Attack of the Giant Hamster

Dr. Roach's Monstrous Stories

by Paul Harrison

Funny, light-hearted monster stories that are perfect for young readers, brought to us by the esteemed Dr. Roach.

Billy's new pet hamster is a huge disappointment. Despite his name, Hercules is perhaps the world's laziest rodent. He does nothing besides sleep, eat, and sleep some more.

So when Billy sees an advertisement on television for a power snack, he decides that's just the thing to put some hurry into Hercules. But when the formula begins working too well, Billy realizes he may have one massive, hungry problem on his hands.

Genres: Childrens, Humor, Chapter Books, Science Fiction, Horror, Monsters

64 pages, Paperback

First published October 1, 2012

Reviews

[Vanessa Dioses]

I read this fantasy genre by author Paul Harrison and thought it was great. The age range would be 6 to 10 years of age. The book is about a boy named Billy who has a hamster named Hercules who is quite lazy. Billy gives him something to eat differently then usual and something totally unexpected happens to Hercules!I rated this book so well because i was very surprised by my own reaction to it. The illustrations were very well done. The book was surprisingly very funny and humorous. The book is written in black and white and i could see the words very clearly and it held my attention. The words are well printed and it did not get boring to read. This book would be appealing to young readers. It is funny, clever, and cute at the same time. Harrison seems to write about monster stories which as a child and even now i love monster stories, which is fun and exciting to me. I believe young readers would love it too. I would love to read other stories like "Night of the Zombie Goldfish" by Harrison. I would use this book with children in a way of a fantasy of some sort but also with a science fiction aspect too. I did not think the book would be that interesting to me. Again, i was quite surprised how much it made me laugh out loud, smile and enjoy it as much as i did!

[Danica Midlil]

AR 3.7
Giant smelly hamster poop and pervasive clouds of hamster gas plus destruction equals a great book for boys!

[Angela]

Great for reluctant readers and/or readers who enjoy hamsters and flatulence - this story has both!

[Edward Creter]

This one is from Dr. Roach's Monstrous Stories, but don't let his name "bug" you!....maybe you should. (LOL) A young boy feeds his hamster Hercules a special rodent pill and gets a HUGE Hamsterstein Monster terrorizing his hometown! The little guy was named for a certain Greek Musclehead who should remain nameless and now is a big-headed ignoramus! (Just like Kevin Sorbo from the Hercules TV show, naturally!) Can our human hero save us all from Death From Lovable Softness? The answer should be a gas! (Wordplay, but please read for yourself to find out!)

[The Brothers]

Billy is fed up with his pet hamster, Hercules. He's just too lazy! An ad on TV promises to perk things up with Booster Bites, so Billy goes out and get some for his pet. But, it turns out Booster Bites only cause his little hamster to grow by monstrous proportions. When it seems that the army is finally going to do away with Billy's giant pet, a scientist of Booster Bites shows up with a tablet, promising to reverse the growth.

Cute story with nice illustrations.

[Diana Pettis]

Very cute story for boys because they could get into the action. Predictable story elements which made retelling easy for Xavier and Xander. The book was only 55 pages so I could see using it as a guided reading text for my students at school.

[Kristen]

This is a good early chapter book at the Scholastic Branches level. Kids who liked the Notebook of Doom series but also like an element of goofy humor would definitely love this. Readers who aren't quite ready for Time Warp Trio or Super Chicken Nugget Boy should be able to tackle this one.

[C.W. Reads]

This was the first time reading a book by this author. I read it to my 5 year old. We both loved it. The hamster eating everything was so funny. My son couldn't stop laughing.

[Jennifer Wolf]

According to Corbin, "It has a lot of GAS!!!"

[Robert Marsh]

Giant rampaging hamster! What's not to like?

[Jenn]

Definitely better than the zombie goldfish. Very, very basic story with black and white illustrations. Boy feeds his lazy hamster a boost bite and the hamster grows huge and busts out of the house.

[Stephanie | Books_and_Steph]

Cute and super funny! My 9 year old boy loves these books and we laugh together while he reads them to me.

[Megan]

my 8 year-old really enjoyed it