After squiring Lotar back to his mom, Ragweed finds himself on a second rescue mission after meeting Poppy, who has obliviously danced herself into a live-catch trap. 'Picking up where Ragweed (1999), chronologically the first book in the series, left off, the footloose golden mouse with the single earring again finds himself on a train-though not for long, as Lotar, a large but very young and “double-down dumb” raccoon, climbs into the boxcar and is separated from his mother when it begins moving. A must-read choice for Poppy fans.' -Carolyn Phelan. In telling how Ragweed and Poppy become friends, this seventh volume in the Tales of Dimwood Forest series serves as a bridge between Ragweed (1999), a prequel, and Poppy (1995), the first-published book in the series. Floca's pencil drawings illustrate the story. Avi handles the large cast of familiar and new characters with ease, while pacing the narrative for maximum enjoyment. In the story’s climax, Ragweed, Poppy and her family, Lotar and his mother, the child and her parents, three men, and an excitable dog converge for an amusing, chaotic scene. After he leaves to seek help from her family, a girl finds Poppy and decides to keep her as a pet. Near a “human house,” he hears a cry for help and finds Poppy, a deer mouse, caught in a metal box trap. Tough-talking but soft-hearted, Ragweed helps reunite Lotar with his mother and then sets off happily on his own. 'Ragweed, a golden mouse, is riding the rails when Lotar, a frightened little raccoon, climbs into his boxcar. As for that annoying raccoon, he keeps getting in the way.Purchase: IndieBound | Amazon | Barnes & NobleĪ Kirkus Reviews 10 Top Middle-Grade Summer Reads The story of Ragweed comes to Poppy's aid, and how Poppy comes to his, is how their rousing and fateful friendship begins. When he asks the mouse’s name, she replies, “Poppy.” Following the sound of the voice, he finds a cage with a deer mouse trapped inside. Ragweed is now ready to strike off on his own, but it’s not long before he hears a cry for help. Though Ragweed doesn’t really want to help the raccoon, by doing so he winds up in Dimwood Forest. On his journey, he meets Lotar, a young and bothersome raccoon who has lost his mother. How did Ragweed and Poppy meet and become friends? This book tells their hilarious story! Adventurous golden mouse Ragweed is on a freight train leaving the city of Amperville. Ragweed and Poppy is one of the '10 Top Middle-Grade Summer Reads,' according to Kirkus Reviews! The first new book about Poppy in more than ten years, from Newbery Medal-winning author Avi with illustrations throughout by Caldecott Medal-winning artist Brian Floca.

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