Bad Rats

by Eric Drachman, James Muscarello (Illustrator)

Josiah was a rat. He was a bad rat......or so he was told. In fact, Josiah and his friends are aspiring artists, and for a rat, painting outside the box like that just won't do.Follow along as Josiah and several other inspired rats teach their professor the value of creativity.The companion Book-on-CD will transport you and your child into Josiah's world with sound effects and wonderful performances by children and adults. The dramatic storytelling is narrated by the author and features his young nephew, Eli Drachman, among other delightful voices! (Audible page turns help your children follow along as they learn to read.)

Genres: Picture Books, Childrens, Fiction, Fantasy, Animals

32 pages, Hardcover

First published June 25, 2008

Reviews

[Mir · Rating 2 out of 5]

Disappointingly obvious and unnecessarily dichotomous "message" story about the importance of creativity.

Some young rats are in trouble for singing, dancing, daydreaming etc while out in the big, dangerous world. A teacher rat tries to explain to them how they need to be unnoticed and careful in order to not get killed by bigger animals. But after the children give creative performances he changes his mind.

I'm all in favor of not stifling creativity, but this seems like a poorly thought-out vehicle. Why pick rats to convey this message? The older rats are right, their kids will get eaten by cats if they wander down the middle of the road singing. It bothered me that this was presented as some sort of either/or choice, as if one couldn't be creative and sensible. Why can't the rats be creative when safe at home and careful when out foraging for food? I feet like the author is one of those individuals who use art as an excuse for personal flakiness. And I wasn't wowed by the illustrations, either.

[Leigh · Rating 3 out of 5]

A story about nonconformity-this is an odd tale. An elderly rat who was once nearly killed by his non conformist behavior is now responsible for teaching young rats to behave themselves. However, at the end of the story he embraces their iconoclastic life. Seemed inconsistent to me. If the elder rat truly believe non-conformity was life threatening, why suddenly change his mind?

[Lisa · Rating 2 out of 5]

Great title. Great art. Less than stellar writing/story.

[Beth Huddleston · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is beautiful story for anyone who has an artistic soul.

[Laura · Rating 2 out of 5]

This book was, sadly, just ok. I loved the illustrations. But the story was not the best. The idea was great, but not written well.

[Christine Kalleeny · Rating 5 out of 5]

Fantastic, captivating story as much for adults as for children. My daughter's favorite.

[Heidi-Marie · Rating 3 out of 5]

Sweet story of being true to yourself, as well as being brave and, well, artistic. Not quite sure how the younger audience will get it. Not sure if an older kids' audience would appreciate it. But I found it tender and am glad I read it. Loved the simplicity of the illustrations, too. I don't have the ability to listen to the audio CD that accompanies the book right now, but from the looks of it I think it would definitely add to the experience.

[Amanda · Rating 4 out of 5]

Despite my strong dislike/fear for rodents, I really did enjoy this book. Could be used at the beginning of the year to help develop community in the classroom. This text highlights and celebrates the differences in each rat. A great moral to the story lends itself to nice class discussion. Simple pictures that allow for strong inferences.

[Andrea · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book is about rats and even rats have to embrace their inner-self. Rats are supposed to behave a certain way and there is a type of rat detention for rats that can't behave the way they are supposed to. Turns out the rat detention supervisor realizes that all this while, he himself has been hiding his innter-self.

[babyhippoface · Rating 4 out of 5]

First off, Josiah is one of the cutest rats I have ever seen. Which, I realize, isn't saying much, but still.

Picture book about the power of the arts to touch hearts. School Music, Art, and Gifted teachers will like this one, especially in the Middle School arena.

[Jostalady · Rating 3 out of 5]

One of the extremely poor readers, who hates books, followed along with the version that has a read along cd. She says she really liked it and wanted to read it again. That excites me very much!

I think she really identified with seeming to always be in trouble for being different and creative.

[Shelley · Rating 1 out of 5]

I did not care for this book at all. Basically for a picture book I found it really negative and it is not something I would share with kids. Even though the end tries to save the storyline by adding a positive note, it just doesn't get the job done.

[Gina · Rating 5 out of 5]

But they aren't so bad...

[Northbrook · Rating 3 out of 5]

A heartfelt take on what it means to be creative. Sweet pictures and a bonus CD of accompanying music.

[N · Rating 4 out of 5]

"You are bad because you follow your heart and not your mind. Our minds make things neat and our hearts are messy."

[Joice · Rating 5 out of 5]

One of my favorites from this author. Teaches children to be themselves and to follow their hearts. Just a beautiful story.

[Bear · Rating 3 out of 5]

The illustrations were adorable but the story was mediocre.

[Mckinley · Rating 2 out of 5]

I get the message. Just didn't really click for me.

[Katrina Smith · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great story and audio book. Love for middle school about nonconformity. A bit obvious but well received.