Raccoons on the Roof

Animal Ark [GB Order] #30

by Ben M. Baglio

Mandy¹s delighted when she spots a mother and baby raccoon on the roof of the house where she¹s staying. But not everyone likes raccoons as much as Mandy. Her next-door neighbor has even laid traps for the playful creatures and wants them destroyed. Can Mandy keep the raccoons away from danger?

Genres: Animals, Childrens, Fiction, Middle Grade, Kids, Realistic Fiction, Contemporary

Library Binding

First published March 1, 1998

About the author

Ben M. Baglio created the brief for two series of children's books - Dolphin Diaries and Animal Ark. Dolphin Diaries features a girl and her family from Florida, who travel around the world as marine biologists and study dolphins. Animal Ark features two children who work together to help animals and solve animal-related mysteries. The books were written by commissioned writers in the UK under Baglio's instruction using the pseudonym Lucy Daniels. Each ghostwriter is named with a 'Special Thanks' on the copyright page.

Using his real name he also wrote the book series The Pet Finders Club, featuring a group of three children who search for peoples lost pets.

Reviews

[Jada Jackson · Rating 5 out of 5]

It was a really breathtaking and surprising book but I still loved it😥😅😋

[Rena Sherwood · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is a review of the American Scholastic edition, attributed to the fake author name of Ben Baglio. It was originally published in the UK by Hodder under the fake author name of Lucy Daniels. The real author was Jenny Oldfield, who wrote the majority of the first 30 or so Animal Ark books. The illustrations were done by Jenny Gregory, the second artist in the series. This book was the first in the Animal Ark in America trilogy.

This book gets the trilogy off to a decent start. Mandy and her grandparents go to Florida, where they encounter a variety of wildlife, since they're near the Everglades. I'm not sure if Oldfield ever went to Florida. It was seems she was describing a Florida from the 1950s than the 1990s. One thing remains the same in Florida, no matter the decade -- at least one of your neighbors will be an arsehole.

James isn't along for the trip this time (although he'll show up for the final book in the trilogy), so the part of James is played by Joel, the grandson of the people Mandy and her grandparents are visiting. He's also visiting from New York. Got all that? Joel is no fan of animals, much to Mandy's horror.

The raccoons in the title don't play that big of a role in the book, although Mandy's grandparents' friends' neighbor is trying to kill them. Other animals appearing include dolphins, alligators, Turtles, blue herons, great egrets and deer. They also visit a zoo.

It's a standard Animal Ark Goes on Holiday book -- pleasent enough read, nothing particularly memorable. This was the best book in the trilogy, which isn't saying much. The very next book, Dolphin in the Deep, would be the worst book in the series.

[Stef Rozitis · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book was pretty good for one of those children's series that go on and on and on forever. The human interactions are simplistic but on the nice end of the spectrum which is probably the side to err on (the snobby kid is actually shy, parents who seem like awful people are actually loving and will eventually listen to their children) while this ideal is not always true in reality, within the book it is reasonable.

The human interactions of course are a vehicle for showing appreciation of and relationship to animals- in this case alligators and of course the titular raccoons. This appreciation of animals and conservation is certainly worth fostering in children although vegan issues are not discussed which is a pity (but it is a short and simple book for very young readers of course). They kept romance out of it which I REALLY appreciated.

I wouldn't hesitate to hand this book to a child who wanted something to read (or to read it to a reluctant reader). I suspect the same goes for others in the series.

[Lilly · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a great book. All children should love Ben M. Baglio's Animal Ark series.

[L · Rating 3 out of 5]

A cute feel-good book about animals and about how people can grow and change.

[Sue Ann · Rating 5 out of 5]

A wonderful story of saving friends and loving some animals who can be bad about getting into things
Very inspirational story

[Lilly · Rating 5 out of 5]

Loved this book!

[Twyla · Rating 5 out of 5]

My favourite parts were when Courtney was okay after her fall, when Ricky was released back into the wild after getting caught in an animal trap, and when Mr. Miller found out he was wrong about animals and that they were really smart and nice, not a nuisance. The worst parts were when Courtney fell off the roof after trying to rescue Ricky, when Ricky got caught in one of the traps the pest control people put out, and when Mr. Millers was very mad about Mandy, Joel, and Courtney trying to save animals. My favourite characters were Mandy and Courtney. Mandy because she helped the Raccoons stay away from Moonshadow, and Courtney because she Talked Mr. Miller into liking animals after she got back from the hospital. The worst character was Mr. Miller until the end when he changed. There really is no worst character. I learned that Raccoons are nocturnal animals, although there are some special ones that are not nocturnal. Auryn 11 years old, 2015

[Sammy]

I was completely obsessed with this series of books when I was a child and my aim was to read every single book. They are a really good children's series.

This book is always one of the books that sticks out in my mind from all the Animal Ark books for some reason.

[Marc Lucke · Rating 4 out of 5]

Unlike a lot of other children's series, the Animal Ark collection is rarely condescending and manages to educate without being overly didactic. This story is fun, there's bit of a mystery to solve and a few surprises in character development. Recommended.

[you know]

good

[Nickolino Paprinos · Rating 5 out of 5]

RACOON

[Jessie · Rating 5 out of 5]

Mandy's neighbor lays out traps for raccoons.

[Liz · Rating 2 out of 5]

My second of the series. The obsession starts!

[Alexandra Lindner · Rating 5 out of 5]

Loved it!!