Miles McHale, Tattletale (Little Boost Series)

by Christianne C. Jones, Elina Ellis (Illustrator)

Overview

Miles McHale is a tattletale. And everybody knows it. But he's not the only one who needs help, so his teacher decides: it's time to fight the Tattle Battle! But will Miles figure out the right time to tell a grown-up about another person's behavior, or is he doomed to be a tattletale forever?

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781515807537
Publisher:	Capstone
Publication date:	01/01/2017
Series:	Little Boost Series
Pages:	32
Sales rank:	617,208
Product dimensions:	9.80(w) x 10.10(h) x 0.40(d)
Lexile:	500L (what's this?)
Age Range:	4 - 8 Years

About the Author

Christianne Jones is an award-winning author of books for younger children. Her picture bookLacey Walker, Nonstop Talkerwon a 2013 Gelett Burgess Award and was a Midwest Book Award finalist, and Hello, Goodbye, and a Very Little Lie was listed as one of the 100 best children's books by popular parenting site babble.com. Christianne lives in Mankato, Minnesota, with her husband and three daughters.

Interviews

* Addition to Little Boost, a set focusing on social skills for our youngest readers * Perfect readaloud * Miles is a lovable, kind kid who just needs a little help figuring out when the right time is to tell

Editorial Reviews

This is a great book for that certain age — around 5 and 6 when tattling can be problematic. Miles McHale is a constant tattletale. So his teacher, Mrs. Snitcher, starts the “Tattle Battle” with this pledge: “If a friend is sick, hurt, or in harm’s way, then telling someone is okay.” And when Miles’s sister slips and falls, he learns the important difference between telling and tattling.

Imagination Soup

Knowing when to speak up and when to stay quiet can take quite a bit of thought and practice, especially if you are super observant and eager. In Miles McHale, Tattletale, Christianne Jones humorously relates one boy’s struggle to leave behind his tattling ways. A veritable zooful of friends brightens the story, with art by Elina Ellis, as Miles points his feathered finger at one classmate after another until wise Mrs. Snitcher creatively intervenes.

Foreward Reviews

06/01/2017
PreS-Gr 2—Miles McHale is a chick with many fine qualities. He is funny, bright, and lovable, but he has one trait that is causing trouble at home and especially at school. Miles is going through a tattle phase, and nobody can elude him: not his dog Frank, his brother Thomas, or his classmates. Although Miles is not the only student with these inclinations, he is the lead tattler in his class, and he can't distinguish between situations when he needs to let an adult know that someone is in trouble and times when he should mind his own business. So his teacher devises a competition with one straightforward rule: no tattling for one week, and the winning team will earn extra recess time. Will Miles finally restrain himself and lead his team to victory? With speech bubble dialogue and engaging, digitally produced, pastel illustrations, this picture book flows naturally and presents a conflict that young readers will easily understand. VERDICT An ideal read-aloud for a storytime at school, at home, or in the library. A popular choice for most collections.—Kathia Ibacache, Simi Valley Public Library, CA

School Library Journal

2016-10-12
The titular little chick learns an important lesson about what behaviors need to be reported and which to just let slide. Jones' newest picture book continues in the vein of some of her previous work with social-emotional development (Lacey Walker, Nonstop Talker, 2014, etc.). Here, Miles McHale is a member of a classroom populated by softly illustrated anthropomorphic wild animals of diverse species led by a giraffe with the Dickensian name of Mrs. Snitcher. Tattle-telling has become an issue in the classroom, and Mrs. Snitcher challenges her charges to a "Tattle Battle," in which the team with the fewest tattles at the end of the week wins. Tattling is here defined as any concern that does not meet the following criteria: "If a friend is sick, hurt, or in harm's way, / Then telling someone is OKAY." Miles struggles to determine which events over the course of the week must be shared with an adult, including an accident with his little sister back at home. While the book does not address the issue at the heart of much tattling—the perception of injustice—it does offer some simple, easy-to-remember rhymes to help guide children toward appropriate sharing of concerns. Though not a standout, this book fills a niche for those seeking titles dealing with this particular issue of character education. (Picture book. 4-7)

Kirkus Reviews