Oggie Cooder

Oggie Cooder

by Sarah Weeks

Butch Karp and Marlene Ciampi discover themselves working on two sides of the same case when a set of double homicides rocks downtown Manhattan. A bloody warning scrawled on the wall above a murdered elderly couple sends the Jewish community reeling into a tension-filled confrontation with the city's Arab population. In neighboring Brooklyn, a 16-year-old Arab runaway seeks refuge in Manhattan's Hell's Kitchen, where she becomes caught up in the ugly world of prostitution and drugs. After murderously defending herself against a malicious pimp, she escapes into a woman's shelter on the Lower East Side, into the helping hands of Marlene.

As special prosecutor, Butch joins the hunt for the double murderers, finding himself in conflict with his own Jewish heritage, and with the realization that Marlene's case is inextricably linked with his own. As tensions build and fear escalates, New York City becomes a powderkeg of twisted emotions in a case of kill or be killed.

Genres: Realistic Fiction, Humor, Middle Grade, Childrens, Fiction, Juvenile, Friendship

172 pages, Paperback

First published February 29, 2000

About the author

Sarah Weeks has been writing children's books and songs for the past twenty years. She is a graduate of Hampshire College and NYU and recently became an adjunct faculty member in the prestigious Writing Program at the New School University, in New York City.

Her first YA novel, So B. It, which appeared on the LA Times bestseller list was chosen as an ALA Best Book for Young Adults and received the 2004 Parent's Choice Gold Award. In addition to being an author, Sarah is an accomplished singer/songwriter. She has written for television, stage and screen and a number of her picture books include songs which she both writes and sings for the accompanying CDs. Sarah's titles have sold well over a million copies, including several foreign editions.

Sarah is a tireless promoter, visiting schools throughout the country, serving as author-in-residence and speaking to teachers and librarians at national conferences including IRA, ALA and NCTE. She lives in New York City with her two teenage sons.

Reviews

[Travis]

I have not always been a huge fan of the word “silly”. I guess it makes me feel kind of silly to say it. Until I started working in elementary schools a few years back, I tried not to use the term. But after working with kids for a while, I now understand silly. I use the word in conversation. I know that sometimes, it’s the best way to describe something that is goofy or just plain ridiculous. I also know that silly is not necessarily a bad thing. Lots of kids respond to it. Ever check to see how many circulations the latest Junie B. Jones is getting? Tons. See what I mean? “Oggie Cooder” successfully brings the silly, but it is not fluff. An imaginative story about friendships and the urge to be popular. Oh, and also charving American cheese slices into the shape of states.

Oggie Cooder is an unusual fourth grader. Actually, Oggie is unusual period. Odd clothes, peculiar lingo, unique hobby. All this and the peer disapproval that goes along with it. Donnica Perfecto leads the troops in this category, using every opportunity to show her dislike of our hero. To Oggie’s credit, he couldn’t care less. When he does get stressed, it’s an easy fix: charving. A combination of chewing and carving, Oggie’s specialty is crafting American cheese slices into the shapes of the 50 states. His skill with a Kraft single starts drawing some attention from Donnica when the hit tv show “Hidden Talents” comes to town. Miss Perfecto’s sudden interest in Oggie and charving turn out to be her most deceptive tricks yet.

“Oggie Cooder” is a quirky and entertaining story with humor and a dash of real-world interactions. Silly? Yes. But kids will tell you: silly is good.

[Saffron Law]

this book was good

[Ashwati]

Really Quirky and fun! Wish there were more than 2 books of Oggie's fun and simple life.

[Emma Lassen]

Oggie is the star ⭐️
But it’s Amy who’s the sun ☀️
I love this weird book


In lieu of my 20-minute Oggie Cooder presentation, I hope you like this haiku. It captures the most important elements of my review, I think.

[Amy-Jo Conant]

Level Q

Listened to audio book.

Cute, quick book that has a loveable quirky character. There seemed to be just enough to hold my interest as a listener. The story was very simple so good for struggling readers. Strong readers might get bored quickly. The main character is a good role model. Main themes center around understanding and being true to yourself.

Oggie tells about his simple family life. He compares it to another family who is always looking for the latest and greatest while his family is fine with hand-me-downs. When the daughter fro this well to do family takes and interest in Oggie we know there must be a catch.

[Mallory Lyon]

This book is pretty dumb in my opinion. I would recommend it to a second grader.... maybe. It is basically about a kid who charves- carves and chews- cheese. One day a TV show comes looking for people with weird talents. Oggie tries out and well you'll have to read it to find out what happens next.

[Shaeley Santiago]

Funny story about a boy who stays true to his unusual self in spite of pressures from the media. Oggie is selected to be on a reality TV show for his talent at charving (blended word = carving + cheese). When the popular girl of the class becomes his agent, Oggie's life changes.

[Mother Goose Librarian]

A great recommendation for 4th grade readers. My little bookclub really loved it. Celebrate reading it by "charving" some cheese!

[Stacey Mulholland]

It has a good message about being your true self but just didn't love the story

[Caroline Chappel]

Oggie Cooder by Sarah Weeks is about a little boy named Oggie in fourth grade. Oggie has a talent. A strange talent, that no one else can do. Oggie like to charve. Charving is when you carve cheese into shapes with your teeth. Oggie likes to shape cheese in to states like Florida and Texas. Jessica Perfecto, Oggies next door neighbor needs something big to get her to Hollywood. Will Oggie Cooder, Jessica's weird next door neighbor, be the answer?

Personally I read this book a four out of five stars. I love this book but some parts of the book I got a little bit bored. Overall this book was good and I really enjoyed all of the fun. I think this is a good book for young readers that like to read about books they can relate to.

I recommend this book for grades 4 to 7. I think it was perfect for me but it gets a little bit too young for readers over the age of seventh grade. I think this book could even be read by third graders that have a high like lexile. Overall I really enjoyed this book.

[Jazlynn Alexia]

I chose this book because I enjoy books by the author, Sarah Weeks. This book lost my attention a few times because it had details of a normal school day, which I found a bit boring. I liked that it was relating to a talent show. It was inspiring because the main character and his friend were "charving" cheese at the talent show - this shows me that you can do pretty much anything at a talent show.

[Pat Salvatini]

Oggie Cooder is a quirky fourth grader who wears oddly mis-matched secondhand clothes and hand crocheted shoe laces. When nervous he “charves” sliced cheese, a mix of chewing and carving. Most of his classmates think he’s weird, that is until a big time TV show selects Oggie as a potential talent. Will Hollywood change Oggie’s image? Weeks’ characters are identifiable to readers who will undoubtedly find similarities between the story and their own school lives.

[Meg Rice]

Delightful story about a quirky boy who competed for a competition in Hollywood to be on a TV show, but gave it up when greedier folks tried to sell him out as someone he didn't want to be. All the upper-grade elementary school social stressors and parents who were at times understanding and at times not. In the end, you will respect Oggie Cooder for being true to himself.

[Lara Samuels]

Oggie Cooder has an unusual talent and a sweet personality. Great book to discuss with kids.

[Brianna]

Good for a 4th grade small reading group. Can discuss character analysis amongst other reading skills.

[Stan]

Some parts of the book were interesting but overall the book is extremely tedious. The plot was alright but still very dull.

[Michelle Damour]

My 8 year old boys Loved this story!

[Amanda]

A fun read that I’m sure my students are loving. It’s a quirky story all about staying true to yourself- no matter how “different” you are!

[Rosemarie]

Read with my 9 yr old son - he finished the last 5 chapters by himself. And he is giving it 3.5 stars.

[Maria Cooper]

3.8

The story of Oggie Cooder hits close to home because I have my very own Oggie, and reading this book made me realize just how special he is in his own unique way.

[Jessica IBirchem-Isley]

I think it was good because ohh ie is different than everybody and at the end he still wants to not be different

[Lila Zarrella]

this book ate.

[Emily Zhong]

banger

[Emma]

Was cruising along the road into the Great Smoky Mountains when the memory that this book existed popped into my head. A memorable premise that reminds me that authors can write whatever they want.

[Katherine Littlejohn]

Perfection for elementary when figuring out who they are. Loved it.

[Debbie]

My 11yo really liked these!

[Tam Newell]

Read with my fifth graders. They enjoyed reading about quirky Oggie but aren't rushing to read the second book.

[Rebekah W.]

Meh. This book isn't bad, but it seems a little contrived.
The book discussion kids will probably like it.

[Jane Andelman]

Sarah Weeks can do no wrong in the eyes of my 9 year old.

[Rummanah (Books in the Spotlight)]

I love quirky characters. There is just something about being eccentric and having idiosyncrasies that assures me that I'm not that strange. I think we all have quirks, whether or not we like to admit them is a different story. Oggie is a lovable and sweet character. He embraces his idiosyncrasies with pride and is completely oblivious to his peer's sarcasm and comments. He sees nothing wrong with his unique ability to charve cheese into any shapes nor with his vintage wardrobe and crotchet shoe laces. Of course he finds himself longing to be part of a sports team and have a large group of friends from time to time, but he doesn't dwell on this. In fact, he doesn't realize how much he is missing out until his neighbor, Dominca, the snotty, spoiled brat who is completely obsessed with being "famous" seeks his help for her own benefit. Initially, he naively thinks Dominca is reaching out to him in friendship, but then he slowly begins to realize her real motive. Unlike his peers, he doesn't dislike Dominca for her actions. He was simply doing her a favor. When he gets accidentally gets a spot on television, he has no clue what he is in for, but he keeps having uneasy feelings about the whole ordeal. Weeks does a pretty good job in showing how Oggie feels about being pressured and famous without being too preachy. For instance, Oggie comes to this realization before an adult can step in and tell him, which for young readers is important because it shows them that they are responsible for their own actions.

Oggie Cooder is a delightful read that will appeal to kids and it easy to read for those who have graduated from chapter books. The chapters are very short and there are small illustrations throughout the book. I did, however, find Oggie's popularity from being avoided to being constantly surrounded by his classmates to be unsettling and unfortunately quite realistic, but I would like to think that Oggie would have gotten friends by just being his fun and sweet self, but I think this would provide a good discussion question for young readers.