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May 17, 2012 by Betsy Bird

Top 100 Children’s Novels #82: The Cricket in Times Square by George Selden

May 17, 2012 by Betsy Bird   5 comments

#82 The Cricket in Times Square by George Selden (1960)
24 points

A fun and poignant story with plenty of humor. – Laurie Zaepfel

Boy, we’re filling in all sorts of gaps left and right, aren’t we? This book, I’m ashamed to say, never made it onto the previous poll (though I think I remember that it came close).

Macmillan’s description of the plot reads, “Tucker is a streetwise city mouse. He thought he’d seen it all. But he’s never met a cricket before, which really isn’t surprising, because, along with his friend Harry Cat, Tucker lives in the very heart of New York City—the Times Square subway station. Chester Cricket never intended to leave his Connecticut meadow. He’d be there still if he hadn’t followed the entrancing aroma of liverwurst right into someone’s picnic basket. Now, like any tourist in the city, he wants to look around. And he could not have found two better guides—and friends—than Tucker and Harry. The trio have many adventures—from taking in the sights and sounds of Broadway to escaping a smoky fire.  Chester makes a third friend, too. It is a boy, Mario, who rescues Chester from a dusty corner of the subway station and brings him to live in the safety of his parents’ newsstand. He hopes at first to keep Chester as a pet, but Mario soon understands that the cricket is more than that. Because Chester has a hidden talent and no one—not even Chester himself—realizes that the little country cricket may just be able to teach even the toughest New Yorkers a thing or two.”

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I don’t know how many of us remember the offensive parts, of course.  Do you?  As Silvey puts it in 100 Best Books for Children, “The Cricket in Times Square is an ideal book to read aloud, although many reades prefer to avoid the exaggerated Chinese dialect of the character Sai Fong.”  I have the same trouble with Cheaper by the Dozen.  The story behind this book is much sweeter.  A subway cricket chirp served as Selden’s inspiration for the tale.  He’d written a book for kids before called The Dog That Could Swim Under Water and apparently it’s fine that you aren’t familiar with it.  This book won a Newbery Honor when it was released, it’s still remembered today, and Selden had some pretty interesting skeletons in his closet . . . but that’s a story that can wait for another day.

Was there an animated film you ask?  Oh yes, best beloved, I’m afraid that there was.  Interestingly enough, scour the internet though you may you cannot find so much as its trailer.  We should give thanks for small favors.

Filed under: Best Books, Top 100 Children's Novels (2012)

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George SeldenThe Cricket in Times Square

About Betsy Bird

Betsy Bird is currently the Collection Development Manager of the Evanston Public Library system and a former Materials Specialist for New York Public Library. She has served on Newbery, written for Kirkus, and has done other lovely little things that she'd love to tell you about but that she's sure you'd find more interesting to hear of in person. Her opinions are her own and do not reflect those of EPL, SLJ, or any of the other acronyms you might be able to name. Follow her on BlueSky at: @fuse8.bsky.social

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About Betsy Bird

Betsy Bird is currently the Collection Development Manager of the Evanston Public Library system and a former Materials Specialist for New York Public Library. She has served on Newbery, written for Kirkus, and has done other lovely little things that she'd love to tell you about but that she's sure you'd find more interesting to hear of in person. Her opinions are her own and do not reflect those of EPL, SLJ, or any of the other acronyms you might be able to name. Follow her on BlueSky at: @fuse8.bsky.social

Reader Interactions

Comments

  1. Eric says

    May 17, 2012 at 6:30 pm

    Are you implying that Chuck Jones’s masterful adaptation of The Cricket in Times Square is anything less than a masterpiece?

    I find the film to be not only Jones’s best post-Warner Bros. work, but one of the best American films of the 1970s (admittedly a weak decade for American film). The film can usually be found on dvd and video releases paired with Jones’s adaptation of Kipling’s The White Seal (which is pretty good as well).

    • Elizabeth Bird says

      May 18, 2012 at 1:00 am

      All right! Time Square movie defenders! Did not see that one coming but I’m willing to believe you. After all, I’ve a great fondness for that Rikki-Tikki-Tavi film.

  2. Betsy says

    May 17, 2012 at 7:29 pm

    You crack me up!! “It’s fine that you aren’t familiar with it…” meaning don’t run out and look for that unknown book? hilarious.

  3. Sondy says

    May 17, 2012 at 7:52 pm

    I think I didn’t read the book until I’d seen the cartoon — and remember it as being wonderful. I’m glad Eric thinks so, too!

Trackbacks

  1. The Cricket in Times Square by George Selden | Award-Winning Youth Literature says:
    February 22, 2014 at 6:43 pm

    […] Reviews: School Library Journal gave this book a starred review, and The Horn Book also gave it a positive review. Both reviews mention the whimsy and fun of the novel. Excerpts from both of these can be found on the Macmillan website. Unfortunately, due to the age of the title, it was difficult to find other reviews from the time period during which the book was released, but a recent blog post from SLJ included it on a list of the top 100 children’s novels. […]

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