Mr. Ginger and the Disappearing Fish by Chris Wardle

(Suggested Reading Level: Grades 3-6)

Yet another environmental change is affecting the animals of Daphne Wood. The ocean currents have changed, causing the fish to move farther from the colony. Also, seagulls have congregated in the area to catch fish from the river, and boy are they noisy. The animals call a meeting to discuss the problem and a few worthy ideas are formed. One expedition headed out on the boat to find fish and one heads down the shore to find a new fishing spot for all the gulls. Mr. Denzel the mole and Sidney the armadillo begin setting up a pond for the colony to farm their own fish, so the problem can be avoided in the future.

Mr. Ginger has to be my favorite character this time around. He’s in the group looking for a new place for gulls and is thrilled to be carried by a pelican. he loves flying. Also, his daily trainings are amusing and his recently developed obsession with cooking fits perfectly with his personality.

I think Mr. Vinegar puts it well.

“We have seen some very difficult times indeed,” he began. “But everyone has pulled together and done their part, and this is the result. . . . It just shows what can happen when you grasp the nettles out of the frying pan, over egg the pudding off your own bat, and put the ball in the back of the net.” (pg. 84)

Alright, he confused the other critters, too, but you get the point. The animals work together, helping each other out with problems, finding solutions and using their own talents to get things done.

One question, though, why do all the animals talk except fish? Even the whales, dolphins and birds can talk. Of course, the fish are also the only animals that get eaten.

This is a good series that I imagine most animal-loving kids would enjoy, boys and girls.

You can purchase the series at Lulu.com.

Mr. Tinfish #5
87 pages

Challenge: 100+

I received my copy from the author/publicist for review and the above is my honest opinion. I am an Amazon associate.

5 Comments

  • Joan Moloney

    Wonderful, heart warming and clever series, I hope Chris will write some more entertaining and amusing books. Great idea for Christmas presents.

  • LOL….well you woldn’t want your food talking back to you, at least I wouldn’t it. Though it does seem a little odd that all the other animals are sentient creatures but not the fish.

  • Hi Carol,

    Thank you for finding the time to read the Tinfish series of books. Sounds like you enjoyed the stories, along with some of the humour, including Mr. Vinegar’s mixed metaphors. I was glad that Mr. Ginger’s trainings were appreciated as well. I’ve sat through a number of trainings myself where they were more for the self-entertainment of the trainer than the ones who had to listen.
    I’m with Ryan on the talking fish thing – best not to think of your dinner as something you could have a conversation with. Fortunately when writing about a future world of talking animals I feel I can grant myself a bit of artistic license on some of these things.
    Thanks again for your great reviews.

    regards
    Chris

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