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Summary: The Taratula in My Purse a review by:Krissy
Review: All of Jean Craighead George's great nature books come from experience (she spoke with wolves, had a falcon, has seen the most magnificent places in our country) but this is the one that is entirely autobiographical (she did write an autobiography but it is out of print). Stories charming, hilarious, gross, and heartwarming grace the pages of this unputdownable book. Readers can truly enjoy this book if they read related stories like THE SUMMER OF THE FALCON, THE CRY OF THE CROW, and THERE'S AN OWL IN THE SHOWER. All will smile at the true-life details that contribute to those tales. While most of the nature takes place indoors, nature lovers will still learn further about birds, mammals, and insects. This is a truly enjoyable book for any animal lover and Jean Craighead George fan.
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Summary: The Taratula in My Purse a review by:Krissy
Review: Have you ever taken a frog home that you found in the woods? I bet your mom told you to put it outside immediately. Well, if you went to the Georges' household, the setting of my story, that is all you would find! Tarantulas, crows, owls, fish, frogs, you name it and you will probably find it roaming freely in the house. Jean Craighead George, the mother and protagonist, was raised to love animals and keep them as her pets, so she brought up her three children the same way. You probably can't believe that someone would keep a skunk as a lovable pet, but they did!
The only animal you wouldn't hear about in their house was a bear! The Georges even had a pond, as real as one outside, in their house built by their neighbor who worked with cement. Read this book and find out why all the fish in their pond start dying. Find out why they had to get rid of a crow as viscous as a hunting dog, or how they found a baby bird as small as a cotton ball that could fit in a teacup. It is all in the amazing and funny book The Tarantula in My Purse. I learned a lot of interesting facts from this book, and other times I couldn't stop laughing. This book was absolutely terrific and fun to read!
I thought this book was amazing! The people in my story instinctively kept wild animals as pets! Even when you had to get a special permit, they got one. I think it is hard enough having just a dog as a pet. I could hardly imagine acquiring so many wild pets and having to research exactly what they need. What amazes me is that it wasn't just their mother that did all the work and research, it was the kids too! They helped out, and researched and cleaned up after their animals. The children would never, not do something because it was too messy or they were afraid. Twig, one of those children, had an owl, Yammer, which was soft, gray, and loved television. One day Yammer was watching television stiff as a board, he fell off his perch. Immediately, Twig picked him up and cuddled with him just like he was her baby brother!This book taught me to be a little more responsible when caring for my dog. They never complained when caring for their many wild pets. I really thought this was a good book to see how you should be responsible when caring for your pet if you want more and more! The protagonists, a family of four, loved wild animals. One of them was a hard working mother. She was divorced when her children were young, so she had to work extremely hard to keep her children and animals happy. Before Jean Craighead George had kids she would go places and research animals. This family of Jean and her three children, Twig, Craig and Luke all researched animals over the years and knew a lot about them, just by taking them as pets. From the beginning of this story, until the end when her kids left and were now adults, the Georges had over one hundred seventy-two pets! Whether they stayed for a day or a year, whether they were a bird or a snake, Jean Craighead and her family took good care of them. I thought the characters in my book were very different from most people I know. It would take me a lot of time to get used to living in their household. I am not used to having wild animals saunter around my house. The whole George family seemed jaunty. Although they had lots of difficulties with their wild pets, they never seemed to be very solemn or act gravely. Many times, though, I thought it would be fun to play with all the baby chicks, turtles and birds. I liked how the characters got the animals to love them and do all these funny things every time they wanted to play or eat. Finally, I enjoyed how passionate they were about their pets. You never had to tell them twice to play with their animals, because that was all they did! So, do you think you love animals? Well, you should read this book to see how much you could really love animals and find out interesting facts. This book was terrific, it taught good morals and made you laugh, it even taught you some cool facts. I encourage you to read this book.
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Summary: You'll Never Say "Dumb As A Crow" Again
Review: If you think a fox can't be trained to use a litter box, if you think a frog can't hop in to be a substitute for a vacuum cleaner and if you think crows are dumb, this charming book of real-life adventures stemming from having "wild" animals and birds (and bugs) as pets will set you straight. George grew up with more than a dog and a cat for her friends and she raised her three children in the same way. So what if a clutch of ducklings needs the bathtub for a feeding and living ground for a week or so! So what if your weasel has to be worn out with exercise before he can be fed! No zany inconvenience seemed to stop this family's adventures with real wild things. The fun they've had and relationships they've built with their pets/friends will make you envious as you laugh and marvel at the tales. And the stories about two of their crows, North and Crowbar, will simply stun you with how ingenious and devious (in the clever banker sense) they were. And don't think they didn't have skunks for pets either! This is a terrific book for all ages!
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Summary: You'll Never Say "Dumb As A Crow" Again
Review: If you think a fox can't be trained to use a litter box, if you think a frog can't step in and be a substitute for a vacuum cleaner and if you think crows are dumb, this charming book of real-life adventures stemming from having "wild" animals and birds (and bugs) as pets will set you straight. George grew up with more than a dog and a cat for her friends and she raised her three children in the same way. So what if a clutch of ducklings needs the bathtub for a feeding and living ground for a week or so! So what if your weasel has to be worn out with exercise before he can be fed! No zany inconvenience seemed to stop this family's adventures with real wild things. The fun they've had and relationships they've built with their pets/friends will make you envious as you laugh and marvel at the tales. And the stories about two of their crows, North and Crowbar, will simply stun you with how ingenious and devious (in the clever banker sense) they were. And don't think they didn't have skunks for pets either! This is a terrific for all ages!
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Summary: You'll Never Say "Dumb As A Crow" Again
Review: If you think a fox can't be trained to use a litter box, if you think a frog can't step in and be a substitute for a vacuum cleaner and if you think crows are dumb, this charming book of real-life adventures stemming from having "wild" animals and birds (and bugs) as pets will set you straight. George grew up with more than a dog and a cat for her friends and she raised her three children in the same way. So what if a clutch of ducklings needs the bathtub for a feeding and living ground for a week or so! So what if your weasel has to be worn out with exercise before he can be fed! No zany inconvenience seemed to stop this family's adventures with real wild things. The fun they've had and relationships they've built with their pets/friends will make you envious as you laugh and marvel at the tales. And the stories about two of their crows, North and Crowbar, will simply stun you with how ingenious and devious (in the clever banker sense) they were. And don't think they didn't have skunks for pets either! This is a terrific for all ages!
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Summary: The best animal book ever!
Review: This book is amazing! It is a true story about Jean Craighead George's life with wild pets. If you like wild animals, you'll love this book! Jean is the narrator of the book as well as the author. I think she would make a great animal caretaker. I really liked this book and I think you would, too, if you tried it!
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Summary: Jean Craighead George's The Tarantula in my Purse
Review: This book offers a humorous and occasionally sad look at how wild things (I daren't say animals, they had a snake named Boay that ate live mice, all the school kids would come over to watch.) were a part of the Craighead's life.
Her 3 children Twig, Craig and Luke grew up with animals in the house.
A fun read for ages 8+. However if you only have time for one of her books, make it My Side of the Mountain.
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Summary: Something for all ages!
Review: While the target audience is kids, this book is really fun reading for all ages. Not many families would dare to take in the pets that the George family did, including a skunk with its stinker gland (not the technical term, sorry), nor is it really advisable. But the George family was knowledgable about wildlife biology and knew how to take care of the animals they took in. I was surprised to find that almost every story taught me something new about animal behavior and intelligence. Reading the story may make you or your kids want to find wild pets, but imbued in each story is also a lesson in how much responsibility it takes as well. What I enjoyed the most, though, is the autobiographical nature of this book that gives a picture of an impressive family. The 3 kids had childhoods that were full of adventure, affection, and education. They have all grown up to be impressive and accomplished adults. I think one can glean some lessons here on how to raise happy kids who respect nature and how to cultivate their curiosities into independent thinking. I'm an adult now, but reading this book makes me want to be a kid rediscovering the natural world again.
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