Shark Tooth Tale

Ready, Freddy! #9

by Abby Klein, John McKinley (Illustrator)

With four books out and terrific Book Club sales success, Ready, Freddy! is an enormously popular school series by an elementary school teacher who has seen it all.

Get to know Freddy Thresher, the first grade shark expert with an uncanny knack for mischief. Join Freddy in this adventure as he schemes and scrimps, trying to earn enough money to buy an awesome fossilized shark tooth. Packed with humor, illustrations, and even factual information about sharks, the Ready, Freddy! series is perfect for the chapter book reader.

Genres: Chapter Books, Childrens, Contemporary, Realistic Fiction

69 pages, Kindle Edition

First published October 1, 2006

About the author

Abby Klein was born and raised in Los Angeles, California. She earned her teaching credentials at Dartmouth College, where she majored in psychology and education. She then went on to earn her master's degree in reading and language development at the Harvard Graduate School of Education.

Currently she teaches in the same public elementary school she attended as a child in the Los Angeles area. She has been a kindergarten and first-grade teacher there for more than fifteen years and is very involved in the school community, as both a teacher and a parent. Her two young children also attend the school where she teaches. In addition, she is a “teacher-leader” in her district, and over the years, she has presented many staff development workshops both at the district level and at her school site that centered on reading, writing, and literacy. She has been a presenter at national conferences as well.

In her first published series, Ready, Freddy!, Klein brings just the right amount of true-to-life humor and drama. She brings young readers a fresh voice, a great sense of humor, and a unique perspective on the trials and tribulations of first grader Freddy Thresher. Utterly authentic and drawn from real experience in the classroom, Abby Klein knows exactly what first graders are thinking.

She lives in Los Angeles, California, with her husband, two children, and three dogs. She thinks there's nothing better than a good book, and she loves reading aloud to children.

Reviews

[Reagan · Rating 5 out of 5]

Freddy saved money to get a megladon tooth.I recommend this book to all kids who want to save money to buy something they like. I’m am also saving money like Freddie because I want to buy a lego friends set.

[linda · Rating 5 out of 5]

Jaylen

[Nikki in Niagara · Rating 4 out of 5]

I'd never even heard of this series for beginning chapterbook readers and was pleasantly surprised to find it an enjoyable read. The story was fun with several events taking place for excitement. I enjoyed that the whole family was part of the story including the parents. I only disliked the bickering with the older sister; it was a bit too mean for my tastes but otherwise the characters were well written if cliched: the bully, the snooty girl, etc. Educational information was placed into the story in a natural way, in this case about the prehistoric shark, the Megalodon. Freddy is in Grade 1 and the series will appeal to younger elementary while certainly being aimed at boys. I was also surprised at the quality of the illustration. McKinley has a flair and style that is a cut above the norm. I loved his characters and they certainly enhanced the story. I would want to try another before fully recommending the series but at book #9 it is probably representational of the others. A fun story!

[Andrea · Rating 4 out of 5]

Freddy really wants the fossilized Megalodon tooth, but doesn't have the money to buy this rare treasure. Freddy has to come up with a way to find the cash within a week before the shop owner sells it to someone else.

After trying to separately asking his om and dad (unwise as parents often speak to each other) he earns his money the hard and honest way and is able to purchase his tooth.

I liked the Freddy had to work hard and earn his money. In my opinion, it's never too early to teach others the importance of hard work. Not everything will be given to you and it is important to be resourceful, creative and find ways to reach your goals.

Also, when Freddy temporarily loses his tooth he learns to take care of his belongings. He was lucky that his classmate admitted to taking the tooth.

[Mary Ellen · Rating 2 out of 5]

I was a little bummed out by this book. I was looking for something fun to read out loud to my 5 year old boy. I was just more than a little put off by how cruel these kids were to each other. I understand that kids can be mean, but Freddy's mom didn't ever step in to say "holy cow! Nuh-uh! No way! We don't treat anybody that way, especially our family."
I edited out all the mean stuff as I read it to him. It did have a good message about working hard for things you want. But, I am not going to be recommending this series to any kids.

[Benjamin Velez]

My son really liked this one. Now we are fascinated by the Megalodon Shark. I always love when something educational is incorporated into a children's book.

[Caedmon · Rating 5 out of 5]

Freddy could not get the tooth because he did not have enough money.

[Seth · Rating 5 out of 5]

Freddy really wanted a megalodon shark tooth but he didn't have enough money. So he earned it. It got stolen at school.

[Melissa Namba · Rating 3 out of 5]

I have a nephew who is really into sharks right now. this book will be perfect for him. I also like that this story deals with working hard to earn something as well as what stealing from someone actually means to that person. a fun book that kids will be able to relate to.