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From Publishers Weekly
While Meddaugh's Martha Calling essentially reprised the hilarious Martha Speaks, this third volume teaches the talking dog new tricks. And, without losing entertainment value, it puts corporate strategies and deceptive ads in perspective for young audiences?no mean feat. After reminding readers that Martha requires daily helpings of alphabet soup to be able to speak, Meddaugh introduces a dilemma. Granny's Soup Company has fired 13 letter-crafters to cut costs ("Why do we need all those letters? This is soup, not school!"), and the resulting broth includes only half the alphabet. Suddenly Martha begins speaking gibberish, and when she tries to use the phone or order burgers at a drive-through, humans regard her with amusement, not amazement. Shocked, the chatty canine realizes that she's about to become "just another dog, scratching on the door to go out." Meddaugh appends asterisks to Martha's attempts to talk, helpfully translating "Wogo!" as "My words are gone!" Then, after building suspense with a careful balance of text, cartoons and voice-bubbles, the author-illustrator solves the predicament in a shrewd, witty way. The workers return to their jobs, the missing letters are restored and Martha learns that her family loves her, voice or no voice. Souperb. Ages 4-8.
Copyright 1996 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to the Hardcover edition.
Copyright 1996 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to the Hardcover edition.
From School Library Journal
PreSchool-Grade 4-Fans of Martha Speaks (1992) and Martha Calling (1994, both Houghton) will be delighted by this third adventure of the talking canine. When Granny Flo inherits the company that makes the alphabet soup that enables Martha to speak, the woman immediately fires 13 of the 26 pasta letter makers for the sake of bigger profits. The elimination of these letters from the soup makes Martha's speech hilariously unintelligible. When the quick-thinking dog learns of the cuts from Alf Abbot (unemployed pasta man "A"), she uses her smarts to convince Granny Flo to put the missing letters back in the cans. Each brightly colored page is filled with the zaniness and dialogue balloons of the previous books. Older children will enjoy all the alphabetic wordplay and figuring out the missing letters with the help of the author's footnotes. Great fun!-Maura Bresnahan, Topsfield Town Library, MA
Copyright 1996 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to the Hardcover edition.
Copyright 1996 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to the Hardcover edition.
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Most helpful customer reviews
4.0 out of 5 stars
Fun read for kids and parents,
By
This review is from: Martha Blah Blah (Paperback)
Martha is a lucky dog - she gets to eat a bowl of soup every day, which makes her able to talk! When Granny Flo, the new soup company owner, takes out half the letters to make more profits, Martha goes on a quest to right Granny Flo's wrong. This is a funny story that is as entertaining for adults as it is for children. (I bought it for me, not my 2-year-old!)
5.0 out of 5 stars
Entertaining for kids AND adults!,
By A Customer
This review is from: Martha Blah Blah (Paperback)
I was lucky enough to come across this book while searching for a birthday gift for a little friend of mine. I was intrigued by the title, picked it up, and then had to read the ENTIRE thing. What a fabulous book! The words are clearly printed on a white background, the pictures are large and colorful, and the humor in what Martha says will keep readers of all ages entertained. Not only does the story deal with standing up for what you need, but I found that I could use this in my practice as a speech-language pathologist. Martha, when she eats alphabet soup, gains the ability to speak because all the letters go into her brain instead of to her stomach. But when some letters are left out, she has trouble communicating. When she gets all her letters, she can communicate just fine. A lesson! Wow! I've read a lot of children's books, and this is a gem. Don't miss it.
5.0 out of 5 stars
Martha Blah Blah,
By Carl Hurley (Clemson, SC USA) - See all my reviews
This review is from: Martha Blah Blah (Hardcover)
Martha Blah Blah is about a dog who can speak when she eats alphabet soup. With her new-found language, Martha has adventures, helps people and animals and learns new things. She does have a dilemma, but she overcomes it to save the day. The illustrations in this book enhance the story. The illustrator uses large watercolor images that are humorous and does a good job of showing what is going on in the story. The author uses words that make the book easy to understand and employs a large font so that they are easy to read. The author also includes footnotes in some parts of the book, which can draw the attention away from the illustrations to the footnotes. Without the footnotes, however, one would not be able to decipher what Martha is saying when she loses her voice. Even though the footnotes draw attention away from the illustrations one can have fun trying and decipher what Martha is saying and then the answer is at the bottom of the page. In a small way, the footnotes make one think while reading the book. I believe that this book is entertaining and sparks the imagination. Like most children' books, it has a happy ending, which makes the story even more likable. Overall, I think that Martha Blah Blah is an excellent children's book that deserves to be read.
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