Skippyjon Jones

Rip off

My grand daughter had this book and my husband read it to her and her brother before bed last night. We love Skippy Jon so much we went out and bought another book to have here at our home for when our grandkids come over. They are 9, 7, 5 and 3 years old. Two of our grandchildren are 1/4th Hispanic and I think their 100% Hispanic grandmother bought it for them. Its just a fun story for kids and adults. Judy Schachner is an amazing Children's author. Thanks Judy!

This book was so much fun to read aloud! My 4 year old son liked it and I just LOVED it from an adult perspective. My children are 1/4 Mexican, and I did not have a problem reading it to them. Some of the other reviewers have said it is "racist", I am assuming because Skippyjon uses a Mexican accent when he is pretending to be "El Skippito". The accent is cute in this context, not degrading, and I consider myself overly sensitive to racism because all of my three children are multi-ethnic (African-American, Mexican, and Japanese between them). I would also like to add that I have been to readings by Mexican-American writers who used the same Mexican accent as Skippyjon when presenting their own work. This was not their normal accent, but they used it as a device for creating a certain "feel" that was appropriate to the piece they were reading. The one that I am thinking of was about a famous Mexican "bandito", so Schachner's use of it seemed totally appropriate here, since that is exactly who Skippyjon is trying to imitate. Overall, this is a wonderful book!

"Skippyjon Jones" is so good on so many levels. It may just be the perfect children's book. No, the Platonic IDEAL of what a children's book should be...I'm that enamored of it!First, the plot is hilarious. Skippyjon is a Siamese cat with a fantastic imagination. His mother scolds him for being so un-catlike and sends him to his room "to think about what it means to be a Siamese cat." But of course Skippyjon doesn't think for long. His imagination takes over and poof! He's a famous sword-fighting chihuahua off on an adventure in old Mexico. He defeats Alfredo Buzzito, "el blimpo bumblebeeto bandito" and wins back all the beans Buzzito has stolen from Los Chimichangos, a band of desert-dwelling chihuahuas. And of course the noise of this adventure eventually brings him back to reality, with his mother and sisters scolding him again, but in such a fond and loving way that we're left feeling only their affection for the little kitty-boy scamp.Next, there are the pictures. Young readers and experienced readers both will enjoy the very funny illustrations, which include clues about just how Skippyjon GETS those wild ideas.Finally, there is the diction. The language in this book is inspired. It rollicks. It rolls. It plays with the audience, teases and tickles and delights little ears. And "holy guacamole," it sure is fun to read aloud! Thank you, Judith Schachner!

....i collect childrens' cat books- i have HUNDREDS! This was given to me as a gift- just hysterical! The illustrations are marvelous and appealing for little ones and SkippyJon Jones is a most appealing "hero"! i work for Borders and will hand sell this believe me! A wonderful, fresh childrens book ready for holiday gift giving-and a "must have" for cat people! i too hope SkippyJon will be around for many more "tails"!