Poppleton Forever

Poppleton #4

by Cynthia Rylant, Mark Teague

Poppleton the pig plants a dogwood tree, gets a cold, and tries to hang wallpaper with the not very helpful aid of his friends

Genres: Picture Books, Childrens, Friendship, Humor, Fiction, Animals, 1st Grade

56 pages, Hardcover

First published August 1, 1998

About the author

Cynthia Rylant is an American author, poet, and librarian whose deeply felt books for children and young adults have made her one of the most beloved voices in contemporary literature. Writing across picture books, novels, short stories, nonfiction, and poetry, she has published more than one hundred works, many of them rooted in memory, family, solitude, and the emotional landscapes of ordinary life. Her fiction often draws from her upbringing in West Virginia and reflects the textures of Appalachian life with unusual tenderness and clarity.
Raised in modest circumstances, Rylant spent much of her childhood with her grandparents in a rural setting that later became central to her imagination as a writer. Those early years, marked by hardship as well as warmth, shaped the emotional honesty and quiet resilience that define her work. She later studied English and library science, and after working as a waitress, librarian, and teacher, she began publishing books inspired by the world she had known so intimately.
Among her most acclaimed works are Missing May, which received the Newbery Medal, and A Fine White Dust, a Newbery Honor Book. She also earned Caldecott Honors for When I Was Young in the Mountains and The Relatives Came. For younger readers, she became especially well known through the enduring Henry and Mudge series, as well as other popular books and series that combine gentleness, humor, and emotional depth.
Rylant's writing is distinguished by its compassion for lonely, searching, or overlooked characters, and by its reverence for animals, nature, and small human connections. Whether writing about grief, wonder, childhood, or belonging, she brings a lyrical simplicity that resonates across generations. Her books continue to offer comfort, recognition, and beauty to readers of all ages. She remains a singular literary presence in children's literature and beyond today.

Reviews

[Becky]

First sentence: Poppleton planted a new little tree in his yard.

Premise/plot: Poppleton Forever is an early chapter book with three stories. In the first story, Poppleton is puzzled by how to take care of his tree. What does it NEED? Each of his friends have a suggestion, but not all suggestions are of equal value! In the second story, Poppleton has a cold. His llama friend, Cherry Sue, tries her best to help. But are her solutions worth the trouble?! In the third story, Poppleton decides to hang some wallpaper. Which of his friends should help?!?!

My thoughts: I enjoyed this collection of stories starring Poppleton and friends. I did. But my absolute favorite story was the third one, "Wallpaper." It was a HOOT. If you enjoy funny stories, it really is a must read.

[Alex]

I enjoyed this book because I liked the part when Poppleton used paint instead of wallpaper to make the wall look better. I did not like this book because I do not like glue.

[Danette]

1/17/19 Read with Naomi & Julia.

[Melissa]

We love the Poppleton books.

[J.]

AR Quiz No. 25093 EN Fiction
Accelerated Reader Quiz Information IL: LG - BL: 2.5 - AR Pts: 0.5

[Anna Summers]

Poppleton Forever is the fourth book in Cynthia Rylant’s Poppleton series. The book contains three short stories. The first story is Poppleton and his friend, Cherry Sue, trying to help make Poppleton’s sick tree better. The second story is Cherry Sue helping Poppleton feel better when he is sick with a cold. The third story is where Poppleton gets frustrated with his friends while they are hanging wallpaper. At the end of the story, Poppleton is ashamed for getting upset with his friends and realizes that they are the best friends ever. The plots in all three short stories are simple enough for even the youngest readers to follow, yet they are entertaining. The sentence structure is simple and the text is straightforward. For these reasons, I think Poppleton Forever would make a great easy reader book. I appreciate that the author, Cynthia Rylant, portrays Poppleton as a true friend who makes mistakes, such as getting angry with his friends, but in the end, makes everything okay. This will help children realize that even friends get upset with each other, but they still remain friends.

[Neely]

AR

[The Brothers]

Three stories about Poppleton and his friends.

Poppleton plants a tree and does everything right to help it thrive, but it still withers. It's only when someone suggests he hang a bird feeder on it does the tree come back to life.

Poppleton has a cold and he friend brings him some oranges. Every time he peels one, he sneezes and sends the orange into an odd place. Then his friend shows up with some eggs to help him feel better.

Poppleton is trying to put wallpaper in his kitchen with the help of his friends, but they hinder more than help. He learns a valuable lessons about friendship vs. having everything we want perfect.

Fun illustrations to go with all the stories.

[Julie Graham 47150]

The Poppleton series is a great chapter book series for beginning readers. They are great stories of enduring friendship. My favorite chapter in this book is Wallpaper. After learning they each have a body feature (Hudson the mouse is too short, Fillmore the goat likes eating paper, and Cherry Sue the Llama gets her fur stuck in the paste) that prevent them from helping Poppleton wallpaper his house, Poppleton's three friends agree to change. Poppleton loves his friends the way they are so he switches his decorating project to paint.

[Sarah]

WALT Nelson and I found this series at the library this summer. I am a huge Cynthia Rylant fan (my favorite children's book of all time is "The Relatives Came") so we checked out the whole series...and they are delightful. Sometimes the beginning readers are repetitive and painful to read, lack in both plot and grammatical correctness, but these are breathes of fresh air.
As an added bonus the short stories focus around some of WALT's current interests...planting trees, camping, attics,and shopping.

[Kirsten Swanson]

You really can't go wrong with Cynthia Rylant. This is a cute book with three short episodes. My eight year old commented that the chapters didn't go together. "First he has a tree he is trying to grow, then in the next chapter he has a cold and doesn't care about the tree, and in the last chapter he doesn't have a cold or a tree." She is right; the three short stories have only characters in common, but they are funny short stories! Entertaining enough for adults to read a couple of times to children. Mildly unsatisfactory to children who are easing into chapter books.

[Jessica]

Poppleton plants a tree, but when it starts to wilt, he seeks the advice of his friends. When Poppleton gets a cold, Cherry Sue attempts to help him recover. And when Poppleton attempts to wallpaper his home with his friends, things don't go as expected. I love how these stories always resolve in a positive way.

[elissa]

The chapter where Poppleton gets his friends' help with wallpapering is one of the funniest things that my younger son and I have ever read/looked at together. All of the Poppleton stories are good for beginning readers, and fun to read aloud, but this is my favorite.

[Sarah Sammis]

Three stories: one about a dog wood that wants a bird feeder, one about Poppleton trying to peel oranges while sneezing and one about Poppleton trying to hang wall paper with help from his friends (a mouse, a goat and his next door neighbor llama).

[Alaina Sloo]

I have not yet met a young child who doesn't love Poppleton (though I expect there must be some somewhere). Sweet stories about Poppleton and his friends for early readers that also work well read aloud to younger children.

[Rozalyn]

Like it, but it left us feeling like it was wanting in some way.

[Friend of Pixie]

Read this to L years ago. Update: L read this aloud 11/5. Needed no help.

[Evergo1]

I remember reading this, but not what it was like, hence the three stars, please do not take that level as my complete review, rather let it spur you on to read it! With children if you have them!

[Theresa]

Poppleton Forever
Rylant, Cynthia
an easy reading story

[Hillvan]

410L

[Grace]

Three short stories featuring Poppleton and his friends. My 1st grader really liked it and it wasn't too hard for him to read.

[Rida]

My little ones loved this book!

[Susan]

The Poppleton series is a favorite of my five year old son. We have read the over and over. He loves the structure of each story and feels like he is reading a chapter book!

[Henry]

MCL. I don't think you could sneeze an orange across the room.

[Elanor]

All by herself!

[Nora]

MCL. It was funny when he had a cold and sneezed so hard that his oranges flew all over the place.

[Jessieb]

Great series

[Cheryl]

I love the Mr. Putter & Tabby series, and the Henry & Mudge series, and many other stand-alone books by the author. But this is the 3rd or 4th Poppleton book I've read, and I just don't think much of them.

Besides, I am so very tired of animals wearing approximations of clothes, especially shirts but no pants. :grumble:

[Jessie Drew]

Wow, this is a perfect book of short stories for any 5 year old! So glad we picked it up from our library. :)