Lobster Books

Imagine being the youngest of three daughters. Your mother's pet name for you is Baby. No one expects that you have a life or even want one besides hanging out at home with dear old mom and dad. Meet Rica.

The summer camping trip is just beginning. Rica, her two older sisters, her mom and dad, aunt and uncle, plus one cousin and his friend are headed to their usual campground. Rica is determined that this summer it's going to be different. She is going to have fun and adventure.

Much to her amazement, the fun and adventure begins quite quickly and easily when she meets Stefan. At first it is just the casual glance and nod, but then, thanks to a heat-induced faint on the beach, Rica really has Stefan's attention.

The problem is that Rica's older sister, Michelle, seems to have his attention, too. Will the girls fight over him or realize what a creep he is being and join forces to teach him a lesson?

RICA'S SUMMER is one of the NOT JUST PROMS & PARTIES books by Patricia G. Penny. With its sibling rivalry, hot guys, and illegally obtained alcohol, it should be popular with teen girls. The author packs in plenty of action in the less than 140-page book, and also includes a message teens can't miss.

Reviewed by: Sally Kruger, aka "Readingjunky"

In her debut memoir, The Hungry Ocean, Greenlaw recounted a monthlong swordfishing expedition off the coast of Newfoundland and discussed what it takes to be the world's only female swordfish boat captain. In this second memoir, Greenlaw confronts the joys and perils of living at home. Over forty, with her biological clock ticking, she returns to Isle au Haut, the tiny Maine island that is her birthplace. With hopes of reaffirming ties to her parents and starting a family of her own, she invests in a lobster-fishing business because it is a much "safer" career than swordfishing. But lobsters are scarce, and eligible men are even more elusive. Greenlaw writes about island life with the same plainspoken lyricism and self- effacing humor that elevated her first book to bestselling status. In the middle of the book, she begins to address her fear of loneliness and old age without a spouse or children, as well as the loss of her mother to cancer and the quickly dwindling island population. Unfortunately, she bails out before fully developing any of these compelling themes.

I bought and read this book because my Grandfather, Asbury Arthur [Bob] Gray, was borned in Stonington, Maine; just behind the Opera house on Highland Avenue. His Aunt Millie's stove is still on displayed in the General Store and when I walked through the town for the very first time back in 2001, there were people who looked strangely like my Grandfather all over the place. He was a dear old man, with terrific story telling capabilities, many about the sea since he, like Linda Greenlaw, come from a long line of fishermen. There were tales of exploration, and of terror (like the Great Storm of 1873 where his Grandfather, James H Gray, and the crew of the DH Webb survived by hiding out in the Bay of Chaluer, off the coast of the Prince Edward Islands), and of family (although he lost his mother when he was only 10 and was forced to move to Bath and work in the Iron Works because his Dad and his two brothers were at sea). This book is every bit as good as a conversation with Grandpa Gray, the humor and the charm shines right on through. So does the boredom and the chowder... Thank you Linda for letting us share your little island and your great big hospitality! I enjoyed it immensely.

I laughed alot! Anyone who has ever lived in a small town will relate to this book. If not you will wish you lived in a small town just for the comedy of it! Linda is a good writer. If you have red any of her other books you already know this! I highly recommend this book!

This book chronicles the life of Linda Greenlaw, the author, during a lobster fishing season. Living on a small island off the coast of Maine, the author allows us into her downeast life. We learn some great information on the lobster fishing industry, as well as the lifestyles of the residents of Isle Au Haut.

Some funny anecdotes and a glimpse into life off the coast of Maine make up this short, quick read, book. Being a resident of Maine, myself, I always like to read authors from here. I have yet to be disappointed.

The Lobster Chronicles by Linda Greenlaw is just the sort of work that completely captivates me. For the most part, I find my life quite interesting, do find my life quite interesting and have been fortunate enough to do a lot of the things I wanted to do, and it is turning into a relatively long run, when all is said and done. One of the pleasures I get out of life is learning of other people, their experiences; both exciting, earth shaking, and yes, mundane. Hey, I know about me; I want to know about others. Ms. Greenlaw, by any standard is an interesting person! Her accomplishments are really a bit breath taking as told in the story of her time spent as professional fisherman in her work, The Hungry Ocean.

It this autobiographical work we see a more calm, less dangerous (well, sort of) aspect of here life as she introduces us to her native island, a small hunk of rock off the coast of Maine. She has stopped being a Captain of a commercial fishing boat and has taken up lobster trapping, usually with a crew of one, her father. We get a very nice insight to island life; the closeness, harshness, realities of a very hard way of making a living. We also get a close up view of a way of life that may not be with us much longer. Chronicles such as this are a wonderful way to preserve a history of life in these far reaches of our country. This is something that should not be lost to future generations, even if they can only read about them.

As far as I was concerned, this work was very well written. Granted, it does not have the polish of a "professional" writer, and granted, you may find a few flaws in grammar and syntax here and there, but who really cares? Her story is told in her own words, much as you would hear it if you sat and talked with her for a bit. I find this much more pleasing to the eye, ear and mind than many of the professionally written "autobiographies as told to." Her small village is absolutely infested with interesting characters, she is quite good at descriptive writing and you get a true feel of what it is like at the place and time of which she writes. I take this work to be an oral history, if nothing more, but a wonderful history and quite well done. I cannot imagine anyone with an ounce of imagination, of curiosity of how others live, or wanting to know of things they have not done themselves, being bored with this work. I actually read it in one setting, and I am a pretty slow reader. I simply could not put the thing down.

All in all it was well done. We all have a tale to tell, each of us. Thank goodness there are individuals like Ms. Greenlaw who has the ability to tell theirs. Hope to hear more from this author in the future.

D. Blankenship
The Ozarks

ROAD FOOD just doesn't do it for me. Each synopsis seems to be a repeat of the previous one depending on the region. Sticking pretty much to the main highways and spending far too much time in the big cities (8 places in Pittsburgh alone) the repetitious style starts to wear thin. In NJ (My home state) you are pretty much limited to subs and hot dogs. This is repeated throughout the book, lobster roll and clams in New England, BBQ and fried food in the south, you get the picture. Occasionally peppered throughout are a few personal commentaries about the people and places, but I think this could have been a more useful guide by focusing on fewer places with more detail. The summary says you should carry it with you, but its size keeps it from being a good traveling companion, especially considering its narrow culinary focus. While not a total waste of time for the road food adventurer, it is so much less than it could have been.

Few things can make the tedium of a long drive more bearable than the prospect of a decent place to eat along the way, and the restaurants listed in this guide are destinations in their own right.

Helpfully arranged by sections of the country, road food aficionados will find more than enough to keep them busy. Personally, I wanted to take off and tour Alabama, Mississippi, and Louisiana, as well as old haunts in Virginia. Being in the opposite corner of the country, though, I found a number of interesting looking places here to check out (as well as one or two I've already been to, and so I can attest to the reliability of the Stern's reviews).

I should note, though, that family members in Cody, Wyoming tell me that Franca's, which the Sterns list in this book, has in fact been closed for several years. So *caveat lector.* Things can change quickly in the restaurant world. Nevertheless, this is both a great reference and a fun title just for entertaining (if stomach growl-inducing) reading. If you're out on the road, be sure to keep a copy of this guide in your glove compartment.

My wife and I do a lot of cross country motorcycling and this is a great book for anyone that likes the tastes of roadside America. We have tried several places in the book, from greasy spoons to ice cream and the book was always dead on with its reviews. If you are a fast food chain lover this is not a book for you. If you want down home, local fun stops then this is it. The only reason why I didn't give the book 5 stars is that the book's web site is more up to date and has more content than the book itself. Thus we tend to use the web site more often. See you on the highways and byways!

Good places to eat are hard to find. Finding an edible alternative to McDonalds or TGI Fridays is a must for long road trips. This book offers a list of good eats when you're a stranger in a strange land. The picks are generally pretty good although with I have encountered a few restaurants where I walked out wanting to write a stern letter to the Roadfood editors. But generally if it's in the book, it's a good meal.

The main problem is that the book is mainly city centric, and is a finite work. There are some cities, and large pieces of states that have no entries at all. And if you know an area well, you may disagree on which restaurants they should have.

Overall a nice book. If you use the roadfood web site, it has more listings.

Here you will find short descriptions of many non-chain restaurants in out of the way places. Some complain that the food is predictably regionalized. Well, does one get hush puppies in Boston or Oysters in Nebraska? Of course it is sectional because that best describes our nation and its food character. The sad thing is that places like those described in the book are - or should be - placed on the Endangered Species List. On a road trip our west I said if I came to one more juncture with the same four or five places I was going to scream.

Needless to say the food in this book is not for those following the Atkins, Jennie Craig, or any kind of diet. It is filling, wholesome, fat food that tastes as good as it sounds. The real tragedy is that this book will entertain more by the reading than the actual eating. And, as another reviewer mentioned, this is not just a book on food - it is also a book about our great nation, its richness and diversity.

Lobster Boy! The story may shock you and leave you forever changed. This book rocked! I bought it because the cover was so freaking hilarious. He is a sight to behold. I sat out in the sun reading this two summers ago and couldn't put it down, I looked a bit Lobsterish by the time I was done. Find out all you need to know about The Fat Man, The Migdet Man, and of course, Lobster boy, in this wonderful book. It is a true story, which only makes it that much greater!

This is the book if you want to one up your co-workers with bizarre carnie folklore! I heard about Lobsterboy on a camping trip soon after I stumbled upon the book. This is some trivial knowledge that will get heads turning for sure. I have a friend that still doesn't believe he's real. Definately good for a few laughs -

Grady Stiles Lives!!

The book really wasn't that well-written and it wasn't as interesting as I thought it'd be when I bought it. I don't understand three things:

(1) Why would the Stiles family continue to bring children that they KNOW are going to be deformed into the world ("If a child was born a freak, it was the child's problem...and God's" ?? How SICK is THAT?) How selfish!

(2) Why would Theresa Stiles leave her third husband, a good, respectful man who never raised a hand to her or her children, divorce him and go back to Grady Stiles for more of what she'd put up with her first time around? Sociopaths do NOT change...and Grady Stiles had already gotten away with the murder of his daughter's boyfriend. He had shown himself capable of murder. WHY would she chuck a quiet, stable life and make a return trip into hell?

(3) Why did Fred Rosen get involved with the case by giving the prosecution a copy of the wrestling videotape with sound? Isn't an author supposed to be unbiased? Rosen had no right to interject himself into this case while it was still being tried.

And why didn't he condemn the so-called "victim" for his treatment of his wives and children over the years? Why did he make Teresa and her son Glenn sound like evil incarnate when Grady, as much as I hate to say it, asked for it?

Lobster Boy! The story may shock you and leave you forever changed. This book rocked! I bought it because the cover was so freaking hilarious. He is a sight to behold. I sat out in the sun reading this two summers ago and couldn't put it down, I looked a bit Lobsterish by the time I was done. Find out all you need to know about The Fat Man, The Migdet Man, and of course, Lobster boy, in this wonderful book. It is a true story, which only makes it that much greater!

Through extensive interviews with nearly all parties involved, both family and police, Fred Rosen reconstructs the events surrounding the life and death of Grady Stiles Jr, the "Lobster Boy." Following a profitable sideshow career, capitalizing on the congenital defect known as ectrodactyly (fingers and toes are fused to form claws), Stiles was murdered in his own living room, victim of a hit man hired by members of his own family.

Was Stiles a man who had tried to make the most of his handicap and live the American dream only to be taken advantage of by his spouse, or did he use his deformity to hide years of abusive behavior, verbal and physical violence that eventually drove his own family to take steps to protect themselves?

A fascinating true account of life being stranger than fiction. Comes with a dozen photo pages so you can see the strangeness for yourself.

I was suckered by the description and this book fails to deliver....

The reason I gave two stars: some teenagers or true novices to the subject may find some of the stories interesting enough to turn them onto better works in the field.

There is NOTHING new in this book: Devlin desperately looks for a new angle to a Greek philosophical fight- which is not necessarily bad (see "the Anthropology of Art") BUT he doesn't take any new angle- he just searches and speculates - like a tired dog circling for a place to lie down.

The filler of the book is what anyone would expect- scientific research and 'interesting' tidbits about the physical world... once again, nothing new. Save your money.

I thought there would be a little more substance to this book. I was glad to see the stories and references to some of the street math but I was more intrigued by the examples of babies and math.

I would recommend it to friends that are not that interested in math.

For those that want more depth to the discussion relating math to instinct I'd go elsewhere.

"The Math Instinct" is something of a hodge-podge, and I think it could be written better, but there is lots of really interesting material, and the reader can always skip chapters not of interest to him/her. I say the book isn't written that well, because Devlin doesn't do well enough with the more difficult concepts. I say it is a hodge podge because subjects such as the nautilus's shell have nothing to do with the rest of the book; in fact Devlin waits far too long to distinguish between computational skills of animals, such as their navigational skills, and the results of optimization through evolutionary trial and error (bee's hexagonal honeycomb) which has nothing to do with the animal brain's capacity for doing math.
Amazingly, a numerical sense has been found to exist in baby's only a few days old, as well as in rats, etc. Brazilian children who could not master arithmetic in school, do great when they need to employ math in the marketplace. When math is abstract and rule based, without making sense, it is hard to learn or apply. It actually uses a part of the brain devoted to language rather than a part used for "natural" math (which incidentally grew out of the area used to control digits). Devlin addresses teaching math, but surprisingly doesn't have much too say, emphasizing repetitive practice rather than a change in presentation. For example, for reasons Devlin gives, learning 7 x 8 = 56 is particularly hard, so why not teach 7 x 8 = 7 x 7 + 7, thereby giving the idea of multiplication as a quick way to do some kinds of addition, and taking advantage of the kind of techniques untutored Brazilian working kids use in the marketplace?

This book offers a very readable overview for the non-specialist, with many fascinating details on how animals use their kinds of natural mathematics. It also discusses the findings of Brazilian researchers on how teenage street vendors who can't handle school math develop their own effective street math techniques. The author makes abundantly clear that many people can't deal with school math because it is presented as an abstract symbolic system. People can learn best, he argues, by applying math in concrete ways. Unfortunately, he stops short at the end of the book and simply enjoins us to practice because that is the way humans gain mastery over subjects. It would have been useful for him to spell out how such practice can best be done and to give examples. I recall an awful pre-calculus course that spent a full year trying to prove a set of theorems, leaving us students with no knowledge of how to apply calculus to scientific, financial, or other problems (this was the last exposure to math for most of the class). We would have learned much better by applying calculus to real problems, then perhaps concluding the year with a bit of theory. I recommend this book to readers who enjoy popular science literature or want to know more about animal math.

Although the word "math" appears in the title, this book is mainly about instinct and psychology. About half the book contains discussions on how animals instinctively do certain things that have some foundation in math. The other half of the book looks at how humans perceive and behave in math-related situations - from infancy to adulthood. The book is very well-written, very clear and easy to read. Those who are math phobic have nothing to fear here; in fact, they would likely find this book very interesting in the sense that they would learn something fascinating about themselves. Other than for those who are math phobic, this book has something for psychology buffs as well as animal lovers. But most importantly, it should grace the shelves of math educators as well as those who are interested in the reasons and possible cures for innumeracy.

I was looking for a book that broadly covered lobstering. This book is very much into the people who do lobstering and how they relate to each other and to strangers and newbies.

It's obviously a very detailed study if that is what you're looking for. I found it somewhat boring.

I found this book much more interesting: "The Secret Life of Lobsters: How Fishermen and Scientists Are Unraveling the Mysteries of Our Favorite Crustacean"
Trevor Corson

I live here in the midst of the coast of Maine, and this book is factual, absorbing, entertaining (to me, anyway), and historically significant. The world of the independent lobsterman is rapidly changing, but these guys are competent, tough, and they have their own code of discipline. If you want to understand better this unique part of America, this book is for you.

If you're not a Hellboy completist then you won't miss much if you don't read Lobster Johnson's serviceable, collected adventure.
Lobster Johnson is written by Mignola and has many of the nuances that you'd find in the main Hellboy series. The title character is the gritty, pulp hero of few words who takes on the Nazis during the 1930s.
As I said before, the story is quite serviceable but just doesn't really compare to the brilliant scripting of B.P.R.D. or have the heart and soul of the main Hellboy series.
Jason Armstrong's artistic style lends himself to be well suited for this book. His graphic storytelling is clear and interesting.
My main enjoyment of this book comes from the copious supplemental sketchbook material provided by Mignola, Guy Davis, and Jason Armstrong.

Mike Mignola's Pulp character, Lobster Johnson, whose cameos in the "Hellboy" and "BPRD" series have proved popular, gets a solo runout in this book. Think "the Rocketeer" meets "Batman" and you get the idea. All the usual Mignola Pulp touches and nuances are here - Nazi agents, mad science, enigmatic Chinese gents and huge, world-destroying monsters, plus yet more retro-cybernetic hardware! A must for Mignola fans and good fun for fans of the whole Pulp adventure genre.
Time for you to face the Claw!

I bought this book because it was supposed to be one of the first books you might read about Scientology. However, I found it to be very esoteric and abstract. I can't imagine this as a beginner's book to Scientology. Instead, it should be advertised only to advanced philosophers of thought and mental gymnastics. Not a good read, in my opinion.

What's best about this book is the way it's laid out - very simple and practical information a person can use right away and see if Scientology works for themselves.

One very interesting part of the book deals with how life can be viewed as a game, composed of freedom, barriers, and purposes, and somewhere during reading this chapter things just seemed to go "click" and life became a lot simpler for me.

This new edition makes it a lot easier to understand the book with a comprehensive glossary and easy-on-the-eyes layout. I definitely recommend it.

I picked up Queenan's "Red Lobster" book after hearing a favorable review on NPR and was thrilled to discover that someone was finally willing to expose the utter classlessness of the staples of "unculturalized" Americans. And they are all here - Red Lobster, The Olive Garden, Kenny G, Robert James Waller, Stephen King, et al. Queenan observes in a most deft manner how these sacred cows achieve success not my being excellent, but by appearing to be excellent. In short, they sell it and there's always a fool to buy it.

It's a worthy endeavor because let's face it - Kenny G is NOT jazz. Not even smooth jazz. Andrew Lloyd Webber IS incredibly overrated. The Olive Garden is not a "fancy restaurant" no matter how much your Aunt Meg dresses up before you take her there. And the main problem is not the entities themselves, but the fact that most Americans ALLOW this continued celebration mediocrity due to sheer laziness. In truth, every twenty or thirty-something female who tearfully devoured "The Bridges of Madison County" probably never bothered to pick up a copy of "Madame Bovary." If she had, she would certainly see that she'd been ripped off by a hack.

Of course, some of this comes down to simple opinion. As Queenan criticizes Rush (the band, not the talk-show idiot), he admits to not even being able to remember a single Rush song - and loses a little credibility for taking an easy stab at art rock. But upon finishing "Red Lobster," I was disappointed on two levels. One, for all his cultural snobbishness, Queenan never once sells his side of the equation. What is so much better about HIS tastes, other than the fact that they help him perpetuate the appearance of a refined New Yorker? There's not a hint. Two, in his observations, Queenan seems completely lost on the concept of guilty pleasures. I consider myself a fairly intelligent guy, but I also have those moments when I listen to Kiss and watch an episode of Hawaii 5-0. Why not? It doesn't define me, but boy is it ever entertaining!

That said, this is a good read, especially for anyone who had to suffer through a single note from Yanni in any circumstance.

Then this book is for you. A professional writer, Queenan can't find a stronger word than "suck" for everything he dislikes? That sucks.
Although Queenan occasionally puts together a real humdinger of a doozy of a quip, for the most part, his course in suckiness consists of holding himself superior to the lowbrow population that determines so much of American culture. Throughout the book there seems to run an undertone of bitterness that Queenan himself hasn't become the household name that Billy Joel, the Eagles, Cats, or even James Michener has. And because he holds these in such contempt, Queenan reveals himself to be worse than those people who visit Branson, eat at Red Lobster, and read Jackie Collins novels. While those people enjoy their lives and probably don't mind if Queenan enjoys his effete, psuedo-intellectual existence, there is one main difference. The former group is willing to let Queenan join in their experiences, welcoming him to enjoy their pleasures. But my guess is that if the tables were turned and some of the great unwashed were to try to take part in Queenan's haughty society, there would be nothing but rejection and scorn. I pity a man who cannot enjoy a variety of levels of entertainment. His world is far poorer than mine. I can relax to "Peaceful, Easy Feeling" or "Piano Man" one evening, and still watch or read "King Lear" the following evening with equal pleasure. Not so the superior Queenan. Sad.

I bought this book thinking that it would be a witty critique of low brow American culture. Well, it wasn't witty and it wasn't a critique. It was a worthless tirade from a bitter, effete, ineffectual snob. Perhaps if Queenan was capable of producing something meaningful, he wouldn't feel compelled to be so cruel.

Joe Queenan is a professional critic, and has similar tastes of many other professional critics; highbrow. This book chronicles is climbing down from his pedestal and trying to find out what makes people like such "lowbrow" items such as Red Lobster, John Tesh, Yanni, Cats and a host of other things.

While down with us peons, Mr. Queenan discovers there is a lot to like about modern culture and that he has never taken the time to look. Throughout the book he discovers various places, Las Vegas included, that attract him to want more. He only snaps out of his downward spiral when he goes to Branson, Missouri.

This book is laugh out load funny and full of fantastic insults. I only wish I could write and compose quips of half the level of Mr. Queenan. In addition, many readers have missed the finer points of the book, in which he not only lampoons himself, but also the items he is discovering. For instance, when discussing books written by Joan Collins, he turns his writing into the style used by Joan Collins.

This is an absolutely brilliant book that can be read on many levels. It is sure to insult some, but if you have a sense of humor you will find it funny. Lighten up, read it and enjoy!

Queenan set an extremely peculiar task for himself in writing this book: he would spend a year reading books, watching movies, and listening to music that he desperately wanted NOT to read, watch, or hear. Masochism on this scale is rare even in the back rooms of adult bookstores.

Although Queenan is a good writer and actualy made me laugh out loud a couple of times, there are two fatal flaws that doom the project.

He's certainly not the first to tackle the subject mattter. Early in the 20th century H. L. Menken made the statement that "Nobody ever went broke underestimating the intelligence of the American middle class," and used the term "booboise" to describe this group. Then in 1964 Susan Sontag's "Notes on Camp" came on the scene.

Worse yet, he confuses fact and opinion. He uses the terms "good" and "bad" in describing popular culture, terms that are more properly used in the realm of morality.

Billy Joel and Phil Collins are singers. That is a fact. Billy Joel and Phil Collins are bad singers. That is an opinion. Queenan's, not mine.

His targets are so easy. Michael Bolton, THE CELESTINE PROPHECY, the musical CATS, Kenny G., Joan Collins, Joe Pesci, Renaissance Fairs, Molly Ringwald, CANNONBALL RUN 2.

Along the way he finds some things that he enjoys more than he expected to. Sizzler Restaurants, CHILD'S PLAY, and Barry Manilow are unexpected sources of pleasure to him.

Although I'm often in agreement with Queenan's opinions, there's no real need for him to express them. What is admired in the arts is very much a product of the time in which the art is produced. Edward Bulwer-Lytton, who opened his novel PAUL CLIFFORD with the immortal phrase, "It was a dark and stormy night," was highly admired in the 19th century; today his name is on a prize given by San Jose State University for authors who deliberately produce the worst writing they can for the competition.

Queenan sets himself as the authority, oops, make that The Authority, the supreme arbiter of taste. This could be fun in a magazine article; at 194 pages he wears out his welcome.

As I read, I finally remembered where I had heard this particular cricket perched on my shoulder. The 1960's. A Houston station would broadcast a double feature of 1950's horror movies. My mother would sit up and offer a running commentary on the acting, writing and directing of these movies (she taught Drama at the college level so they may have really grated on her). I ignored her and kept on watching. Finally, around midnight she'd weary of this and go to bed. I could get another bottle of Coke and more Doritos and watch the second feature in peace.

If the publishers really wanted to have fun, they should go to a NASCAR Race or Untimate Fighting Championship and find a good old boy with his gimme cap on backward. Pay him to watch Bergman films (Ingmar, not Ingrid), listen to string quartets and read Umberto Eco for a year. That could be fun.

This story takes place in a restaurant, were a little boy and his family are out to lunch for his mothers birthday. The story revolves around the little boy and a little lobster in a tank. Each of the young think that they are saving each other from being eaten of having their family is eaten. The baby lobster is under the impression that when lobster is taken out of the tank they become huge and eat every human in sight. The little boy knows that his mother will eat one of the lobsters in the tank. Throughout the story the little boy and the lobster do the same things except in different ýworldsý.
I thought that the author had a cute story plot line and wonderful illustrations. However I feel that the point was not very clear. I could not see any real underlying moral. And honesty I would think that children might be upset with the fact that a lobster is going to be harshly eaten. Also the little boy misbehaves very badly in the restaurant and is not really reprimanded fully by his parents. I cannot see little kids reading this, maybe older readers.
I did like this book however do to the fact that it was neat to imagine what a lobster is thinking and Hartman very creatively explained this. I also see any true Maine resident and lobster eater to find this story cute and amusing.

This story takes place in a restaurant, were a little boy and his family are out to lunch for his mothers birthday. The story revolves around the little boy and a little lobster in a tank. Each of the young think that they are saving each other from being eaten of having their family is eaten. The baby lobster is under the impression that when lobster is taken out of the tank they become huge and eat every human in sight. The little boy knows that his mother will eat one of the lobsters in the tank. Throughout the story the little boy and the lobster do the same things except in different "worlds".
I thought that the author had a cute story plot line and wonderful illustrations. However I feel that the point was not very clear. I could not see any real underlying moral. And honesty I would think that children might be upset with the fact that a lobster is going to be harshly eaten. Also the little boy misbehaves very badly in the restaurant and is not really reprimanded fully by his parents. I cannot see little kids reading this, maybe older readers.
I did like this book however do to the fact that it was neat to imagine what a lobster is thinking and Hartman very creatively explained this. I also see any true Maine resident and lobster eater to find this story cute and amusing.