Locked in the Library!

Arthur Chapter Books #6

by Marc Brown, Stephen Krensky, Kathy Waugh

After Arthur calls Francine a marshmallow, she refuses to speak to him. Then Mr. Ratburn pairs them up for a homework project. They reluctantly go to the library for research-and find themselves locked in once the library closes. Will Arthur and Francine set aside their differences and work together to find a way out? In chapter-book format, for children who are ready to read on their own, this supenseful adventure will surely be a hit among Arthur fans.

Genres: Childrens, Fiction, Chapter Books, Picture Books, Animals, Middle Grade, Juvenile

64 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1998

About the author

Marc Tolon Brown is perhaps best known for his series of children's books about Arthur the aardvark, which was turned into an animated television show on PBS. Brown is a three-time Emmy Award winner, for his role on the television show inspired by his books.

He lives on Martha's Vineyard and in New York City with his wife, Laurie Krasny Brown. He has three children, sons Tolon and Tucker, and daughter Eliza. The names of his two sons have been hidden in all of the Arthur books except for one: Arthur's Tooth.

Reviews

[Hunter Lisiecki · Rating 5 out of 5]

I love Arthur and Francine because they became friends again in the end!

[Holly · Rating 5 out of 5]

Arthur books are wonderful! never knew what an aardvark was until this character came around! but every story has a lesson its teaching!

[Kelly Ewing · Rating 5 out of 5]

I am a little biased because I loved Arthur growing up. They mention the Dewey decimal system in this books! Francine also mentions a Walkman. I really like the bit but where they’re adding the grandfather clock beginning to chime and how author is counting the chimes to see what time it is. What a hidden and lost piece of technology. “User codes! Passwords! What’s this world coming to, anyway?” Hilarious.

I think they could easily UPDATE the language in the book and try to get kids today intrested in a sweet wholesome story. However it wouldn’t be for a 1st/2nd grader anymore, more like 3rd/4th because of the larger words. Lower grades can’t read big words easily. Specifically: glaring, heroine, blackboard, marshmallow, inspirational, enthusiasm, “ nooks and crannies”- lower grade kids would struggle reading and would easily give up.

[Amanda · Rating 3 out of 5]

I know that this book is obviously fiction but my 6 year old son and I couldn't get past some of the unbelievable parts of this story. For example, we thought it was very implausible that you would have to use a password to dial the phone to call out of a library. The doors and windows wouldn't open from the inside either. My son was like, "This library is like being inside of a prison." Luckily, the librarians at the library kept their staff lounge supplied with horror movies, pizza, chips, and cookies so the two kids don't have to suffer too much before they finally get rescued.

[Meredith · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book was very silly!

[Trevor Bouma · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was a good book about Arthur and his friend Francine. When they get locked in the library they find out about friendship and what a hero is really like. It was fun to read.

[Rebekah · Rating 3 out of 5]

Gotta be honest, this kind of stressed me out.

[Dolly · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is a fun book in the Arthur Chapter Book series. We've enjoyed all of the various Arthur books that we've read, from the Adventure series, to the Good Sports series, to the Step-into-Reading books. There are so many of them, I doubt that we'll ever read them all, or perhaps even half of them, but we've enjoyed what we read so far. Each story tends to have a moral but it's usually not too heavy handed or preachy. And the tales often have suspenseful plots, especially to a child.

In this story, Arthur and Francine get locked in the library and the fun ensues. We read it all at one time and our girls kept asking for more and more until we were finished.

[Hannah Evilsizor · Rating 4 out of 5]

I enjoyed the Arthur T.V. show as a kid and I think many students would know who Arthur is allowing them to have an emotional connection and want to read this book. This is a later transitional book. Students would enjoy reading it to themselves because it does have that chapter book feel while still being pretty simple. There are several sound words that could be tricky for students to understand or pronounce, but the vocabulary is very manageable. The book contains pictures that help to guide the story but they are not on every page. The chapters are short so that there is a break between sections for students. The structure of this book is narrative, I think it is fun for new readers to work on making pictures in their head of what they are reading on the page.

[Sam · Rating 4 out of 5]

Arthur is always fun to read about because he is relatable. I enjoyed this transitional book. It has a lot of words on a page but there are illustrations scattered throughout the book. It is divided into short chapters (2-3 pages) and the text is large. Difficult words should be decodable using context clues. Black text on white paper makes the sentences easy to read. Many students will already be familiar with the characters in the Arthur world, making this book easier for them to read.

[Mari · Rating 3 out of 5]

Arthur calls Francine a marshmallow and doesn't apologize which angers Francine. They're paired together to write a report on heroism but get locked in the library. Francine desides to write their report about being heroes in the library alone... and Buster ends saying Francine isn't so bad, when she splatters mud as she riding by. and Arthur says, yeah, but nobody's perfect.

[Brandi · Rating 3 out of 5]

Arthur and Francine have had a disagreement and now, while working on a school project together, they get locked after hours in the library and must work together to get out. A great transitional chapter book for fans of Arthur. Illustrated.

[Eliott · Rating 4 out of 5]

Arthur was a little silly and a little mean to Francine. When they got locked in the library by mistake they tried everything to get out. This made them fight even more. But by the end of the book they become friends, and I feel happy for them.

[Natasha Fowler · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was a very cute book. It brought back some memories of my childhood, because growing up I always watched Arthur. I enjoyed reading this book. It was funny and I think younger students would enjoy this book, because I am sure they can relate to the storyline. I recommend reading this book.

[Cws]

JEAR3-Bro

[Megan Ekins]

Cute simple easy reader book

[Jessie · Rating 5 out of 5]

Looking back on this novel I can't help but chuckle. Why? I actually know someone who got locked in a library! The Arthur books are an entertaining series for early readers.

[Kristina · Rating 3 out of 5]

Cute, good for younger grades.

[Ernestwillingham]

i think tis is real cool

[Kristi · Rating 3 out of 5]

Davey: "It was kind of good but not too good."

[Rants and Bants · Rating 4 out of 5]

I mostly watched rather than read Arthur when I was younger (best show ever), but this was the one book I remember reading from the series.
But can people really get locked in a library?

[Kayla · Rating 5 out of 5]

The Arthur stories, just like the show, are wonderful!! Great beginner-reader books.

[Mrspam4ever · Rating 5 out of 5]

Such a cute little book! I can guarantee nobody will get left behind in our library:)

[Pearl Ju · Rating 5 out of 5]

The story tells about heroism and starts with Arthur and Francine having trouble because Arthur thought Francine looked like marshmallow with a white puffy sweater on. Francine didn't even try to talk to Arthur, but they became a team for their social studies project. They met in the library and researched on Joan of Arc. While Arthur dozing off and Francine listening to music, they got locked in the library and tried to come out. I always thought of something big for heroism; however, thinking about our friends and helping them also is another type of heroism. I enjoyed the way they made up each other under unusual condition.