Rufus M.

The Moffats #3

by Eleanor Estes, Louis Slobodkin (Illustrator)

You've never met anyone quite like Rufus Moffat. He gets things done, but he gets them done his way.
When he wants to check out library books, Rufus teaches himself to write...even though he doesn't yet know how to read. When food is scarce, he plants some special "Rufus beans" that actually grow...despite his digging them up every day to check on them. And Rufus has friends that other people don't even know exist! He discovers the only invisible piano player in town, has his own personal flying horse for a day, and tours town with the Cardboard Boy, his dearest friend-and enemy.
Rufus isn't just the youngest Moffat, he's also the cleverest, the funniest, and the most unforgettable.
Eleanor Estes's beloved Moffats stories are being published in new editions as Odyssey/Harcourt Young Classics. The original interior illustrations have been retained, but handsome new cover art by Tricia Tusa gives the books a fresh, timeless appeal for today's readers.

Genres: Childrens, Fiction, Middle Grade, Historical Fiction, Classics, Juvenile, Audiobook

256 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1943

About the author

Eleanor Ruth Rosenfeld (Estes)was an American children's author. She was born in West Haven, Connecticut as Eleanor Ruth Rosenfield. Originally a librarian, Estes' writing career began following a case of tuberculosis. Bedridden while recovering, Estes began writing down some of her childhood memories, which would later turn into full-length children's books.

Estes's book Ginger Pye (1951) won the Newbery Medal, and three of her other books (The Middle Moffat, Rufus M., and The Hundred Dresses) were chosen as Newbery Honor books. She also received the Certificate of Award for Outstanding Contribution to Children’s Literature and was nominated for the Laura Ingalls Wilder Award. By the time of her death at age 82, Estes had written 19 children's books and one novel for adults.

Reviews

[Luisa Knight · Rating 5 out of 5]

Cleanliness

Children's Bad Words
Mild Obscenities & Substitutions - 11 Incidents: criminenty, shucks
Scatological Terms - 1 Incident: Bl**dy (Children play pirates and one is called Bl**dy Jim).
Religious Profanities - 26 Incident: Gee, goodness, gracious, mercy on us, gosh

Romance Related - 3 Incidents: A man calls on a girl often and the family assumes he will marry her someday. A young girl “was dancing and singing in every play that was put on for the soldiers.”
A girl gets engaged.

Attitudes/Disobedience - None

Religious & Supernatural - 2 Incidents: “Oh, knock wood, he prayed.” A boy studies “magic” tricks - really just tricks of hand.

Conversation Topics - 2 Incidents: Mentions tobacco, pipes and cigarettes (smoked by the fathers/adults). A boy received a letter from Santa Claus saying that because all the ponies are in the War, he won’t get one this year.

Parent Takeaway
Fun, cleverly witty and intact with good morals and sibling comradery, you couldn't ask for a more wholesome book!

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[Grace Lin · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book was another great classic which has held up well. Rufus is such a likeable character and the episodic adventures were extremely fun & charming!

[Katja Labonté · Rating 5 out of 5]

5 stars. Aw, Rufus. I love Rufus. I am astounded at how well Estes portrays a child’s mind and point of view. This book was really flawlessly child-like in narrative. Rufus’ voice was the only one in the book, except for a brief switch with Joey and Janey and Sylvie. It is a very good book and the Moffats are all so realistic and fun. There’s so much humour!! The last chapter, too—my word, how lovely and sweet!! This is a wonderful World War One book and I’m quite eager for the final book of the series, whenever I get my hands on it (someone add it to Archive, puh-lease!).

Content: I don’t agree with all Rufus’ doings, and there are a handful of euphemisms, as usual.

A Favourite Beautiful Quote: Joe and Jane went out. It was a misty night in October. They looked back at the house. Mama had put the little lamp in the small square stained-glass window over the porch. The light shone gold and red through the mist and cast a warm glow.
A Favourite Humorous Quote: “I hope Mama and Sylvie don’t fall into the hands of counterfeiters, the way they sometimes do in books.”
“Aw, they wouldn’t,” said Rufus in disgust. “They know money from paper.”
“It doesn’t matter if they know money from paper,” said Jane. “What they have to know is regular people from counterfeiters, so they don’t fall into their hands.”

[CLM · Rating 4 out of 5]

One of my happiest academic moments was when I persuaded a professor of economics to let me write a paper in which I combined economic theory (of which I knew nothing), several old books by Horatio Alger that must have belonged to my great-grandfather, and the first chapter of Rufus M where he gets his library card (it is the best chapter of the book).

[Karol · Rating 5 out of 5]

I really loved reading about the antics and adventures of the youngest Moffat. The perspective of a child this age seemed right on target to me. A truly fun classic for young readers.

[Medora · Rating 5 out of 5]

Rufus M Is definitely a great book. I can't stop reading it over and over again😀

[Chelsea · Rating 4 out of 5]

I really enjoyed reading this classic. It’s strange to categorize this book as such since it was first written in 1943. Rufus’ various escapades always managed to bring a smile to my face! I learned quite a bit about life during the early 1900s during WW1 as well. The way people bonded together and supported the troops overseas was truly heartening 💕.

I enjoyed this book in little bursts rather than trying to read it all in one sitting. Some books are meant to be savored and this is definitely one of them. I fully intend on reading it aloud to my son when he is a little older.

[Rachel · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5 stars: I liked this one best of the three we’ve read in this series. Rufus is a really funny character, funnier than his siblings for me. I especially liked the chapters about Rufus getting his library card and giving the washcloth he made directly to a soldier. And I liked how he used the money he found to buy food and coal for his family and to repair their pipes. His heart was really sweet and his antics and internal dialogue were really funny.

[Steph · Rating 4 out of 5]

Audiobook

[Rebecca · Rating 5 out of 5]

I think I enjoyed this more than the first book in the series. The first chapter was my kids (and my) favorite chapter.

[Amy · Rating 5 out of 5]

Fun read aloud with the kids, Rufus makes us laugh with his antics!

[Laura · Rating 2 out of 5]

Although in general I am a great fan of classic children's books, I found this one to be difficult to follow and impossible to engage a similarly aged child with. Too many years have passed and too much has changed for today's young child to enter into Rufus' world. And to our great good fortune, there are now so many excellent books for any age and taste, we have the luxury of moving on rather than focusing on past eras of children's literature. I would have loved to introduce my son to Rufus, and bought the book with this intent, but from having to explain the role of coal, the freedom to walk the town alone, the clothes sewn by hand, we just could not gain headway.

[Astrid Lim · Rating 3 out of 5]

Cute little story of Rufus M, the clever/naughty little boy who lived with his family in Connecticut during the war time. The stories are simple yet engaging, a kind of story I would be happy to read to my boy =)

[Jenny · Rating 4 out of 5]

Dear sweet Rufus. He is a character. I love his determination (think library card adventures and practicing ventriloquism), his naïveté (think the invisible piano player), and his optimism. He has a series of gentle adventures and you can hardly help but love him.

[Jenna King · Rating 4 out of 5]

TBH I only know about half of what happens in this book because I listened to it in audiobook form while driving back from Georgia with friends. If you're driving back from Georgia with your friends & need something to listen to, this does the trick

[Sia Stewart · Rating 4 out of 5]

The story of how Rufus got his library card is just fabulous.

[Sue Sandelli · Rating 5 out of 5]

First book I read.

[Melissa · Rating 4 out of 5]

3.5-4 stars. I liked this book, even loved several chapters, but it was just a little less good than The Moffats and The Middle Moffat. Rufus (M.) is the youngest Moffat, and is both clever and naughty which today would be a dangerous combination. But at the end of WWI when this book is set, that combo only put him in minor peril. Janey continues to be his best friend in spite of the difference in age and sex. The first vignette when he decides to get a library card, a later one when he knits a washcloth for a soldier, and the one when he finds enough money in the ice to buy groceries for his family are all wonderful. If I had to choose though, my favorite is the one that closes the book when the family quietly celebrate the Armistice in their own way - each writes a personal dream on a piece of paper and then places it in the coal stove to be burned to ash and carried into the future. Simply lovely. I read this for my 2019 Reading Challenge and my Newbery Challenge (Honor Book 1944)

[Becky · Rating 5 out of 5]

I really enjoyed this book. All of the books in the Moffats series have been fantastic so far. I was laughing hysterically during the first chapter at Rufus' escapades and determination in trying to get a library card. Eleanor Estes did a great job of getting into the head of a six year-old and showing what things matter to him and explains how he acts in certain ways (which can be educational having a six year-old of my own). These novels also show how the war affected everyone of all ages and how even children were called to help and felt the importance of helping. This really seems to have been a time in our nation's history when people pulled together and did what they could to help each other out. This is a great book to read out loud with your children and I highly recommend the series. I'm looking forward to the next book.

[Jean · Rating 4 out of 5]

Rufus M. is an endearing child, filled with curiosity and imagination, who ought to get in more trouble than he does. He leads a charmed life. This is a sweet mid-century book, and it is hard to believe it is set during WWII. The family doesn't have much money, but compared to some of the books I have read about this era in Europe, the hardships the Moffats suffer--like having to portion out the oleo so each one gets an even share during the week the pound must last, or having to burn bituminous (soft) coal instead of the harder, cleaner anthracite--seems laughable (though, at the same time, sad) in comparison.

[Melinda · Rating 3 out of 5]

An endearing step back in time to the early twentieth century when loved ones of many were away fighting or serving in World War I. I enjoyed the allusions to the War, especially as shown through the eyes and imagination of young Rufus. His desire to personally give his hand-knit washcloth to a departing soldier was quite endearing, as was his, Jane's and Joey's determination to immediately plant a Victory Garden. I liked his idea of selling all things popcorn to earn money for war bonds, even crafting the idea to add fortunes and prizes to win over their competition.

[Deb · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is such an enjoyable book. I wish I'd known about it when my kids were little - it's a great read aloud story. It's about a family of kids growing up in the years just before, & during WW 1. It gives a great picture of what life was like back then - a nostalgic look at a simpler time. The kids are delightful, their various adventures are funny, entertaining, and heartwarming. A real treasure - I loved it.

[Karin · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is another delightful installment about the Moffats, this one featuring Rufus. How he starts going by Rufus M. is covered in the first story. My favourite Moffat is still Jane, but Rufus is also endearing. One of my favourite stories was The Invisible Piano Player even though I figured it out before the end of the first page and before any clues were given. The children age as the books progress, and I'll be a bit sad to get to the end of the next book, which is the last one in the series.

[Jen · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was a quick read, and a fun one. The Moffats are delightful, and Rufus is particularly entertaining in a Fudge/funny young boy version of the world sort of way. This book has some episodes that stretched on longer than needed, and I think the Newbery honor had as much to do with reading about World War I Armistice Day in 1943 as it did with the quality of this particular text.

[Helen · Rating 5 out of 5]

I liked the Middle Moffat slightly better, as I could relate more to it (having been a 10-year-old girl) — but I liked Rufus M. a lot too. I like the way we get to see his reasoning, and how he responds to, and tries to understand, the world. Interesting to think how it would be to have three older siblings to look up to, and to look after you.

[Cheryl · Rating 4 out of 5]

I don't know how children today would feel about this series of books. There are no cell phones, no internet, no videos--just a creative family of kids making their lives interesting with their imaginations and hopeful schemes. I (oldie that I am) think they are wonderful. The author wrote humor into the stories in a way that you can't help but smile.

[Loren · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is the perfect book for a 5/6 year old boy. The language and vocabulary is complex, but the content is slow paced and focused on what they truly care about. I loved it and so did A. This book was written during the height of WWII about the end of WWI, so it’s so full of hope! I wonder what it would have been like to have been a boy reading this back in 1943…

[Heather · Rating 4 out of 5]

My six-year-old son loved Rufus M and his adventures, even though some of the historical setting, events, and interests are beyond his comprehension as of yet. The Moffat family is a charming example of a warm, healthy, loving set of siblings who make their own adventures under fairly normal (and sometimes very limited) family circumstances.

[Johnny Bennett · Rating 3 out of 5]

Rufus M continues the stories of the Moffats as they continue to grow and live through the war. There are some real cultural references that kids will need explained to them, and at this point probably some adults. While well written and involving real history, this is still a children's book and isn't so brilliant to thoroughly entice adults. The last chapter though, that last little vignette, carries a lot of power and symbol with it.

[Ariel · Rating 4 out of 5]

I had read this one more recently so was less struck by it than the first 2. But I loved the part where Rufus thinks the player piano is an invisible person. And the part where he gives the washcloth he knitted to the soldier. And of course, the part where he gets his library card is priceless.