Those Darn Squirrels Fly South

by Adam Rubin, Daniel Salmieri (Illustrator)

Overview

From the bestselling creators of Dragons Love Tacos comes the third off-the-wall comedy featuring Old Man Fookwire, a lot of birds, and those darn squirrels.

"Hysterical—again." —Kirkus Reviews (starred review)

Old Man Fookwire's one pleasure in life is painting the birds in his backyard. When fall arrives and the birds fly south, Fookwire is desolate. The squirrels are curious: Where are the birds going, and what do they do once they get there? With their usual ingenuity and engineering skills, the squirrels devise a way to follow the birds to their destination, a tropical paradise. A wonderful time is had by all—all but grumpy Old Man Fookwire, alone at home. But the squirrels have a solution for that, too!

The three funny picture books in this series from Adam Rubin and Daniel Salmieri:

• Those Darn Squirrels
• Those Darn Squirrels and the Cat Next Door
• Those Darn Squirrels Fly South

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780544555457
Publisher:	HarperCollins
Publication date:	09/08/2015
Pages:	32
Sales rank:	283,241
Product dimensions:	9.80(w) x 9.80(h) x 0.10(d)
Age Range:	4 - 7 Years

About the Author

Adam Rubin is a creative director for a digital advertising agency in New York City and the author of critically acclaimed picture books, including three Those Darn Squirrels titles. All of them have been illustrated by Daniel Salmieri. To learn more, visit www.adamrubinhasawebsite.com.

Daniel Salmieri is an artist and illustrator living in Brooklyn, NY. He has illustrated many books for children, including the Those Darn Squirrels books and Dragons Love Tacos in collaboration with author Adam Rubin. To learn more, visit www.danielsalmieri.com.

Editorial Reviews

"Visual slapstick and a deadpan text combine with trademark Fookwire expressions to make this third Darn Squirrels outing a winner . . . Hysterical—again."—Kirkus, starred review

"Rubin conveys the complexities of a testy relationship with flair."—Publishers Weekly

"Like the previous volumes, Rubin and Salmieri's third Fookwire-squirrel saga is rich in clever language and unexpectedly humorous flourishes."—New York Times online review

"This story doesn't disappoint."—School Library Journal —

From the Publisher

Like the previous volumes, Rubin and Salmieri's third Fookwire-squirrel saga is rich in clever language and unexpectedly humorous flourishes. Rubin and Salmieri don't care, it seems, if the story doesn't make any sense. And they don't care, it seems, that readers may have ambivalent feelings about Fookwire and even side with those darn squirrels. Really, it seems, what the authors care about most is making young children giggle uncontrollably…
—Pamela Paul

The New York Times

It’s a sad time for Old Man Fookwire: his beloved birds are flying south for winter. And this year, the pesky squirrels that he loves to hate have decided to follow them, using flying machines that might have been designed by da Vinci (if he’d had access to soda bottles and baseball caps). Fookwire loads up his vintage convertible and joins the birds and squirrels in the tropical village of “Santa Vaca,” where even he manages to crack a smile. In the squirrels’ third outing, Rubin conveys the complexities of a testy relationship with flair, while Salmieri captures Fookwire’s grumpiness and the vacant expressions of the squirrels as they dance on the beach and prepare mangoes with salt and lime. Ages 4–8. Illustrator’s agent: Rebecca Sherman, Writers House. (Sept.)

Publishers Weekly

K-Gr 2—Those darn squirrels are at it again, and this time they're headed for warmer weather, aided by their "comprehensive understanding of aerodynamic engineering." In their third appearance, grumpy Old Man Fookwire is still painting pictures of his beloved birds and shaking his fist at squirrel shenanigans. But, instead of the baba, yaba, and floogle birds flying south alone, the squirrels tag along to see what all the fuss is about. When he receives a collect call from the squirrels turned beach bums, Fookwire's loneliness gets the better of him and he dusts off the red 1957 convertible he's kept hiding in a shed. After reuniting with his bird friends, sunburning his giant schnoz, and painting to his grumpy heart's content, he and the squirrels road trip it back together. Salmieri's characteristic sketches stretch every scene to humorous proportion, making the most of Rubin's quirky story line and eccentric vocabulary. As Fookwire would say, "Great googley-moogley," this story doesn't disappoint.—Jenna Boles, Washington-Centerville Public Library, OH

School Library Journal

Birds of a feather (along with a cantankerous gentleman and his pesky squirrels) flock together at this tropical destination. Old Man Fookwire dips into a depression when his beloved feathered companions fly south. His impish squirrels take to the sky in makeshift machines (utilizing, in part, a pine cone and soda bottle) and follow the birds. After the squirrels call collect, Fookwire putters down the highway (at 12 mph) to join the birds and the pests. Once in Santa Vaca, he discovers the fiery coco, kiki and caramba birds and starts to paint them. Forgetting sunscreen and forgoing water, Mr. Fookwire turns tomato-red and suffers from heatstroke. The squirrels perform triage, fanning him with palm branches and dumping fluids into his parched mouth, before piling him into his sports car and driving him back north at record speeds. Fookwire's "Thooooooose daaaaaaarn squirrrrrels!" says it all about their love-hate relationship. Visual slapstick and a deadpan text combine with trademark Fookwire expressions ("great googly-moogly!") to make this third Darn Squirrels outing a winner. Watercolor, gouache and colored-pencil spreads pepper the beach with individual grains of sand. The birds' flamboyance (one a bird-sized replica of the ornery old man) is the perfect complement to the sweltering heat. Hysterical--again. (Picture book. 5-9)

Kirkus Reviews