Harry the Poisonous Centipede Goes To Sea

Harry the Poisonous Centipede #3

by Lynne Reid Banks

Harry the Poisonous Centipede is now quite brave, but nothing can prepare him for this next adventure! He and best friend George are lost in a new and even scarier no-top world. Far from home, across the no-end puddle, they must negotiate a strange treeless cold desert, a Nest of Hoo-Mins, lots of noise-hurt and terrifying hairy-yowlers! Harry woke up first. The straight-up-hard thing was jiggling. It was moving. "What's happening?" asked George in alarm. "I don't know. We're moving." Harry replied. "Where are we? We're not where we were last night!" crackled George. "I told you! This is a can't -get-out!" Harry and George face the toughest adventure yet when they are shipped West in a crate of bananas. Far across the no-end puddle, miles away from home, they must find a way to survive the bitter cold and hide from the hundreds of Hoo-Mins do-diddling around them. They run away as fast as they can, but inadvertently squirm into a Hoo-Min Nest and come face to face with a hairy-yowler! All Harry wants is to go home to his mother, and tell her how much he warm-hearts her before her time comes to "stop". But before they can even start the perilous journey home, they must escape the Nest and go out into the no-top world. Yet this particular Hoo-Min is fascinated by insects, and wants nothing more than to add some poisonous centipedes to his collection!

Genres: Fiction, Childrens, Fantasy, Animals, Humor

208 pages, Paperback

First published August 1, 2005

About the author

Lynne Reid Banks is a British author of books for children and adults. She has written forty books, including the best-selling children's novel The Indian in the Cupboard, which has sold over 10 million copies and been made into a film.
Banks was born in London, the only child of James and Muriel Reid Banks. She was evacuated to Saskatoon, Saskatchewan, Canada during World War II but returned after the war was over. She attended St Teresa's School in Surrey. Prior to becoming a writer Banks was an actress, and also worked as a television journalist in Britain, one of the first women to do so. Her first novel, The L-Shaped Room, was published in 1960.
In 1962 Banks emigrated to Israel, where she taught for eight years on an Israeli kibbutz Yasur. In 1965 she married Chaim Stephenson, with whom she had three sons. Although the family returned to England in 1971 and Banks now lives in Dorset, the influence of her time in Israel can be seen in some of her books which are set partially or mainly on kibbutzim.

Reviews

[Julie · Rating 4 out of 5]

Harry the Poisonous Centipede was so fun because our son (5 years old / first grade) had fun guessing what the centipedes were talking about throughout the book. The books is about two friends, poisonous centipedes, who live an idyllic life underground by day, hunting food by night, who climb into a "A Can't Get Out", cross a giant "Puddle" and encounter "hoo-mins". A great book about perspectives of the world. :)

[Kaitlyn · Rating 3 out of 5]

I have been looking for the name of this series for months. I found these books when I was in third grade and I read them in a day. Glad I got it :)

[Cassie Kelley · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is the conclusion to the Harry the Poisonous Centipede series, and it was just as good as the other two. For the final time we get to see into the lives of Harry and George and encounter their last recorded adventure. This time we are in a whole new place, farther away from their nest than ever.

When Harry and a George find a strange object full of those yellow-curve tree-droppings, and they are taken and carried far beyond the shores of their tropical home. In their containment, they meet a female centipede named Josie, who is a no-meat eater (which Harry and George think is very uncentipedish) who knows a lot about those huge, strange creatures called Hoo-Mins. And then when they’re finally in the no-top world again, they’re in for a rude awakening.

In their new world, there is no earth to burrow in, there are so many strange smells, and worst of all, Harry and George are worried about Belinda, who is getting old and needs help with her hunting. Desperate to get home, Harry and George must navigate this horrible, hard environment and try to get back home, but with the no-end puddle in between them and their nest, what chance do they have? Can they get back to Belinda, or will they be trapped in this Hoo-Min place for the rest of their lives?

This book is a fantastic end to the whole series. The centis (child centipedes) are now centeens (teenage centipedes) and they are ready for even more adventures. With some great new characters, great old characters, and a wonderful wrap-up to the story, this book will please all fans of Harry the Poisonous Centipede. Even if you haven’t read the first two, this book is such a delight to read. Recommended to all the young and young at heart.

[Drake Pharo · Rating 4 out of 5]

I thought this was all right, but my son loved it, so the review reflects his enjoyment. The POV for the story is interesting metafiction my son both enjoyed and learned things from.
The downside is,i have to take him to see a real Scolopendra subspinipes...

[Jnase1 · Rating 2 out of 5]

Ugg. I made myself get through this book. Yeah, not really into books about centipedes told from the centipede point of view, but I guess I can't say I didn't know it was about a centipede. I mean, the title gives it away. Still, I thought I might have liked it better than what I did. Oh well. At least it's one more book toward my reading goal for the year. LOL

[Richard · Rating 4 out of 5]

I thought this was all right, but my son loved it, so the review reflects his enjoyment. The POV for the story is interesting metafiction my son both enjoyed and learned things from.
The downside is,i have to take him to see a real Scolopendra subspinipes...

[Nana · Rating 5 out of 5]

Harry the poisonous centipede is a stowaway on a ship with his friend! But on this ship are new adventures to have, and people to meet.

[Miguel Marin · Rating 3 out of 5]

I think this book is a very good book, it is full of action, comedy, and adventure. I hope they publish more books like this!

[Robert · Rating 2 out of 5]

One for the children, needs rereading to get to grips

[Gabriella Reeves · Rating 5 out of 5]

SO FUN!!! loved it.