Hot Rod Hamster

by Cynthia Lord, Derek Anderson (Illustrator)

Newbery Honor author Cynthia Lord and New York Times bestselling illustrator Derek Anderson put the pedal to the metal in this endearing, rhythmic, rip-roaring race to the finish line where a hamster creates a sizzling hot rod with a little help from his new furry friends and you!

Genres: Picture Books, Animals, Childrens, Fiction, Cars, Transport, Racing

40 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 2010

About the author

I'm the author of the children's book, RULES."

Reviews

[Snowflower · Rating 4 out of 5]

My son likes this book, but not as much as Hot Rod Hamster and the Haunted Halloween Party. He loves that this series lets him choose out of a group of things throughout the books.

[Mary Alexandre · Rating 3 out of 5]

Move over Dale Earnhardt Jr. because Hot Rod Hamster is ready to ride! In this skillfully illustrated children's book, Hot Rod Hamster, with the help of his friends, builds a race car and enters the Hot Rod Race at 4 Paws Speedway. Despite his size, this enthusiastic and determined hamster takes on competitors who are much larger and scarier but; Are they as determined? I recommend this book for young readers as a fun story that can be used as a teaching tool for character dialogue using "talking bubbles" and its effective use of color and font to demonstrate emotions throughout the story.

[Joanna Marple · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great rhyme and rhythm - super read-aloud. Kids will enjoy a car-racing hamster and the interactivity/choice.

[Becky B · Rating 3 out of 5]

A hamster entering a race needs a new hot rod to burn rubber. He goes to the junk yard and gets help putting his new race car together. Readers can chip in on the decisions hamster has to make, and say what designs they’d personally choose.

This is an attractively illustrated and fun picture book. Kids will like the interactive element of choosing what they would put on their hot rod. The text is rhythmic and builds the excitement for the race. Hand this to animal lovers and car/racing lovers.

[Spencer · Rating 5 out of 5]

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You'll be cheering the little hamster on from page one!

2020

[Ann · Rating 4 out of 5]

What a fun book! Hamster wants to be in a hot rod race so he visits dog at the junk yard. Piece by piece they make a hot rod to race. I used this with a writing activity. The students and I discussed the types of choices the hamster made: green car, fat tires, shiny engine, flames..etc... Then my K and 1st grade students drew what their hot rod would look like and wrote descriptive sentences. I stapled all the papers together and created an Our Hot Rods book for each class. I read the book to the class and almost every student beamed with pride when their page was shown. I put a bar code on the book and will allow students to check it out as a library book. ABCYA has a build the car game as well under 1st grade skills which was fun to supplement with if I had extra time.

[Marie · Rating 3 out of 5]

Meh. We actually read Hot Rod Hamster after having read Hot Rod Hamster Monster Truck Mania several (hundred) times, and we like that one much better. Joe concurs.

Anyway, Hot Rod Hamster features a hamster who doesn't know his own size building a hot rod for a race against a bunch of big dogs. The dogs all have shiny new hot rods; Hamster's is made from spare parts in the junkyard. But it's a kid's picture book, so he still wins. :P Bright, colorful illustrations are the highlight of this book.

[Brie-Lenn · Rating 4 out of 5]

Text-to-Text Connection: This story reminds me of The Tortoise and The Hare. The hamster in this story builds the ultimate car. He races against some dogs who are much bigger than him and they do not take him seriously. It is similar to the hare not taking the tortoise seriously when they agree to race each other. The hamster comes through and wins the race, just like the tortoise won! This is a classic underdog story. The flow and the rhyming make this book very engaging for young readers. There is also a lesson to this story about underestimating your opponent, similar to the lesson in the Tortoise and the Hare.

[Galileia · Rating 4 out of 5]

Hot Rod Hamster is one of my daughter's favorite books. It's about a hamster who wanted to build his own car and win a race. It's a fun book to read. It reminds me of a tongue twister with cute, simple rhymes. You can change your approach as you read it, that totally depends on your mood! Hot Rod Hamster is small but terrible. The story leaves a very important message to kids - size does not matter when you are willful and determined!

[Gennypher Popenhagen · Rating 4 out of 5]

Hot Rod Hamster is a cute book about racing. Hot Rod Hamster has to choose his car and fix it up so he can win the race. This rhyming kids’ book is sure to keep your students engaged in your next read aloud. This book was recommended to me by my 2nd grader. He assured me it was a really good book, and I think he was right! This book would be appropriate for your pre-k to 2nd grade students.

[Hannah Kirk · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is silly book about a little hamster who enters hod rod race. Its unique and quirky and rhyming throughout the whole book. Whats most interesting however is that on each page when the characters are speaking its presented in speech bubbles.

[Christina · Rating 5 out of 5]

Today I read this book to a large group of kids. It was a hit! They seem to really enjoy answering the questions posed in the text. They like choosing car parts. They also really liked my high pitched hamster voice.

[Rachael Olson · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was a great rhyming book with lots of vivid illustrations. I loved how interactive the book was because each step of the way they asked the reader what they would choose. Great descriptive words.

[Cindy · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book is clever, fun and a great choice for a read-aloud! The rhymes are catchy, and the story can be interactive as each page asks, "Which would YOU choose?" Helpful hint: it's even better if the person reading the story out loud has a good "hamster" voice! (wink!)

[Lucca · Rating 4 out of 5]

I liked that there was rhythm to the reading and repetitive phrases. I liked that it was about a new subject I could introduce to my daughter. I wish there had been a follow up to the other racers being mean to the hamster.

[John · Rating 5 out of 5]

I like this book because it's about "On your marks, get set, GOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!" "Hot Rod Hamster is off!" He's always asking what king of engine he wants, whatever of kind of fire he wants.

[Erinn Loney · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is a very good rhyming book for students to read which has easy words for students to silently read and could sound out the words. Elementary school children would do best with this book. There are rhyming words on every page and questions for student engagement on every page.

[Jodie · Rating 3 out of 5]

Going through a pile of kids picture books to pass along to the young readers in my life. I liked this one. The illustrations were vivid, and I enjoyed the questions that are on every page to get participation from the little ones.

[Kandrea Cheney · Rating 4 out of 5]

The illustrations in this picture book make the story come to life for the reader and listeners... Bold, vibrant colors with cute and silly characters. I love the questions the story asks the reader as it keeps them more involved in the story!

[Stacey Mulholland · Rating 2 out of 5]

I read this book because I loved Cynthia Lord's book Rules. This book just didn't work for me but some kids might really like it.

[McKendra Fisher · Rating 4 out of 5]

Cute book! Shows kids not matter their size they can do anything they want!

[Patti · Rating 3 out of 5]

Fun & interactive book to share with your little racer.

[Melinda Green · Rating 4 out of 5]

Reminds you a little of Seuss

[Lynn Davidson · Rating 4 out of 5]

Hamster needs a fast, very small, race car for a race. In this book the reader gets to make choices too, while Hamster's car is being made ready. Great bold illustrations and fun race.

[angrykitty · Rating 4 out of 5]

this 1 is cute if for no other reason you have a hamster that outraces a bunch of other larger animals and the visual is funny. also....kid met the illustrator

[Richard Edwards · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great book for boys starting to read. My grandson loved it.

[Cathie Stumpenhaus · Rating 4 out of 5]

So much fun to read to my favorite two year old grandson.

[Mellanie C · Rating 5 out of 5]

I love the colorful language and flawless rhythm of this book!

[Bella Herrick · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book about a little hamster wanting to race a car is a cute short read. This book is fun, rhyming, and playful.

[Grace Morris]

I like this book for read aloud or letting students read along with me.