The Secret Shortcut by Mark Teague

The Secret Shortcut by Mark Teague

Rating: 4.5 stars

A long time ago, in a galaxy far, far away...kids walked to school.  Remember that?

A few months ago I read an article in the New York Times which explained that in several school districts a child is not allowed to walk to school if they live a certain distance from school.  And in those same districts and many others, parents who do let their children walk to school are harangued by other parents for such dangerous negligence.

Ok, I admit we don't exactly live in a neighborhood where Lorelei and Ben can ever walk to school.  But if we did live in more of a city, you better believe I'd buy them bikes and send them on their merry way!

Oh--the book!  It's a fun one, even if you plan on driving your child to school every day of their schooling (hopefully not college).  Two 8-ish-year old boys just can't get to school on time.  First it's the space creatures making them late, then it's the pirates (arrrgh...hate it when they get in my way), and finally a plague of frogs.  Their teacher is fed up with their excuses, and they know she means business, so they find "the secretest shortcut" and vow to get to school on time.  Of course, this secretest shortcut somehow leads them past sleeping alligators and other jungle creatures.  They begin to wonder if they'll be late again when they fall in a mud puddle, hear the school bell ring, and make a run for it.  They make it on time--with stiff, muddy hair and all.  The illustrations are vibrant and funny--Mark Teague is great for some captivating illustrations.

This is a great parent-free adventure of two little boys.  Definitely a classic type of tale and one that I wish could happen in real life a little bit more--maybe we can't let our children walk to school, but at least we can lengthen the leash a bit and let them have some parent-free time to create, alone or with their friends, their own tales of their own.