Tales From Deckawoo Drive series by Kate DiCamillo

"Leroy Ninker said "Yippie-i-oh" because Leroy Ninker had a dream. He wanted to be a cowboy." 

"Francine Poulet was an animal control officer. She hailed from a long line of animal control officers" 

"Baby closed her eyes, and again she saw the shooting stars. "I am going on a necessary journey." 

"Eugenia Lincoln believed in Getting Things Done." 

Grade Level: K-3

Reading Level: 3rd

Hardcover: 90 pages

Publisher: Candlewick

Rating: 3 out of 4

Summaries:

Leroy Ninker Saddles Up

Leroy has a hat, a lasso, and boots. What he doesn't have is a horse, until he meets Maybelline. When Leroy forgets the third and final rule of caring for Maybelline, disaster ensues. Book #1

Francine Poulet Meets the Ghost Raccoon

Talented Animal Control Officer Francine Poulet questions her skills when she confronts a screaming raccoon that may be a ghost. Book #2

Where Are You Going, Baby Lincoln?

Timid Baby Lincoln breaks free of her bossy sister and sets off on an unexpected journey. Book #3

Eugenia Lincoln and the Unexpected Package

What will it take for a cynical older sister to realize she's a born accordion player with music in her heart? Book #4

The fourth book in the series, Tales from Deckawoo Drive, arrived at the library the other day in my Junior Library Guild box.  I realized it was time to read these books because I wasn't really sure that they are in the correct location.  This series is a spin off from the Mercy Watson books and takes place in the neighborhood that Mercy lives.  Mercy appears in many of the books as well as the different characters popping in at various times in the four titles.  

I keep wanting to call this series Wackadoo Drive because the stories are truly wacky. They are like crazy dreams you might dream at night...just a little off of a normal neighborhood. Each book features a different character from Deckawoo Drive.  Chris Van Dusen illustrates about every other page with cartoon-like characters with funny expressions. Kate DiCamillo uses vocabulary that actually drove me to a dictionary at one point! These are books that would be great for teachers or parents to read to kids and then build some vocabulary at the same time for both reader and listener.

Even though the humor was a bit too weird from me, I bet I would enjoy them better reading them aloud.  They are books meant to be a bridge between the beginning readers and the longer fiction book.  I think I will keep them in the regular fiction section and encourage kids to pick them up if they want a quick read.  I am going to redefine their genre as humorous. Currently, I have classed them as adventure, animal story, and humorous.  Now that there are four books and I have read them, I have a better idea of a book will be in this series in the future.  

In the latest book, Eugenia Lincoln and the Unexpected Package, I was really touched by how Eugenia's sister Baby encourages her grumpy sister. I liked the theme of finding a hidden talent at any age.  Also, don't miss the author and illustrator summaries at the end of each book. They always have interesting comments about the book you just finished reading.  Here is what Van Drusen says in the latest book:  "If I were to send Eugenia Lincoln something to cheer her up, it probably wouldn't be an accordion, mainly because accordions are hard to draw. (I simplified!)"