Vinegar Pancakes and Vanishing Cream - Softcover

Pryor, Bonnie

Softcover

ISBN 10: 0688147445 ISBN 13: 9780688147440

Publisher: HarperCollins, 1996

Synopsis

Surrounded by siblings who are either athletic, smart, or cute, Martin wonders who he is while enduring a wild camping trip, disasters in the kitchen, and other family escapades

About this title

About the Author:

Bonnie Pryor thoroughly researched important periods of American history for each of her American Adventures. For Luke on the High Seas, she delved into seafaring in the nineteenth century so that the details of Luke Reed's journey would be accurate. She lives in Gambier, Ohio. In Her Own Words...

"I grew up in Spokane, Washington, the middle child in a family of three girls. Books were a part of my life from as far back as I can remember. I was often in trouble for reading at the wrong time. I would be caught reading under the dining room table when I was supposed to be dusting, or reading under the covers by flashlight late at night-even hiding a novel inside my textbooks at school.

"Not everyone thought I read too much. I remember a school librarian who saved all the new books for me to read first, and on several occasions she gave me presents of books. Perhaps she felt she should because I had read every single thing in her library!

"I was very shy, and, like Robert in The Plum Tree War, I spent a lot of my time hanging from my knees from a favorite plum tree, telling myself stories. Of course since I was raised in the West these stories were usually about wild horses and cowboys, and I was always the heroine who came to the rescue. The stories were long and involved, sometimes going on for days. I was always impatient to get to my tree each day so I could find out what was going to happen next, but I was too lazy to write the stories down.

"I think everyone expected me to become a writer, but it took me twenty years and a gentle nudge from my husband, Robert, to build up the courage to try. In the meantime I moved to Ohio, worked at a variety of jobs, and raised a family. I have four grown children, eight grandchildren, and two daughters still at home-Jenny and Chrissy. Many of my books are loosely based upon incidents in my children's lives, and they often appear as characters, in personality if not by name.

"My family recently moved to the country. When I'm not writing and visiting schools, we're busy building barns and fences and laying out flower beds. In addition, we all take part in caring for the four newcomers to our home: three horses and a bunny!"

From School Library Journal:

Grade 3-5 Martin Elwood Snodgrass begins his story while in Mrs. Robbins' second-grade class. He is unhappy with his name, with being the shortest kid in class, and with being the only member of his family with no special talent. The year or so following second grade is an eventful period for Martin. He misses yet another class trip to the zoo; survives the chicken pox; establishes himself in school; befriends a new, elderly neighbor; and learns that being Martin in the middle isn't so bad after all. The book is a series of short episodes tied together by Martin's first-person narration. Children should empathize with many of the events and Martin's perceptions of them. Characters are generally plausible and consistent, although not always likable. Caroline, for example, is a rather typical sibling and as such is often irritating, obnoxious, and pompous, made more so because she is described by her younger brother. Owens' illustrations are realistic but humorous, virtually spilling out of their frames. The scenes depicted are lively, well chosen, and appropriately placed. The short chapters should appeal to young readers just beginning longer books. Maria B. Salvadore, District of Columbia Public Library
Copyright 1987 Reed Business Information, Inc.

About this edition

• Publisher: HarperCollins
• Publication date: 1996
• ISBN 10: 0688147445
• ISBN 13: 9780688147440
• Binding: Paperback
• Number of pages: 128
• Illustrator: Owens Gail