Trading Places With Tank Talbott

by Dori Hillestad Butler

Hating the fact that they are both sometimes mistaken for one another, nerdy Jason Pfeiffer, who is being forced to take swimming lessons, and bully Tank Talbott, who is being forced to take ballroom dancing lessons, switch places and unexpectedly learn some valuable lessons in life, friendship, and bravery. Reprint.

Genres: Fiction

136 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 2003

About the author

Dori Hillestad Butler is an American author of more than 40 children's books, as well as magazine stories, plays and educational materials. Her first book, The Great Tooth Fairy Rip-Off, was published in 1997. She is known particularly for The Truth about Truman School, a 2008 young adult title focusing on the subject of cyber bullying, and for My Mom's Having a Baby (illustrated by Carol Thompson), which in 2011 appeared on the American Library Association's list of most commonly challenged books in the United States for its portrayal of conception and childbirth. Her 2010 mystery title, Buddy Files: Case of the Last Boy, won the 2011 Edgar Award for the best juvenile mystery published in 2010. Before becoming a children's author, Butler worked for three years as a page at a library.

Reviews

[Checkthebook · Rating 1 out of 5]

The level of lying-to-parents in this book is just way too high for me to recommend it.

[Lynn · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is an excellent though unrealistic book. Jason almost drowned last summer and because of this is parents are forcing him to learn to swim. Jason cannot place his head under water. Tank is going to his cousin's wedding and is expected to know how to dance. Jason is a studious young man who spends a great deal of time writing movie plots. Tank is a bully who spends a great deal of time making other kids lives miserable. Jason and Tank are both being forced to take classes at the local community center. They meet in the locker room quite by accident and when the swim teacher hands Tank Jason's glasses they come up with a plan. They can swap classes -- Tank "learns" to swim and Jason learns to dance and everyone will be happy.

Until the plan starts to unravel.

We learn about Tank and how he has earned the name of neighborhood bully. We learn the background of Jason's near drowning experience. It is an excellent story and does answer the great "what if" things had turned out differently in this situation.

I enjoyed it -- but I wouldn't place this book on a "must read" list.

[Gloria Kim · Rating 5 out of 5]

I learned that switching places with other people isn't always such a bad thing to do.

[Jacob S · Rating 5 out of 5]

It was good.