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Carle's classic tale of a voracious caterpillar who eats his way through the days of the week and then changes into a eautiful butterfly has been reissued in a sumptuous twenty-fifth anniversary edition with a shiny, silver-coated cover and wonderfully thick, durably pages.
—The Horn Book
"The very hungry caterpillar literally eats his way through the pages of the book—and right into your child's heart..."
—Mother's Manual
Peter Abrahams has written many books for kids, adults, and teens. His new book, Robbie Forester and the Outlaws of Sherwood Street, is about a young girl named Robbie who stumbles upon a powerful charm that leads her into a world of magic and danger on a quest for justice. Stephen King calls Robbie Forester "unputdownable” and says that “memorable characters and a breakneck pace make Robbie Forester the total package."
A Q&A with Peter Abrahams:
- What was your inspiration for Robbie Forester?
I was very lucky on the inspiration front. One day my wife said, "How about a young Robin Hood in Brooklyn?"
- Where there any specific reasons you decided to make Robbie a female narrator?
It wasn't really thought out. The character pretty much popped up in my mind the way she is on the page. I liked her voice, which is why I wrote the book in the first person. I'm not one of those people who think writing from the point of view of a character of the opposite gender is a big deal. Don't forget that as Spencer Quinn I write a mystery series narrated by a dog.
- You've written many books for adults and several for young adults and children. What are some of the differences in writing for young adults than adults? Any differences in writing for young adults rather than younger readers?
Crazily enough, I don't think much about this. Since I'm seeing through the eyes of a twelve-year-old it just unreels in the age-appropriate way. Hard to believe, maybe, but I was once a twelve-year-old myself! There is the challenge of how to avoid those few "bad" words and still write realistic dialogue.
- Who is your favorite character in Robbie Forester aside from Robbie? Why?
Tut-Tut is probably my favorite character after Robbie. Tut-Tut is the stuttering Haitian refugee with a horrific past, who turns out to be very strong inside, and kind of funny, too.
- Can you tell us anything about the future of the Robbie Forester series?
An oyster plays a small but crucial role in the second book.
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