The Trouble With the Johnsons

by Mark Teague

A Blue Ribbon Book. Elmo Freem and his cat, Leon, hate their new apartment in the city. They want to go back to their old house in the country. So one strange night they do. But when they get there, they discover the new residents are a couple of dinosaurs.

Genres: Childrens, Picture Books

32 pages, Paperback

First published October 1, 1989

About the author

Mark Teague has delighted young readers with more than 20 picture books, and he has written many of them himself, including the popular Pigsty, Baby Tamer, and One Halloween Night. He is also the illustrator of Cynthia Rylant's beloved Poppleton series for beginning readers and the best-selling books by Jane Yolen, How Do Dinosaurs Say Goodnight and How Do Dinosaurs Get Well Soon.

Mark Teague's life changed when he moved from San Diego to New York City and he planted the seed for his first picture book, The Trouble with the Johnsons. Each of Teague's books start as "notebooks full of sketches and scribbles, strange little drawings and phrases that suddenly come together," Teague explains. And although he had no formal writing training, his endless imagination and understanding nature gives him a permanent place in the hearts of everyone.

Mark and his wife live in Coxsackie, New York, with their young daughter Lily, who has a great time watching her dad paint the pictures in his books.

Reviews

[Sarah · Rating 4 out of 5]

Teague captures the strange off-putting feeling of change that moving brings. Elmo decides to go back to his old home with his cat and lives for a while with the Johnsons, a dinosaur family that moved in there. He eventually decides that home isn't home without family. He returns and settles into a new life.

I like how it isn't clear whether this is imagination or fantasy- it is really open to interpretation, and most of all, I think the tone really delivers the right message.

[Anne Smith · Rating 3 out of 5]

Elmo is upset about a move to the city. He and his cat leave at night to visit his old house only to find that it doesn't feel like "home" anymore.