Rotten Richie and the Ultimate Dare
Grade 1-4 When Trisha's family moves from Union City to Battle Creek, her older brother makes her life miserable. He embarrasses her at school with rude, gross behavior at every turn, and they fight over which is better, ice hockey or ballet. At last she triple dares him in front of his friends to perform in her ballet recital. He has to accept, but does so only on the condition that she play on his ice-hockey team in the upcoming game. She learns the hard way how brutal the sport is, but manages to make the winning goal. Then it is her brother's turn to live up to his part of the bargain. At first he is a laughingstock, but when the male lead hurts his ankle and cannot dance, Richie comes through, and he and Trisha declare a truce. To this day, he calls her Slapshot and she calls him Dance King. This book is vintage Polacco, with pleasing pencil-and-marker illustrations that highlight each amusing moment. The endpapers display photos of the author and her brother, embellished with funny sketches of the characters. The sibling relationship is realistically depicted with honesty, childlike humor, and dead-on dialogue. This story can be enjoyed independently or shared aloud; either way, youngsters will easily relate to the rivalry, the dares, and the resolution. An outstanding book from a popular author.Eve Ottenberg Stone, Cooper Lane Elementary, Landover Hills, MDCopyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.