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Children's Fiction Humorous Stories

Music By Morgan

by (author) Ted Staunton

illustrated by Bill Slavin

Publisher
Formac Publishing Company Limited
Initial publish date
Jun 2012
Category
Humorous Stories, General, Halloween, General, Hockey
  • eBook

    ISBN
    9780887809606
    Publish Date
    Jun 2012
    List Price
    $9.99
  • Hardback

    ISBN
    9780887809286
    Publish Date
    Oct 2010
    List Price
    $14.95
  • Paperback / softback

    ISBN
    9780887809262
    Publish Date
    Sep 2010
    List Price
    $5.95

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Where to buy it

Recommended Age, Grade, and Reading Levels

  • Age: 6 to 9
  • Grade: 1 to 4
  • Reading age: 6 to 9

Description

Morgan is not pleased when his parents sign him up to play floor hockey at the community centre; he stinks at hockey and it's no fun. So when Aldeen Hummel, the Godzilla of Grade Three and a good hockey player, is unhappily signed up for piano lessons, Morgan crafts a plan to trade places.

About the authors

 

TED STAUNTON a écrit plus de quarante livres jeunesse et a contribué à la sériepopulaire Seven. Il joue aussi de la musique folk et blues. Ted se rend souventdans des écoles et des bibliothèques canadiennes. Il donne aussi un cours derédaction au collège George Brown à Toronto. Quand il n’est pas plongé dans un livre, il fait souvent de la musique avec le Maple Leaf Champions Jug Band..

 

Ted Staunton is the award-winning author of over forty books for young people, including Bounced, What Blows Up in The Almost Epic Squad series, the picture book Friends for Real, illustrated by Ruth Ohi, and the coauthor of the non-fiction title It Seemed Like a Good Idea . . . : Canadian Feats, Facts and Flubs, with his son Will. A busy and popular presenter at schools across Canada, Ted also teaches writing at George Brown College in Toronto, and is a roots/blues musician in whatever time is left over. Visit him online at www.tedstauntonbooks.com.

 

Ted Staunton's profile page

Multiple award winning illustrator Bill Slavin was born in Belleville, Ontario. His work includes the acclaimed 'Stanley's Party' written by Linda Bailey, 'Who Broke the teapot!' as well as more than 100 award winning children's books.
Among his many honours, Bill has won the Amelia Frances Howard-Gibbon Illustrator's Award, the Blue Spruce Award, the California Young Reader Medal and the Zena Sutherland Award for Children's Literature. Recently, he has returned to his childhood love of comics and graphic novels, writing and illustrating the graphic novel trilogy Elephants Never Forget, as now the Mordecai Crow trilogy. Quid Pro Crow is Bil's second book with Renegade Arts Entertainment.

Bill Slavin's profile page

Awards

  • Commended, One of the Year's Best for 2011 - Resource Links
  • Winner, Best Books for Kids & Teens -- Canadian Children's Book Centre

Editorial Reviews

Each of the ten short chapters includes one full-page black-and-white cartoon illustration. These effectively portray the characters and highlight important moments. These provide accessible, comfortable stories for students who have moved beyond early readers but are not ready for much greater length or more complexity.

www.kirkusreviews.com

Students will be able to relate to a common problem of feeling anxiety about going to team sports or music lessons. Using this book as a read aloud could fit into a discussion of personal talents and career choices. Highly recommended.

Resource Links

Author Ted Staunton has a wonderful eye for the dynamics of kids' relationships and his always active sense of humour gives readers a funny tale with some real truths embedded. Illustrator Bill Slavin, also no slouch when it come to finding humour in situations, gives his audience just enough goofiness and action for their reading pleasure.

Canadian Children's Book News

"...chronicles the hilarity and drama that ensues when Morgan and his friend Aldeen attempt to pull off a classic switcheroo."

"...offers a careful balance of humor and description, and the characters are effectively developed, putting this title squarely into the goal for early readers."

"...a solid and satisfying offering for newly independent readers."

Bulletin of the Centre for Children's Books

"Music By Morgan is a short book and written very well. The plot will be well liked by children of all interest and reading levels. Recommended."

Canadian Review of Materials

One of the Canadian Children's Book Centre's "Great Reads for the Holidays 2011"

bookcentre.ca

Librarian Reviews

Music by Morgan (First Novels)

Morgan, the hero of 12 other books by Ted Staunton and Bill Slavin in the First Novel series from Formac Publishing, isn’t given to wild imaginings at all. What he would like to do is avoid playing floor hockey; he’s not good at it and doesn’t enjoy it. When his parents sign him up for house league at the community centre, he is appalled. Morgan’s nemesis, Aldeen Hummel (the Godzilla of Grade Three) loves to play floor hockey. Her grandmother, however, has signed her up for piano lessons to develop her “artistic” side.

Aldeen comes up with a plan — they will switch places. Morgan’s not sure this will work but is persuaded when the alternative is having Aldeen “smoosh him into a hockey puck.” At the community centre, Aldeen has a wonderful time playing floor hockey and Morgan (now “Al Dean”) finds he really enjoys learning the piano. Practising requires a lot of trickery to keep the parents from finding out the truth. As the Hallowe’en concert approaches, however, they have to go to greater lengths to keep their secret, until their friend Charlie brings things to a head (literally).

Author Ted Staunton has a wonderful eye for the dynamics of kids’ relationships and his always active sense of humour gives readers a funny tale with some real truths embedded. Illustrator Bill Slavin, also no slouch at finding humour in situations, gives his audience just enough goofiness and action for their reading pleasure.

Source: The Canadian Children's Bookcentre. Winter 2011. Volume 34 No. 1.

Morgan isn’t happy when his parents sign him up for floor hockey. He’d much rather take piano lessons. When Aldeen Hummel, the Godzilla of Grade Three and a good hockey player, is signed up for piano, they craft a plan to trade places. How long can they fool the coach, the piano teacher and their parents?

Source: The Canadian Children’s Book Centre. Best Books for Kids & Teens. 2011.

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