Through the Rug

by Jill Ammon Vanderwood

Grandma, what happened? asked Alyssa. Well, Dear, I think we just fell through the rug. said Grandma Emma, looking bewildered. Bu-but where are we? asked Alyssa, feeling a little frightened. I think... Well I know we aren't in the basement, said Grandma. Finding themselves in the strange new place, Alyssa and her grandma began to look around. Cool, said Alyssa. It's like quick sand. Grandma, did you know this would happen? I mean, was this in the recipe? Oh, no Dear, I must have read the recipe wrong. I was trying to make more days in the week. Actually, I don't know what recipe I did follow, said Grandma, shrugging her shoulders. Come along with ten year old Alyssa, Grandma, and her small dog, Domino on their journey through Wishville, where all wishes are granted. They encounter dancing fish, pirates and wild animals. They still manage to travel to San Francisco, and back home for a concert. As Grandma Emma falls head first into one mess after another, Alyssa and Domino are always there to straighten things out.

108 pages, Paperback

First published May 19, 2006

About the author

Jill Ammon Vanderwood is the mother of four and grandmother of eight. She lives with her husband Bill in Utah.

Jill is the award winning author of five books for children and young adults. Her latest book, Drugs Make You Un-Smarter is co-authored with her teenage granddaughter, Savanna Peterson. This book is a Mom's Choice winning book.

Reviews

[Tami · Rating 5 out of 5]

Alyssa really isn't looking forward to spending time with her Grandma. Her Grandma is so embarrassing. She's always doing such crazy things- like the time she wore her big cat slippers to the grocery store.

Alyssa is in for quite the surprise. Grandma has been taking some cooking classes, special "magically" cooking classes. Grandma might not be the best cook in the world but she definitely cooks up some wild adventures. There simply won't be enough time in the day or days in the week to do everything on the girls' lists.

Through the Rug is a fun magical adventure for young and young at heart. It brings together the generations in a way that true imagination can. I wholeheartedly recommend this book and hope that Alyssa and her Grandma continue their adventures in the future.

[Literary · Rating 3 out of 5]

Through the Rug is about team work and imagination. A grandmother and her granddaughter discover a crazy world where everything you wish for appears and comes true. A fun read that will have any child wishing for a grandmother like this one.

[Sara Fitzgerald · Rating 5 out of 5]

Magical fun adverture children will love.

[Brikenna Sheppick · Rating 5 out of 5]

I thought this books was great! Thanks Jill for writing a very fun and cute book! :)

[Trisha Smith · Rating 5 out of 5]

I have not had the opportunity to read any books by this author before, and hadn't heard of this book before. But I loved the book's premise, and I wanted to give it a read myself, so picked up a copy for my home library. My youngest, who is 10-years-old, has decided he wants to read it now. He is an advanced reader and this is actually below his reading level, but he loved the idea of it, too and is eager to give it a go himself. He told me he is going to read it this afternoon when he gets home from school. As for me, I felt that this is a super cute book for kids. The story is great, very imaginative and fun, and it was a great read aloud for my nephew and his friend. It kept the kids' attention as I read it aloud to them.

The book is longer than most picture books I have read so makes for a great chapter book for beginning readers, but still works great as a read aloud. I loved the story line, and felt the author did a great job of capturing their attention and holding it through the end. My nephew and his friend are young, but they were engaged from the start and enjoyed every minute of story time.

The writing was well done. I was not distracted by grammar or mechanics issues so it makes for a good modeling of the English language and written works for kids. I always look for books that are well written so that my kids know what good writing should look like. They don't even realize they are learning about written language and sentence structure when they enjoy a good book, so it is important to me to see books free of errors. I saw that with this book.

Overall, this is a well written, cute story that is sure to bring enjoyment to many a child. Definitely worth reading.

[Terry]

Pre-teens will love this book. Grandma’s eccentricities will have them bent over laughing. Go to the Reading Tub to see what our teen reader thought!