The narrative opens in the first person. ‘It used to be Slug, Kevin and me – the unstoppable three.’

Then when Kevin moved away it was just Slug and me. And Slug was everywhere ‘I’ was. Morning, noon and night, on the bus, in art class, at the library. You name it, if ‘I’ was there, there was Slug as well.

And, ‘I’ found it was beginning to be too much. Finally it happened, ‘I’ told my mother exactly how ‘I’ felt. What ‘I’ didn’t know was that Slug was there in the doorway.

‘I’ really wasn’t trying to make him feel bad, ‘I’ just needed a little space. And ‘I’ got space all right. Slug wasn’t around much anymore.

When ‘I’ did see him Slug hardly spoke, and ‘I’ didn’t like that any more than ‘I’ did when he was there all the time. We've all had a friend who's special and does now and then, get on our nerves. Or horrors, maybe we are the one who just never knows when to stop. Wanting to spend too much time together is a problem that each of us faces sooner or later.

For adults, we generally have learned how to deal with such friends in a way that will help us retain the friendship. Kids, by contrast, need to learn how to work out this important issue. Jarrett Krosoczka has given children an excellent tool in his work, ‘My Buddy, Slug’. Without becoming preachy, writer Krosoczka recounts one boy's account of the friend who just never knew when to step back for a while.

When first I held up the book; my resident critics gave it a disbelieving, sidelong glance and voiced absolute dismay about ‘A SLUG!’ ‘YOU’RE GOING TO READ A BOOK ABOUT A SLUG,’ ‘ISN’T A SLUG, YOU KNOW, ONE OF THOSE, SLIMY, YOU KNOW, THINGS,’ was voiced delicately in primordial shriek.

I turned the first page and they, fourth grade, Osage Co OK school, settled back to listen with as open a mind as they could muster. The class does take their job as critics seriously. Before too many pages had been turned; the class was inching forward on the rug, gazing raptly at the book and were obviously drawn into the tale.

When I finished; the kids agreed ‘little kids will like it, but they won’t really ‘get’ it.’ Each of my students thought the book was a good choice for ‘mature’ fourth graders as well as the little kids in the target audience, ‘because it helps us understand more about why our friends get tired of us when we are afraid to give them some space.’

My Buddy, Slug is a book sure to please the 'read to' crowd of 3 -7s. The book is sturdy, filled with brightly colored pictures and child pleasing setting.

The work is a ‘read with help' for the strong reading 7s and 8s, and is a ‘read alone,’ or ‘I’ll read to you’ for the 9 – 10 year old set.

When we choose a book to read to younger siblings or to the Kindergarten class we may be forgiven for choosing what some might view as ‘too young’ even though we ‘really like this book.’

Once I had begun to read; the children forgot all their reservations about slug being a, gasp, slug. As I finished; the kids agreed a slug was perfect as a friend.

Being ‘mature’ fourth graders my class particularly enjoyed all writer Krosoczka’s long winded ‘slug talk’sprinkled through the book Enjoyed the read, happy to recommend for the personal reading list, and the school and home library shelf.

Reviewed by: Molly's Reviews

 molly martin
30+ years K 1, 2 years grade 4   classroom teacher

Genre: children’s picture book
Author: Jarrett J. Krosoczka
Line/Publisher Knopf Books for Young Readers
Alfred A Knopf 530 E72d NYC, NY 10021 ISBN: 0375833420