Jean MerrillReseñas

Fascinating! Imagine a children's book with no children as central characters! Very enjoyable. My book group had fun reading this. Ginny found this interesting review in the New Yorker... https://www.newyorker.com/books/page-turner/pushcart-wars-enduring-appeal. I'm glad we picked this one, though I wasn't looking forward to it. I liked it better than I thought I might.

I thought it was so charming! hyper local NYC love, small business vs city traffic, little people making a difference...

Mx first chapter book-only b/c it was the one we had laying around. Not in love with story-about two groups of people fighting over petty stuff, but it is what it is. Mx liked to read this book, but they may have just been for the quality time with daddy.

Surprisingly sophisticated and insightful for a book targeted at nine year olds. Portrays some of the depth behind the famous Pushcart War and conflict in general, without compromising the good-vs-bad narrative that makes the whole thing so damned enjoyable.

Beth Weise rec

Remember when, in elementary school, library books were signed out using cards located in little pockets in the back of the book? Well, my name was written multiple times on the card of this book in my elementary school library I read it so many times. Love this book!

harvey read this to us in 5th or 6th grade. loved it at the time.

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You know you have created great characters when one of them is in the book for literally three paragraphs and every fan just needs to know that you are talking about the book to make the immediate connection and go "Oh, she was great. I love her."
Alice
The book as a whole is a great introduction to fiction history, those lovely books that are completely made up but they sound so real.
I'm never visiting NYC in early July and I'll probably pass on visiting any parks no matter what.

I loved this book as a little boy, especially because of the menacing pea-pins and the story of the little guys winning. It's a little easy on the pigs and legislative reforms, but it's still really cute and I like that it's a children's book with no dumbass children in it.

I was so excited to read The Pushcart War on the recommendation of a good friend with impeccable taste, and I couldn't help picking it up far sooner than I planned. Besides the great merit of my friend's recommendation, I knew I was going to love the book as soon as I peeked at the beginning. I was already grinning and laughing during the clever, tongue-in-cheek foreword and introduction. Both were, clever, hilarious, and utterly awesome, and the rest of the book was just as hilarious and amazing. As a bonus, my younger siblings loved the book when I gave it to them before reading it myself. My teenaged brother read it in a single evening and raved about it, spurring me to read it even sooner, and began reading it aloud to our elementary-aged youngest sister as soon as he had finished it himself.

Well, the book more than lived up to all that hype and expectation! I loved it even more than I'd hoped.

I laughed my way through the entire book, chuckling or guffawing out loud countless times. It's a hysterically funny book--and a wonderful, entertaining story. The clever wit, tongue-in-cheek satire, humor, and puns throughout had me laughing out loud every page or two. I love the framing device of the story that the author uses to explain her role in writing it--the pretend premise the author keeps from the beginning of the book. It's hilarious and so clever, but I won't spoil what it is.

It's also incredibly clever and intelligent, and I'm amazed at the author's masterful ability to fulfill the purpose of the book--to portray how wars work in a way anyone can understand. It kept blowing my mind as I read. I admire her ability to simplify the complex events of every war that's ever occurred, and portray them in a way that is incredibly simple and easy to understand--showing all of it by an incredibly funny and engaging story, and teaching important, valuable lessons in the process. I'm in awe. I definitely better understand how war works after reading this book, even as an adult and lover of history. I kept thinking about various aspects of World War II as I read, since the book mirrors it so well. The author must understand these things so well to be able to teach it in such an accessible way, and her wisdom shines clearly throughout the book.

I loved the characters so much, and heroes and villains alike were fabulously unique and well-developed. Each character was vivid and lifelike, and I enjoyed every single one. I adored each one of the pushcart peddlers and their allies--who were sweet, endearing, and spirited. I gladly cheered them on and rooted for them to win against the evil bad guys. And the antagonistic characters were each despicable to varying degrees, understandable, and well-rounded--never one-dimensional. They really demonstrated how figures of corrupt power work, with manipulation, lies, and brute force. Also, I really, really enjoyed the author's fabulous portrayal of wonderful female characters along with the very awesome male characters--the women had just as huge and strong and important and integral a role as the men, and the men actively showed respect and equality towards them, which is very nice to see. In addition, the children in the book are given an active, essential, and exciting role that young readers will delight in, even if most of the characters and important roles are adults.

In all, The Pushcart War was amazing, hilarious, fun, clever, witty, heartwarming, satirical, wise, exciting, intelligent, hysterically funny, and riotously entertaining. It became a new favorite of mine as soon as I read it, and I easily and immediately decided to give it five full stars without a bit of my usual hesitation and deliberation. I only wish I had known about it as a kid, but better late than never--and I'm glad my siblings can enjoy it at a young age, even if I couldn't.

A perfectly serviceable book. It’s good for explaining to kids about war–how it starts, how it works. Like Animal Farm Lite. It’s so well-written, I thought it was a true story. I had to look up whether this was fiction or non-fiction.

It’s narrative fiction book about a conflict between pushcart peddlers and the truckers who want them off the streets. Although I said it’s good for teaching about war, there’s a clear “little guys vs. big bullies” allegory here, as the truckers are never put in a sympathetic light. The newspaper publisher in Newsies got better press than the truckers did.

This is as small a conflict as you expect from such a war, but that makes it accessible to readers. But it blows it up to talk about the Pea-Shooter Campaign as importantly as Sherman’s March. It’s different from any other children’s fiction book I’ve read. It’s good for the rare child who doesn’t like reading fiction, adding a little humor into it now and then to keep kids interested (but it’s no Sideways Stories from Wayside School). It gives kids what they don’t usually get in their fiction–politics, war theory, international issues, economics, civil liberties, propaganda, etc.

Problem is, I’m trying to figure out who this book is for, who I’d recommend it to, and I can’t think of anyone. It would be a great book for a social studies teacher to use in a classroom, to teach the issues mentioned above. But I don’t think I can recommend just picking it up and reading it. They love fantasy books like “Wings of Fire” and “Percy Jackson”, which put plot before message. This is a message book. But it’s a book of good taste so you feel smarter after reading it.

This is one of the best romances that I have ever read. It was recommended to me by a friend, and fortunately I was able to get a copy. I rank it with Georgette Heyer, not only for the characters, but for the humor, although Merrill's gets a little more farcical. Apparently sent in the Edwardian Era, it chronicles the adventures of Belle, a famous, beautiful actress in her late twenties who is losing her voice. At this juncture, Hugo Gore, the young Earl of Orsett, asks her to come to Orsett Park pretending to be his romantic interest, tactlessly explaining that his apparent liaison with an actress will shock his uncle into letting him marry his childhood sweetheart. Also on hand is an American heiress and her parents, hoping that she will become the Countess instead.

A great part of the humor comes from Belle's alternately rising and falling social status according to what the other characters suppose to be her relationship with the various Gores at Orsett Park (the Earl's residence) and Orsett Court (Uncle Piers Gore's residence.) Belle triumphs, and other couples are united, although a bit wistfully in one case.

The paperback edition was published in 1978, and a hardcopy large-type edition was published in 1980. Perhaps Kindle will pick it up like they did Red Adam's Lady.

Retrieved a record: Bibliographic match uncertain.

Recently reread this for the first time since I was a kid. Had forgotten how awesome it was.

When I first read The Toothpaste Millionaire in the 4th grade (about 25 years ago) it planted the idea in my mind that I could figure out complex problems and make things for myself. I started making my own soda, figuring out how to sew, and learned how to cook Duck L'Orange. I appreciated the simplicity and practicality of Rufus' homemade toothpaste, and I thought that his entrepreneurship was inspiring. I enjoyed reading books about kids who accomplished great things without adult interference, but I did like the adults who helped Kate and Rufus, like his resourceful and slave-name-shedding Grandma Mayflower, Hector the talented but unemployed mechanic, and Mr. Conti, their initially suspicious but soon supportive math teacher. The book also has some wild passages and an explosion.

Reading it again as an adult, I like that it has a message against corporate greed and American consumerism, and opting out by making things instead of buying them. I also appreciate that the Toothpaste Millionaire's protagonist is a clever, complex, and eccentric Black kid because I was a weird and eccentric multiracial kid.

The first children's history of The Pushcart War - a fierce battle for control of the streets of New York City, waged between the city's pushcart peddlers and the trucking companies that want to put them out of business - this epic volume is by turns hilarious and heartwarming. The conflict all begins with the Daffodil Massacre, in which impatient trucker Albert P. Mack runs down peddler Morris the Florist on March 15th, 2026, destroying his cart and sending the man himself flying into a pickle barrel. Things only heat up from there, as the city's citizens, sick of the terrible traffic in their town, look for someone to hold responsible for the unending congestion, while the Big Three - owners of the city's three largest trucking companies - look for ways to make the pushcart peddlers the target of the public's ire, and to push them off the streets through brute force. The peddlers launch their own secret offensive, using pea-shooters to cause a massive number of flat tires and breakdowns, hoping to draw the public's attention to the real cause of the city's congestion. Inevitably, the conflict between peddlers and truckers eventually spills out into the public view, involving police, politicians, and everyday citizens - including children. In the end, despite being far fewer in number than their adversaries, the peddlers triumph in their effort to preserve their livelihood, and free the city from the tyranny of the truckers.

Originally published in 1964 and set in 1976, republished in 1974 and set in 1986, republished again in 1985 and set in 1996, and finally published in this 50th Anniversary Edition in 2014, and set in 2026, The Pushcart War is a delightful children's novel, one presented as if it were a history of a past event that occurred some years after the date of publication. Although this structure sounds rather convoluted, somehow the whole thing just works. I enjoyed everything about this book, from the overarching story, in which the little guy triumphs in the face of big business, in collusion with government, to the rich cast of quirky but lovable characters. General Anna, Mr. Jerusalem, Maxxie the Pushcart King! - they all come alive in Jean Merrill's story. I loved the New York setting, and found the social commentary both amusing and on point. I liked that the police were honest, and uncowed by the politicians, that the peddlers were concerned with defending their rights, but didn't want to trample on the rights of even their adversaries. Most of all, I just liked the wonderful sense of humor evident throughout the story, and also in the accompanying illustrations by Ronni Solbert. There are so many wonderful details here - both author and illustrator are credited with letters to the editor, in one part of the story - that all combine to create a wonderful book. Recommended to anyone looking for humorous children's stories that address issues of fairness in the public sphere, and the question of activism and standing up for what's right, even when one's opponent is powerful and influential.

Um, 4.5 stars? Some might find it old-fashioned or not PC, but I thought it clever & funny, with a good lesson. The pictures illustrating each tale within the overall story were especially imaginative. Don't be misled by Solbert's cartoony style - there's something special about these pix.

Shame on me for not looking before now for more by [a:Jean Merrill|79535|Jean Merrill|https://s.gr-assets.com/assets/nophoto/user/f_50x66-3498e835d024c789dd934a5c5fb5bdbc.png] since she is, after all, the author of one of my favorite children's novels, [b:The Pushcart War|219553|The Pushcart War|Jean Merrill|https://d.gr-assets.com/books/1314545996s/219553.jpg|2092]. Even though this is entirely different, it does have the sly satire of the novel, poking fun at adults who are acting like children.

ETA - my husband and teen son have now read it, too, and enjoyed it enough to thank me for putting it in their hands...

I just had to get this as it's by the author of The Pushcart War.  It's great fun, but not as special.  I love that Rufus isn't profit hungry - he's selling the toothpaste at just over cost.  For 1972 this was valuable because Rufus is a black" boy and our narrator is a white girl, and that's all pretty much just fine w/ everybody.   Overall, this is a bit heavy-handed, but fun for fans of these kinds of stories."½

Thank you YouTube and mrhandler for enabling me to 'read' this.

I have no idea how to rate it, though. I'm sure a child would gleefully cheer on first the elephant, and then the car salesman, as they each enjoy binges of smashing. However, I really wouldn't want my children to be exposed to all this mayhem, or to the idea that violent revenge is a great way to solve interpersonal problems.

Otoh, [b:The Pushcart War|542729|The Pushcart War|Jean Merrill|https://d.gr-assets.com/books/1175650395s/542729.jpg|2092] was about escalating violent vengefulness, and I loved that book, and was not harmed by it. In fact, I may have developed my aversion to revenge by my many reads of that classic. Maybe this book is intended to teach the same lesson to littler kids - and maybe it would be effective. After all, I've learned that it's all too easy to underestimate the clear-eyed insights and perceptive wisdom of children. I'd love to know what your children think of this story and its message!

This would be a good book to use with grades 1-4. It could be used as an interactive read aloud with younger grades and as an independent read in older grades. This is a good book to use when talking about people having different interest and liking different things, but still being accepting of other and those around you.

Possibly the most political book I read as a kid. It deals with grass-roots organizing, guerilla warfare, corruption, capitalism, the media--all as part of a rollicking adventure story.

One of the most charming books ever written, and funny too.

Beautifully illustrated folk tale from China. I liked its way of showing the importance of integrity.

Izumi resists social and family pressures as she befriends caterpillars and other socially unacceptable creatures.***SRC Quiz***