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Little Rat #2
Little Rat Rides
Little Rat can't wait to ride a horse, just like her daddy did when he was young. But when it's time for her first lesson, she almost changes her mind. No one said her horse, Pee Wee, would be so . . . giant! But with a bit of encouragement from Daddy Rat--and lots of help from Pee Wee--her dream of becoming a fancy rider might just come true.
48 pages, Hardcover
First published April 1, 2004
17 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 17 of 18 reviews
September 18, 2016
1. Little Rate dreams of riding horses like her dad did when he was younger. Little Rat finally gets the opportunity to ride a horse named Pee Wee, but Little Rat is very scared because he is so big. Little Rat befriends Pee Wee and rides him. She likes it. Then one day Pee Wee gets spooked by a cat and Little Rat gets slung off the saddle. She was so very scared, but the instructor encouraged Little Rat to ride again, so she did. Little Rat and Pee Wee get to participate in the 4th of July horse show, and neither of them like it. It is very hot and miserable. Little Rat wants to quit and go home, but then the judge pins her and Pee Wee with 5th place. Little Rat and Pee Wee are so happy. Little Rat is glad she decided to not quit all those times she thought about quitting because now she can ride horses like her dad.
2. This book would be appropriate for grades 1-3.
3. This book would be good to use as a transitional book for students. It is a chapter book, but it is short and has many pictures as well. That would help them to get use to chapter books and slowly ween out the pictures. This book would also be great to use to inspire students to not give up on their dreams even though it might get hard or scary.
4. Students who like animal fantasy would like this as well as those interested in horse riding. Also students who question their selves would gain from this book.
5. You could use this book in small groups. You could have them read it together.
6. This book could be read aloud. It would be fun for the students.
7. Related books are Little Rat sets Sail and Little Rat makes Music.
8. There are no other versions of this book.
2. This book would be appropriate for grades 1-3.
3. This book would be good to use as a transitional book for students. It is a chapter book, but it is short and has many pictures as well. That would help them to get use to chapter books and slowly ween out the pictures. This book would also be great to use to inspire students to not give up on their dreams even though it might get hard or scary.
4. Students who like animal fantasy would like this as well as those interested in horse riding. Also students who question their selves would gain from this book.
5. You could use this book in small groups. You could have them read it together.
6. This book could be read aloud. It would be fun for the students.
7. Related books are Little Rat sets Sail and Little Rat makes Music.
8. There are no other versions of this book.
November 15, 2012
Little Rat Rides is one book in the series of Little Rat books. I have to say although I think this book is fairly cute and well written for an easy reader, I did not think it was anything special or worth noting. I would not choose this book to promote in a classroom or read aloud, but I can definitely see it as being a beneficial book to have around a classroom for free reading time practice. I did find it a little odd that throughout this book all the characters were animals, yet some were able to talk and some were not. I also found it odd that although Little Rat enjoyed riding Pee Wee the horse, Little Rat had human like qualities while the horse just acted like a horse. Even though child readers always love animal characters, I think they would find this extremely confusing that some animals in this book could keep other animals as “pets” and have control over them like Little Rat and Mrs. Mugpie have over Pee Wee. I think young readers will love the fact that this book is broken up in to short chapters too. They will feel very accomplished when they complete chapters on their own, and this book easily allows them to do that by having each chapter begin a new short story. Any child that enjoys riding horses or animals at all will like this book very much but I think it is something they will easily grow out of. I personally was not that impressed by the illustrations either, they seems kind of plain and typical to me. I am also not sure how I feel about a rat being chosen as the main character. Rats are not typically a highly thought of or popular animal to begin with. Overall I think this book is a useful tool to use when children are learning to read and will provide some short lived entertainment, but in my opinion it is by no means a classic, memorable piece of children’s literature.
November 11, 2012
Little Rat longed to ride a horse like her dad did in the Fourth of July parade. Her dreams came true whenever she went for her first lesson, however it wasn't what she expected. There were farm animals that weren't as welcoming as her instructor and that made Little Rat very nervous. Also, her horse, Pee Wee, was a lot taller than she had imagined. Nothing was working out and Little Rat was very discouraged, but she put her fears aside and made the best of the situation. She got on Pee Wee and turns out it was a lot of fun and not scary. Week after week, Little Rat returned to the stables to ride. Each week, something happened to ruin the experience, but Little Rat didn't let it get her down. Her trainer and her were working towards the Fourth of July Horse Show. She had be preparing for it for weeks. Pee Wee was all groomed and ready to go. When the big day finally arrived, it was unbearably hot. Both Pee Wee and Little Rat were very cranky and uncomfortable. Pee Wee was having trouble keeping up with the other horses. While she was motivating him, he started to shake and then he sneezed! In the end, Pee Wee and Little Rat did not win, but they did get a pretty ribbon. Little Rat was not discouraged, however extremely happy because she got to ride like her father used to. After that, she couldn't wait for the next time she would see Pee Wee.
The illustrations made this book realistic since it's not likely that a rat would ride a horse. As the child is reading, the illustrations help them have a better understanding of the major events. I would recommend this book for a read aloud for first or second graders since it is a chapter book. This would be a great book for animal lovers.
The illustrations made this book realistic since it's not likely that a rat would ride a horse. As the child is reading, the illustrations help them have a better understanding of the major events. I would recommend this book for a read aloud for first or second graders since it is a chapter book. This would be a great book for animal lovers.
December 5, 2012
I was eager to read this book about Little Rat after reading ‘Little Rat Sets Sail.’ This book picked up right where the other one left off, Little Rat was once again tackling something she was very scared to do at first. Little Rat saw a picture of her father on a horse and she wanted to feel big and proud like he did. When she got to the stables, she was scared to death because her horse Pee Wee was so much bigger than she was and, she thought he would be big and mean. Once she rode Pee Wee a while, she started really liking him and enjoyed riding. She eventually rides Pee Wee in the 4th of July parade and she has some hiccups with Pee Wee but everything turns out great. She told her father she couldn’t wait to get back on Pee Wee and get ready for next year’s parade.
Once again, the illustrations were great and highly detailed. You could tell how Little Rat was feeling the whole time during her difficult horse riding adventure. The pictures were also brightly colored to keep the reader’s attention! It’s another great example of a book that the reader would be able to understand what’s going on without any of the words. She started out scared and freaking out but eventually grew to love her horse Pee Wee. This would be a great book to use for a read aloud for younger students. The class can follow along with Little Rat and be with her every step of the way. Students can easily relate to Little Rat in that they have had many similar experiences when learning to do something new and the transitions they made along the way. You can start out scared of anything but if you conquer your fears, you can turn that fear into great happiness and love it! Highly recommended!
Once again, the illustrations were great and highly detailed. You could tell how Little Rat was feeling the whole time during her difficult horse riding adventure. The pictures were also brightly colored to keep the reader’s attention! It’s another great example of a book that the reader would be able to understand what’s going on without any of the words. She started out scared and freaking out but eventually grew to love her horse Pee Wee. This would be a great book to use for a read aloud for younger students. The class can follow along with Little Rat and be with her every step of the way. Students can easily relate to Little Rat in that they have had many similar experiences when learning to do something new and the transitions they made along the way. You can start out scared of anything but if you conquer your fears, you can turn that fear into great happiness and love it! Highly recommended!
Read
November 17, 2016This was an inspiring little story about Little Rat overcoming her fear of riding horses. After seeing a picture of Daddy Rat riding a horse, Little Rat decides that she wants to do that too. So Daddy Rate takes her to Clodhopper Farm, so she can ride. After seeing the animals Little Rat thinks "maybe this is not a good idea." After a few incidents (getting thrown off, hurting her foot, having to clean the stall) Little Rat is scared and does not want to ride anymore. Then by the end of the book she is riding the horse in the fourth of July parade.
This book would be a great way to build kids confidence in reading chapter books. The chapters are short and accompanied with a lot of fun illustrations. The conflict in this story is a relateable one for almost all children, almost every child has had to overcome a fear. The short chapters keep readers interested and engaged with the story.
The illustrations in this book are great! The story could stand on its own without the illustrations; however, the illustrations much of the emotion kids need to relate to Little Rat.
I would recommend this book to high 2nd-3rd grade.
This book would be a great way to build kids confidence in reading chapter books. The chapters are short and accompanied with a lot of fun illustrations. The conflict in this story is a relateable one for almost all children, almost every child has had to overcome a fear. The short chapters keep readers interested and engaged with the story.
The illustrations in this book are great! The story could stand on its own without the illustrations; however, the illustrations much of the emotion kids need to relate to Little Rat.
I would recommend this book to high 2nd-3rd grade.
December 8, 2015
Little rat has decided that she wants to be just like her daddy and ride a horse, which is a quite a task since she is so small. Her and PeeWee, the horse, start off rocky but PeeWee is a sweet heart and eventually Little Rat learns that PeeWee means no harm, even when he accidentally steps on Little Rat's foot. Throughout the practice Little Rat gains confidence and begins to do really well. She overcomes the bully that has been bothering her since the beginning. Little Rat does a great job at her show, although it isn't perfect, she feels great about her performance and wants to continue to take lessons and excel, just like her dad. The illustrations in this are so pretty and look hand drawn with beautiful paint. While there are plenty of illustrations to keep the child engaged they aren't overwhelming and keep the child focused on the story. This is a great book for transitional readers, probably first through third grade. I loved how it was broken into smaller chapters that encouraged the child to read multiple chapters.
September 4, 2008
Another outing in which Little Rat overcomes her fears of something that starts out a little bit scary - this time horseback riding, this is aimed at readers who have already achieved some fluency. There are chapters and the text spacing is normal although there's still plenty of white space. I really like that Little Rat does just all right at the horse show - too often the road to success seems to come effortlessly in fiction. The biggest problem for me lays in this sentence: "She [Little Rat] could care less about being a fancy rider like her dad." I understand it's a colloquial variant of the phrase and lots of people say it, but this is a beginning reader in which children learn word patterns and proper sentence structure. Either use the phrase correctly (Little Rat couldn't care less) or remove it entirely. Maybe I'm being too picky - I guess I would still recommend this, but it I was using it myself, I would make sure to point out the error to the early reader.
April 24, 2013
Little Rat Rides is a wonderful story about a little rat who wants to ride a horse just like her daddy did. Her daddy takes her to Clodhopper Farm to see Mrs. Mugpie who has a horse ready for Little Rat to ride. His name is Pee Wee. At first she was very scared to ride Pee Wee because he was so big. She finally got over her fear and got on Pee Wees back and started learning how to ride a horse. Pee Wee was used to new riders and was very gentle with them. He did get scared by the barn cat and it scared Little Rat too but she got right back in the saddle. The story continues to the horse show and Pee Wee and Little Rat take fifth place (last place) but Little Rat was so happy. Her and Pee Wee were a team now and she couldn't wait to go and ride him again. The illustrations in this book are very good. They are colorful and the characters are drawn with detail. A great read for young children!
December 2, 2013
Little rat rides, what a great story for children. This book is a little bit more in length, however it is an easy read for young children and visually moving. I loved the illustrations in this book and thought that there were very complimentary to the story. They use great color to make them prominent on the page, they are also well drawn to help kids appreciate them more. This is the story of a young rat, Little Rat, who wants to ride a horse in the 4th of July show like his father before him. With some help from the people he meets on the way and the help of his father he makes it into the 4th of July show, and instead of being scared of riding his horse, he learns to love him and love riding. I would recommend this for kids between 2nd and third grade who are starting to transition from picture books to chapter books. I would also strongly recommend this book for any child that is transitioning into the chapter book stage of reading.
April 19, 2012
Little Rat Rides is intended for a young audience, maybe 2nd or 3rd graders who are fairly advanced readers. One day, Little Rat decides to ride a horse. Little Rat is tiny compared to the horse, but she is bound and determined to ride that horse. The horse seems to be a softie at heart, but the size of the horse in intimidating. Also, there were a few instances where Little Rat found herself in trouble. One day the horse rode off with her and another time the horse accidently stepped on her foot! Despite these challenges, Little Rat continues to try to learn how to ride a horse. The illustrations are funny and help the story move along, especially since readers can compare the sizes of the two animals. It’s a great story to inspire children to step up to challenges in their own lives.
Read
March 11, 2014Little Rat Rides by Monika Bang-Campbell, and illustrated by Molly Bang is a great book for young readers who want to start reading simple "chapter books." The text is simple and printed in big font for a young reader to follow along and understand the story, and the illustrations are wonderful examples to further explain the storyline. The bright colors used in the illustrations make the story about Little Rat more interesting, as her ventures to ride a horse just like her father did.
Each chapter only lasts for a few pages, so I personally think a child will feel accomplished as they reach each chapter in the book. Reading more and more chapters is rewarding to a child who is just starting to read chapter books, and I think Little Rat Rides is a wonderful example for young readers to start with.
Each chapter only lasts for a few pages, so I personally think a child will feel accomplished as they reach each chapter in the book. Reading more and more chapters is rewarding to a child who is just starting to read chapter books, and I think Little Rat Rides is a wonderful example for young readers to start with.
June 5, 2009
I like the theme that keeps coming up in this series: overcoming fear. Both "Little Rat" books we have read so far have helped my young children learn about not being afraid of new things.
Want to read
January 24, 2010Gryphon Award Winner, 2005.
June 29, 2017
A sweet beginning chapter book that may capture the interest of horse lovers, animal lovers, or timid children who could use some mild-mannered encouragement. First in a series.
January 17, 2025
✨ There’s something about reading kids books to the little ones at the library that I work at, that brings back so much nostalgia for me. This book made the little kid in me so happy!
December 14, 2025
This is the second book in the Little Rat series, but you don't need to read the first book to understand this book.
The story was similar to many "girl going to first riding lessons" type of story, but making almost all of the characters talking animals gave the whole thing the charm of urban fantasy.
However, there are three species that don't talk, and act just as they do in the real world:
* Horses
* Goats
* Cats.
So, not exactly a predictable fantasy world here. And the story wound up having some unpredictable twists, too. And a few touches of realism, since cleaning a horse's stall is often part of riding lessons (believe it or not), and horses will inevitably tromp on your foot.
Oh, the joy of losing your whole toenail and seeing colors you never thought existed on your skin after working with horses. This part wasn't mentioned in the story, but Little Rat's foot swelled up ... which was scary enough.
Pee Wee the horse is, of course ... A FREAKIN' BELGIAN DRAFT. Usually, in stories like these, horses are normal sized, but Little Rat was right about a horse being bigger than she expected. That was bigger than I was expecting. And the tiny, rat-sized saddle only emphasized how small she was and how large Pee Wee was.
If someone could figure out how to make those mini-saddles, they'd make a bloody fortune from collectors. Ditto for Little Rat's model horses, which seem to be even smaller than Breyer's Mini Whinnies.
The mixed-media art by Molly Bang just takes this story to the next level. She really knows not only her horses, but things horse lovers have, such as model horses and books with eerily accurate covers for Misty of Chincoteague and Blaze and the Forest Fire. There's also a hardback copy of The Black Stallion, but the jacket is gone ... which is how most of us originally found the hardback edition. There's a fourth book ... but I can't recognize it, to my chagrin.
Bang also did other realistic animals, like cats, grey squirrels, American badgers and donkeys. The art is a world to get lost in.
The story was similar to many "girl going to first riding lessons" type of story, but making almost all of the characters talking animals gave the whole thing the charm of urban fantasy.
However, there are three species that don't talk, and act just as they do in the real world:
* Horses
* Goats
* Cats.
So, not exactly a predictable fantasy world here. And the story wound up having some unpredictable twists, too. And a few touches of realism, since cleaning a horse's stall is often part of riding lessons (believe it or not), and horses will inevitably tromp on your foot.
Oh, the joy of losing your whole toenail and seeing colors you never thought existed on your skin after working with horses. This part wasn't mentioned in the story, but Little Rat's foot swelled up ... which was scary enough.
Pee Wee the horse is, of course ... A FREAKIN' BELGIAN DRAFT. Usually, in stories like these, horses are normal sized, but Little Rat was right about a horse being bigger than she expected. That was bigger than I was expecting. And the tiny, rat-sized saddle only emphasized how small she was and how large Pee Wee was.
If someone could figure out how to make those mini-saddles, they'd make a bloody fortune from collectors. Ditto for Little Rat's model horses, which seem to be even smaller than Breyer's Mini Whinnies.
The mixed-media art by Molly Bang just takes this story to the next level. She really knows not only her horses, but things horse lovers have, such as model horses and books with eerily accurate covers for Misty of Chincoteague and Blaze and the Forest Fire. There's also a hardback copy of The Black Stallion, but the jacket is gone ... which is how most of us originally found the hardback edition. There's a fourth book ... but I can't recognize it, to my chagrin.
Bang also did other realistic animals, like cats, grey squirrels, American badgers and donkeys. The art is a world to get lost in.
April 15, 2022
This was cute and I checked it out on hoopla. Which is actually the reason I gave it a three because how the book kept repeating itself. You'd read one part of it and then when you flip the page or looked below there they'd repeat the words with a different picture and I do not understand why they kept doing that.
And at the beginning of chapter one they had this picture with the words inside like a frame and then when you turn the page it said chapter one and repeat it all the words without the frame. It got on my nerves.
The book itself is about this little rat called little rat she doesn't even have a name which was kind of sad another reason I have to take a star off. it would have been better if gave her a cute name. She wants to ride a horse like her daddy did. He road in a Fourth of July parade and she gets to do the same thing. So she's nervous and scared and there's a bully goat but she overcomes everything and gets to do what she set out to do.
I thought the pictures and stuff were good. It's definitely cool for little kids they would enjoy this but definitely get the actual book it will be better probably. I did find it funny her horse was named Pee Wee and he was a giant.
I'm using this as another buzzword book for a month of April. Because it has little in the title and honestly I'm not ready to read a big book with 400 and some pages for the buzzword of April.
And at the beginning of chapter one they had this picture with the words inside like a frame and then when you turn the page it said chapter one and repeat it all the words without the frame. It got on my nerves.
The book itself is about this little rat called little rat she doesn't even have a name which was kind of sad another reason I have to take a star off. it would have been better if gave her a cute name. She wants to ride a horse like her daddy did. He road in a Fourth of July parade and she gets to do the same thing. So she's nervous and scared and there's a bully goat but she overcomes everything and gets to do what she set out to do.
I thought the pictures and stuff were good. It's definitely cool for little kids they would enjoy this but definitely get the actual book it will be better probably. I did find it funny her horse was named Pee Wee and he was a giant.
I'm using this as another buzzword book for a month of April. Because it has little in the title and honestly I'm not ready to read a big book with 400 and some pages for the buzzword of April.
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