this? I'm at a loss. Absolute garbage.

[Catie · Rating 4 out of 5]

A rooster is kidnapped by a band of raccoons. Call in the corgis! (I know, but it's Tasha Tudor). As always, her delightful storytelling and enchanting illustrations make for a fun read for families. And if you want your children to use big words, stories like this make that much more manageable.

[Kathy Govreau · Rating 5 out of 5]

Very adorable story and lovely illustrations

[Tambra Kendall · Rating 5 out of 5]

What a cute read! A mystery and a clever protagonist. I loved the illustrations. Just loved them. Tasha Tudor and Beatrix Potter are two of my favourite children's authors and illustrators.

[Desiree · Rating 5 out of 5]

Quirky and delightful, this is a lovely read and the art touches me.

[Kristy McRae · Rating 5 out of 5]

I just adore Tasha Tudor's Corgiville books! Cute stories, and the illustrations are amazing!

[Rebel · Rating 5 out of 5]

I love corgis!

[Margaret Chind · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was delightful. Yes at once there was a chipmunk or squirrel in panic spurting astrixes but over all this has so much to offer. There are so many references to classics and early literature that it makes the tale interesting beyond it's own plot but open for much discussion as well. We borrowed it fromthe library and used it as a read aloud before bed tonight. It was perfect for my almost four year that hung on every word and identified in the pictures whatever I had just read in the text. My almost two year old came and went around the room as I went. As I mentioned another animal she was right there wanting to see "where where is the raccoon?" It was a great family read experience. I haven't read Corgiville Fair but after this I'm keen to especially since people called this one rougher.

I love Tasha Tudor's illustrations and this was much larger images and in depth than I have seen before and although not as crisp as some still lovely and a feast for the eyes. I think the best part for me other than the references is the vocabulary. It's a children's book but it is elegant and fromwritten as one from a time past when children were spoken to as humans and their literature was not dumbed down for ignorance.

On top of everything else the plot was cute and I have to say we enjoyed the personified animal detective on a case than just happened to ride into town and fly him out of his element. Wouldn't mind reading this again or more like it. (But it wouldn't be an every night read, just occasional.) On the wishlist.

[Leslie Fisher · Rating 5 out of 5]

Really cute story for children. What I like best about the book is the vocabulary. THis book uses so many great words that I could teach to my kids while reading the book to them. This book isn't "dumbed down" at all. Though the story is a little long, I feel like it kept my preschooler's attention, as well as exposing her to new vocabulary words.

[Barbara Brien · Rating 4 out of 5]

Caleb Corgi uses his detecting skills in a case of a kidnapped rooster.

This was a good, cozy mystery style picture book told from the perspective of an educated dog. The action takes place in an old New England style town, peopled with anthropomorphic animals.

[Amy · Rating 1 out of 5]

This book is really boring and long-winded. The illustrations are nice, but a little rougher than The Corgiville Fair. It seems like Tasha Tudor was in a hurry when she drew them.

[Hannah Thill · Rating 2 out of 5]

Too wordy. Perhaps when I am older.

[Laura · Rating 3 out of 5]

Still clever and beautiful but I didn't enjoy it as much as the first book. More like a chapter book than a picture book, it includes great vocabulary and imagination.