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nostalgia_reader's review against another edition
3.0
I remember trying to read this ages ago in grade school, when it was new and fresh from the Scholastic Book Fair. I promptly stopped reading when I decided "I don't like the first person way it's written!" Although I think I tried to read (and maybe made it through the entire thing?) the first installment of the series as well, this became a sadly abandoned book.
Until now! I wanted something with cute fluffy animals and minimal plot, and my guilt for never having finished this (yes, even years later, I still feel guilty for all those grade school chapter books I still have but never finished) encouraged me to read it.
In this case, I disagree with my younger self about first-person POV: Freddy is a hamster that can read and write, and it would certainly lack the charm of hamster if this wasn't written in first-hamster view.
Freddy and his fellow pets--Sir William, the cat, and Enrico and Caruso, the theatrically-inclined guinea pigs--go on a mission to save a group of field hamsters from being killed when their field is slated to be demolished for an automobile plant. Basic plot, with a happy ending for most parties involved. If you've read Hoot, then this is quite similar, only with animals telling the story.
Although of course I love smart hamsters and amusingly Shakespearean guinea pigs and saving cute little rodents from destruction, there was still something about the story that just made me go MEH. This could simply be because I'm much older and expect more in general from a story. Or maybe some of the amusement could have been lost in translation, as this is translated from, I believe, German.
Regardless of the meh-factor, it was still a fun quick read with cute animals and illustrations and quirky font mixed in for emphasis.
Until now! I wanted something with cute fluffy animals and minimal plot, and my guilt for never having finished this (yes, even years later, I still feel guilty for all those grade school chapter books I still have but never finished) encouraged me to read it.
In this case, I disagree with my younger self about first-person POV: Freddy is a hamster that can read and write, and it would certainly lack the charm of hamster if this wasn't written in first-hamster view.
Freddy and his fellow pets--Sir William, the cat, and Enrico and Caruso, the theatrically-inclined guinea pigs--go on a mission to save a group of field hamsters from being killed when their field is slated to be demolished for an automobile plant. Basic plot, with a happy ending for most parties involved. If you've read Hoot, then this is quite similar, only with animals telling the story.
Although of course I love smart hamsters and amusingly Shakespearean guinea pigs and saving cute little rodents from destruction, there was still something about the story that just made me go MEH. This could simply be because I'm much older and expect more in general from a story. Or maybe some of the amusement could have been lost in translation, as this is translated from, I believe, German.
Regardless of the meh-factor, it was still a fun quick read with cute animals and illustrations and quirky font mixed in for emphasis.
akalexander24's review
3.0
Never read the first two, 1st-grade-teacher mum just showed up with it one day...