Trouble at Table 5 #1: The Candy Caper

Trouble at Table 5 #1

by Tom Watson

From the author of Stick Dog comes the first book in a early chapter book series about three best friends whose plans, missions, and schemes are sure to shake up their school.

Molly gets things stuck in her head sometimes. When she sees a jar of candy on Principal Shelton’s desk, she absolutely needs to know how many candies are in that jar! Luckily, her two best friends, Simon and Rosie, are ready to help her find the answer—even if it means detention for all of them!

Each hilarious friendship story in this series is designed to set independent readers up for success!

Genres: Realistic Fiction, School, Childrens, Friendship, Humor, Fiction, Juvenile

Audible Audio

Published February 25, 2020

About the author

Tom is the author and draws the original sketches for all the Stick Dog stories. He lives in Chicago with his wife, daughter and son. They also have a dog named Shadow. Tom did not want to name the dog Shadow. He wanted to name him ‘Put Your Shirt On.’ It’s a long story. Sometimes when Tom is visiting schools, he shares the story.

Tom’s first jobs out of college were in politics. He worked for U.S. Senator John Glenn and as the Chief Speechwriter for the Governor of Ohio. He has also worked in marketing and advertising. He likes writing books for kids a lot more than writing speeches and other things for grown-ups. He thinks kids are way smarter than grown-ups.

He LOVES writing the Stick Dog adventures.

Reviews

[Kathryn · Rating 2 out of 5]

I would skip this book and also skip The Firefly Fix and stick with others in the series if the premise of the series appeals to your young readers. I appreciate the representation here but not the way it is carried out in this opening book. It is not okay to steal, be disruptive and lie to get what you want and there was a simple way to address the issue which would have settled Molly's mind. I really don't understand the parents's response at the end and don't feel this teaches a good lesson.
Please see Debbie's review:
https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...
And Linnea's review:
https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...
As they have already said what I would have said.

[Brandy · Rating 4 out of 5]

I LOVED the representation in this story! It was overly simplistic where I think it should have tackled things a bit more realistic, with kids working with adults to solve their problem.

The main character has sensory differences and must have items counted and sorted properly. She’s surrounded by friends and parents who understand her, though no other people are involved in the story so you don’t get an awareness of what her school life looks like. Every interaction is positive with the mystery being how to count a jar of candy. Not really a “caper” per say.

The new HarperChapters books are really encouraging as new chapter book readers build stamina. After each chapter they can see their progress updated on how much they’ve read. After every third chapter it gives the reader an encouraging word or two.

[Debbie · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was between 2-3 stars for me. I read it aloud to my 3 kids (10, 7 & 4) and only one of them really seemed interested in it. (The 10 year old, who also wants to read the rest of the series.)
I did like how the friends worked together, and saw past & accepted each other’s differences; encouraging & helping one another. What I didn’t love was that they were working together to essentially steal something.
I kept hoping through the entire book that eventually they would ask an adult for help, or be honest with the principal about the skittle jar.
I also loved Molly’s parent acceptance of her differences, but when it came down to it it was pretty much “we know you needed to do this, but next time find a way to do it without getting in trouble”. I would have loved just one more chapter where Molly’s parents encourage her to be honest with her principal and the principal have a chance to be equally accepting of Molly’s differences. Telling her to next time just ASK to count the skittles and not be sneaky about it.

Premise aside, I loved the chapter markers at the end of every chapters and the tally words we were reading...that was fun & different. Naturally the kids loved the pictures, though one of them declared it was “too much red”. 🙄

[AMY · Rating 4 out of 5]

85 pgs. This is a realistic fiction book with a group of kids who help their friend Molly with a tricky mission. She has to know exactly how many pieces of candy are in the principal's candy dish. The only really tricky part is, Molly will have to get into trouble on purpose in order to get access to the dish. Since she has never been in any sort of school trouble this will not be easy. Kids will enjoy the school drama. Highly recommended for Grades 4-5.

[Linnea · Rating 2 out of 5]

one of those books that is trying too hard to put STEM in a story...also the story has a neuroatypical character as one of the mains I don't know if a necessarily like the way they went with that. It felt like the author was trying to depict her with sensitivity but it also came off as reminding me a little of the TV show "MONK".

*spoiler*
ALSO I like how the kids break into an adult's office and steal something and response seems to be...you should have talked to us...oh well you loveable scamp

[Ms. Nigeria Nigeria Parker · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book was an easy 5 stars to me I guess because I can definitely relate to the main character Molly.But I do believe she could've asked the Principal to count the Skittles. But sometimes you just have to know on your own

[Mikey Golczynski · Rating 4 out of 5]

3.5 stars. The extra 1/2 star is for the encouragement bit at the end of each chapter. I think that's a great idea, particularly for reluctant readers. Who doesn't like a bit encouragement along the way? What seems like a short/breezy read for some readers is still going to feel difficult no matter how low the page count. That's why I commend the publisher for putting those pick-me-ups at the end of the chapters. I also liked how they showed a character (Molly) who, if I may speculate, is on the spectrum with sensory issues, but still functions in a normal setting. She actually reminds me of my son who is high functioning Autistic. He never breaks rules at school. He LOVES rules, they make him feel safe, but he's flexible enough to know that sometimes the rules don't apply. Also, he won't stop talking until he's said what he needs to say. Even if you try and stop him because he's interrupting. It's as if he physically can't stop himself, just like how Molly NEEDS to have things sorted by color/number. She NEEDS to know how many beans are in the jar.

The caper is a little silly and far-fetched, but it works because the story is light and fun. A great beginning to a cool, breezy series.

[Melanie Dulaney · Rating 3 out of 5]

Looks like a new series for early elementary school-aged readers; strong 1st and 2nd grade students and any 3rd or 4th grader. Students any older like that will likely find the plot a little juvenile, which makes sense because the trio of friends are in the second grade. This book provides good examples of working together, accepting one another despite personality quirks, and a touch of humor. However, the three main characters make a plan to deceive their authorities at school in order to steal the principal’s jar of Skittles so that Molly can count them and stop fixating on how many are in it. I can hear the objections of some of the parents, now. Personally, I found it fairly harmless, but not too exciting. Libraries needing more chapter book choices for their young readers may want to try this one if their students are done with Eerie Elementary, Owl Diaries and similar.

[Pam · Rating 3 out of 5]

New series by Watson geared for younger readers. Three friends accept each other including the autism spectrum needs Molly has. In this first story, Molly is focused on counting the number of Skittles in the principal's jar. They work out a plan so she can get the jar and they can count the candy. Plenty of humor and fun math acknowledgements in this short book.
It's refreshing to see characters be themselves and their differences just be part of the storyline.
Looking forward to the next book in the series.

[Dax · Rating 4 out of 5]

Um, this is completely adorable! The art style immediately pulled me to it, the story kept me reading! It's amazing to see a very realistic story of a kid with OCD and the shenanigans that can ensue when you have to know something. Also, A+ to solid friends who understand and have your back!!

[Becky · Rating 5 out of 5]

First sentence: I’M MOLLY. I get things stuck in my head sometimes. I’ll give you a few examples. This morning, I had Froot Loops for breakfast. Froot Loops come in six different colors—red, orange, yellow, green, purple, and blue. When I poured the dry cereal into my bowl, I took the purple and green ones out. That’s because purple and green remind me of grapes. And I don’t like grapes because they come in big bunches and it’s hard to tell how many are in a bunch. I like to know how many things there are. That’s just me. So, I only had red, blue, orange, and yellow Froot Loops in my bowl. I ate all the blue ones first. It’s kind of hard to get only blue Froot Loops on your spoon, but it’s worth it. When I only had red, orange, and yellow Froot Loops left, I just ate them all. They could be mixed up. That’s because red and yellow make orange, so those Froot Loops are allowed to be together.

Premise/plot: Molly, our heroine, has great friends, Rosie and Simon. (Together, I believe, they make up table five). In this first book in a series, Molly has a problem. Molly becomes obsessed with figuring out how many skittles are in a glass jar in the principal's office. For days Molly, Rosie, and Simon brainstorm a way for Molly to get to the truth of the matter. Even if their plan leads to a little trouble.

My thoughts: I really loved this one. (Yes, I've read a handful of books this month already that I love.) I loved Molly. I love that Molly is understood and supported by her parents and by her friends. I love that she's not alone to deal with her mental health issues. To be fair, the book never once (at least to my recollection) ever uses the word "mental health" or "OCD" or "obsessive compulsive disorder." Perhaps this diagnosis is completely unfair...on my part. Maybe she's neuro atypical in another way. Maybe each reader can read into Molly's way-of-thinking (way-of-processing) whatever they want.

Her friends and family accept her 1000% for who she is. The conflict in this one isn't like most of the conflicts in other books. I found it relatable.

[Katie Lawrence · Rating 4 out of 5]

Molly appears to be neurodiverse, when she gets something in her head she has to resolve it. After spying a jar of Skittles in the principal's office she has to know how many are in the jar, she can't let it go. Hijinks ensue as Molly and her two best friends hatch a nutty plot to solve the problem. I appreciated that Molly's condition is never named and her friends and family accept her the way she is. I loved the strong friendships and the illustrations as well. How fun to have a chart at the end of each chapter showing how far you've read, as well as a celebration at the end of the book that highlights how many chapters, words and pages you've read. I haven't seen that in a beginning chapter book before. Very fun start to a realistic series.

[Colleen · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a really cute first chapter book starring a loveable cast of neurodivergent kids. The kids are not labeled, so readers may not pick up on their differences which I think is great. In this first adventure, Molly NEEDS to find out how many skittles are in the jar on the principal's desk. With the help of her best friends they determine a very clever way for Molly to get what she needs.

Although I don't think it is necessary each chapter marks the reader's progress through the book and makes encouraging statements about the progress made. This would be a fun read-aloud or first chapter book for 5-7 year olds.

[Cheryl Hansen · Rating 5 out of 5]

Trouble at Table 5: The Candy Caper is an early chapter book written by Tom Watson, who is the author of the Stick Dog series. This book would be appropriate for students 6 or 7 and up. The reading level would be a more difficult level M or maybe even an N. This was recommended during my grad class and was reviewed on Kirkus Reviews.

Trouble at Table 5: The Candy Caper follows our main character, Molly, and friends Simon and Rosie through this realistic fiction chapter book. Molly has some interesting habits that tend to fall along the lines of having obsessive-compulsive disorder, but it is never identified in the story. She feels that since socks are flat, they should never be put away rolled into a ball, she takes out the purple and green Fruit Loops because they remind her of grapes and grape bunches are too hard to count, and her pillows have to be stacked in a particular order before she goes to bed. Due to these fixations, when she sees a jar of Skittles on the principal’s desk, she just has to know how many are in there. Molly and Simon recognize that look in her eyes and the three of them scheme and plot out how they can get into that office to count those Skittles without getting caught.

This story would be an excellent read for students just starting to get into chapter books. A very interesting and encouraging element the author included in this story, is that at the end of each chapter there is a checkoff box to show how far they have gotten in their reading. It also has encouraging sayings at the end of some chapters, such as, at the end of the first chapter he said, “One chapter down. Off to a great start!” The illustrator also incorporates detailed drawings of the characters and the shenanigans they get into. She incorporates lots of thought bubbles, and pages that show how the kids draw out their plan of how they are going to complete their mission. There is also diversity in this book, as Molly is biracial, with Dad being white and Mom being black, but race is not a main focus. Nor is the fact that Molly has some interesting fixations, as her parents and friends let her know, “That’s just who you are.”

I think this book could be used in the classroom as a fun read aloud and brought into our geography unit when working with maps, as Molly draws out her route to the principal’s office. In the back of the book they give the idea of having the readers draw out a map of their school and planning their path to the principal’s office. We have the students draw out a map already, so this could be a fun twist on that activity that I think they would have a lot of fun with. I also think having them create their own story with the same goal would be really neat to put into a comic. I would love to get the principal in on the whole assignment and maybe she could have something special in there that they might need to find, almost like a scavenger hunt.

[Jackie Hinnen · Rating 5 out of 5]

We read Trouble at Table Five aloud as a family. We all loved it. It’s a book that I can’t wait to share with others and I felt inspired by the book to work it into Literacy Week at their school. We will put a jar of skittles in the library and give every kid in the school a chance to count how many skittles were inside! The closest guess will win the jar AND a copy of the book! We can’t wait to read the next book in the Trouble at Table 5 Series!

[AH]

This is an amazing book and I think it is a great family book
For those that read books to children every night so I recommend to read it with your family age is about 5-10 so I think you will love this book

[Rcltigger · Rating 2 out of 5]

Molly is a very particular girl. For example, she will pick out purple and green candies and not eat them because they remind her of grapes. And once she gets her mind fixated on something, there's no stopping her. So when she sees a jar of Skittles in the principal's office, she HAS to know how many skittles are in that jar. Enlisting the help of her best friends, Simon and Rosie, they hatch a plan to figure out how to determine how many skittles are in that jar once and for all.

****
This book just didn't do it for me. There was an easy way to resolve how many candies were in the jar which would make for a non-story, but their solution was far-fetched and there really weren't any consequences at the end. Just not my cup of tea.

[Allison Turkish · Rating 3 out of 5]

I wanted to like this book but... it's not ok to steal and why is that not mentioned?!?

The main character, Molly, has something like OCD . Her friends and family understand her and like her but there is a line that shouldn't be crossed. Molly should have just asked the principal if Molly could count the Skittles while wearing gloves.

If I ignore that huge problem with the book, I can admit to liking the writing, pace, and humor of the story.

[Beth · Rating 3 out of 5]

Nice representation of a young girl with OCD, and nice to see her friends and family accept this and have her back.

Story was arranged in chapters and gave benchmarks of progress being made at the end of each (boxes checked off for number of chapters completed and number to go, word count, messages of encouragement, etc.). Good motivational tool for reluctant readers and bookworms alike.

[Amy Sands · Rating 1 out of 5]

Stealing is okay if you NEED to do something because you have OCD. Horrible lesson. I disliked that the parent did not punish her.

[Angelina · Rating 5 out of 5]

I am reading this series as part of my homework for That Au-some Book Club on Facebook. This book has been recommended several times when the topic of neurodivergent affirming books for early readers comes up. And I can see why!

Like most kids’ books, it doesn’t explicitly name the characters’ neurodivergencies. This is helpful for kids because they can “see” themselves and their loved ones in the characters, filling in the blanks with their own experiences.

I am an ND parent to an ND child; this is one book I would be proud to read to my kid and recommend to anyone who loves or works with kids. The characters are comfortable in their own “ND-ness” and, most importantly, are affirming of each other’s differences. Our kids need books like this, whether they are ND or not. I want my kid to have relationships like the ones in this book, and I want him to feel confident in his own identity, just as the characters in this book are.

Beyond that, the book has additional merits. The creators encourage sequencing skills both in the writing and in the illustrations - neither of which are overwhelming nor unclear. There are also helpful visuals and prompts at the end of each chapter, indicating how much of the book has been read so far and encouraging readers to continue or think critically about the content so far. There are also wonderful discussion questions and activities at the end to encourage more learning and fun.

I am looking forward to reading the rest of the series!

P.S. - Here’s a read aloud with the author if you’re interested! https://youtu.be/E9r7qAHQu8c

[Gretchen · Rating 5 out of 5]

We were lucky enough to have an exciting visit from Tom Watson at our school this year. I knew all about Stick Dog and Stick Cat because of how much students and I enjoyed them. I didn't know much about his early chapter series Trouble at Table 5 about three great friends and their adventures. After reading the first one, The Candy Caper, I can see just how much students will love these stories. This book features Molly who has some interesting "quirks" like needing to take out the green and purple Froot Loops from her cereal before she can eat it because green and purple remind her of grapes which she doesn't like. Throughout her day she needs to count things and know totals just as part of her daily routine. Her friends and parents understand that this is part of Molly and support her each day without trying to change anything. Aside from the great story, I thought it was great that Tom Watson encourages the reader throughout the book as well. He congratulates them on each chapter read and has wonderful pictures and drawings throughout to support all the reading. There are certainly a number of kids I can already think of that would enjoy this funny, adventurous story and be encouraged by the author cheering on their reading. Definitely will be recommending this and others in the series.

[Ellie · Rating 2 out of 5]

how many skittles are in the jar on the principal's desk? you're a neurodiverse student and you ABSOLUTELY MUST KNOW or you won't be able to focus on anything else?? you and your friends come up with a plan to purposefully get in trouble at school and steal the jar??? your parents DON'T CARE????

why don't you just ASK. THE. PRINCIPAL.

never comes up that the kids could ask an adult for help. even when the whole thing is explained to the parents at the end they're just like "okay, wish you hadn't done it but that's who you are. now let's eat these skittles." like??? why??? I don't need kids in books to be perfect. I like it when they're sassy and silly and make mistakes and do things the grownups don't approve of. but this whole setup and lack of consequences just irks me.

we literally did a candy guessing jar for the kids at the library last month. why wasn't THAT the setup? and they don't have to find a way to steal the jar, they have to come up with multiple ways to count/estimate the skittles? THIS BOOK IS SO WEIRD AND I AM VERY ANNOYED.

was thinking about doing this for my early chapter book club next year (neurodiverse heroine, STEM-focused story, cute illustrations), but... nah.

[Lisa W. · Rating 5 out of 5]

Booklist Reviews
Encouraging emergent readers with progress notes at each chapter's end, this series kickoff introduces a diverse trio of third-grade friends with complementary traits. When Molly—who says things get stuck in her head sometimes, in reference to a habit of separating breakfast Froot Loops by color and an insistence that her socks be stored flat rather than rolled up—decides that she just has to find out exactly how many Skittles are in the jar on the principal's desk, her tablemates Rosa, a math whiz, and gung ho Simon help her concoct a funny, ingenious scheme to spirit the jar away and take a count. Kissi adds a two-color illustration of the trio in action, a fanciful diagram, or a bit of arithmetic to almost every page of the well-paced, well-spaced narrative. Watson folds in unobtrusive behavior modeling by endowing his young narrator with peers and parents who are sensitive to her special needs, and, along with other enrichment activities at the end, engages young coconspirators with a challenge to come up with feasible alternative ploys. Grades 2-4.

[Mallory · Rating 5 out of 5]

**I received this book from Harper Collins Canada in exchange for an honest review**

I haven't read a middle-grade book in a long time and honestly I wasn't sure if I would actually read this when it was given to me. However, reading a middle-grade book was a very enjoyable experience. When you've finished a chapter, it shows your overall progress and asks how you're doing. I loved the story and the enthusiasm of the kids. The main character Molly has signs of what I think is OCD and I really enjoyed how supportive both her friends and family are of her. She always needs to do things in a certain way or accomplish a task when things are 'stuck' in her head and she is openly embraced by her two best friends Rosie & Simon. I loved reading along with the cute storyline and seeing the pictures throughout the book. Every so often, I miss reading books with illustrations. I really had fun reading this and I will stay tuned for the rest of the Trouble at Table 5 Books!

[H · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a cute book that will work well with students in grades 1-3 who are working on building chapter book reading stamina. It is the first in a trio of books about Molly, Rosie, and Simon - third grade friends who work together to solve their problems. Molly (who seems to be on the autism spectrum or have a touch of OCD) cannot cope with not knowing the number of things she encounters. When she sees a jar of skittles on the principals desk, she just can't get them out of her head. So the 3 hatch a plan to count the skittles! This slim, cute book has 85 pages, with an illustration on every spread. At the end of each chapter, the student is encouraged by a counter that shows how many chapters they've finished, and sometimes an encouraging message about the number of words or pages they've finished. This is a GREAT choice for someone who is ready for chapters and really likes school stories!

[Kathy · Rating 5 out of 5]

Molly is obviously on the spectrum, as she gets ideas stuck in her head about how things need to be (like not eating green or purple fruit loops). But the great thing about this book is that her friends and family just matter-of-factly deal with it. So when Molly gets it in her head that she NEEDS to count the Skittles in the jar in her principal's office, she and her friends strategize how to get it done. I like how they are persistent in coming up with different ideas to solve the problem. I didn't like that they didn't take the direct route and just as the principal for permission to count them. I liked the humor in that when they counted them, she made sure they counted them by color. Or when her dad asked for the jar of Skittles...because he likes them. This is designed for kids who still find reading a struggle, as the end of each chapter has a running countdown of chapters read, and occasional side boxes with total words read so far, along with words of encouragement.

[Jennybeast · Rating 3 out of 5]

I'm really not sure how I feel about this one -- on the one hand, I like the representation of neurodivergence and how Molly's friends and family just totally accept her. When something gets stuck in her head, they work to help her get it unstuck.

However, in this case the plan is to cause a disruption, lie to the principal and steal the candy jar. And I don't really feels satisfied with that on two counts -- first of all, couldn't they just ask to count the candy? Secondly, if they replaced the candy jar with a same-sized jar with the same amount of the same candy in it, why couldn't she just count her own jar? If that wasn't good enough because it wasn't the original jar, why doesn't the second one get stuck in her head, too? Did she count it before the bait and switch? And ok, so maybe this is a harmless wish-fulfillment sort of book, but frankly the disconnect gets stuck in -my- head. Anyway. It's an interesting story.

[Angie · Rating 5 out of 5]

The Candy Caper

I really enjoyed reading this book because I felt like I could truly relate to some of the things Molly struggled with. It seems like Molly has OCD and could possibly be on the spectrum. Molly has to count everything she has, and things have to be a certain way in order for her to be comfortable. Sometimes Molly may overly focus on things that may not be as important to a neurotypical. The problem Molly faces is that she has a need to count how many skittles are in the principal's candy jar. Her friends decide to help her break into the principal’s office and switch the jars. This is a short quick read and the illustrations are on almost every page. I loved that at the end of each chapter, the reader is given a counter to show how many pages they have currently read. This would be a great book for students in 1st through 3rd grade. I would recommend this book.

[Margaret Boling · Rating 3 out of 5]

6/8/2023 ~ I appreciated the representation (neuro diversity), but thought the "caper" was a bit over the top. (Though I can see kids coming up with this plan, rather than the much simpler avenue of just talking to the principal!)

This series has an interesting feature of reading encouragement: after each chapter, there is a box colored in to show the number of chapters completed and how many words the reader has read. I found this annoying, since I'd rather have the focus on an enjoyment of the story and characters (emotional, not numeric.) When I started Book 2, I was wishing that there had been 1-2 pages to introduce the characters, as so many early chapter books have.

The books do celebrate the unique (and quirky) characteristics of each child:
Molly (presents as white; narrator) - MUST have things in even numbers, counts everything.
Rosie (light brown skin tone) - excels at science
Simon (presents as white) - ???