Everyone agreed: Bruno had to go.
He'd grown and grown into a
bigger and bigger problem.
We just couldn't keep him.
But how would we convince
Mr. Stricter?
We tried to tell him.
"Bruno snores during silent reading."
Mr. Stricter loves science projects and wants to pass on that love of the subject to his students. To that end, one project has to do with hatching tadpoles. The children will be allowed to choose just one of the tadpoles to keep in the classroom. The others will be released back to their habitat. They choose Bruno. Mr. Stricter is giddy at the thought of having a pet; he is so excited, in fact, that he is not able to process just how different Bruno is.
The kids are not so blind to the havoc Bruno is wreaking in their classroom. In fact, any observant child is going to get antsy wanting to explain to Mr. Stricter what he cannot seem to understand. Bruno is a HIPPO! As things continue to deteriorate, the children take matters into their own hands. They vehemently share their concerns..Mr. Stricter remains adamant that Bruno is just doing what pets do. Then, the teacher is gone - eaten by a huge and hungry pet. Will he see the light?
Luckily, the kids have a plan. The teacher is saved, the class pet returned to the wild. When another science project hatches the following day ... and it looks a bit suspect, the kids know just what to do. They choose the new pet for their classroom!
Zachariah Ohara uses acrylic and pencil in warm and appealing colors to give us a close look at a naïve and caring teacher whose ability to identify a tadpole leaves readers wondering. The fact that he has so badly wanted to have a pet allows him some leeway, but not as much as he needs in this circumstance. Have a close look at the life cycles on the front and back endpapers to realize there was some foreshadowing for the arc of the story. So much fun!
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