Posted on by TracyC

Tarot Says Beware

Herculeah Jones Mysteries

HJTarotBeware

Tarot Says Beware by Betsy Byars, 1995.

Madame Rosa is a fortune teller and one of Herculeah’s neighbors.  Herculeah has been taking care of Madame Rosa’s pet parrot, Tarot, when she goes out of town.  One day, Herculeah notices that Tarot has gotten loose and is sitting on the porch, so she goes to retrieve him.  When she takes the parrot back into the house, she doesn’t see Madame Rosa.  After investigating further, she finds Madame Rosa dead and calls her father, a police officer.

Herculeah is very upset about Madame Rosa’s death.  She had considered her a friend.  Even Meat said that he once consulted her for information about his father.  She told Meat that his father danced, and Meat’s mother was very angry when she found out because she never wanted Meat to know anything about her ex-husband.  She even said that she “could kill that woman.”  But, who would really want Madame Rosa dead, badly enough to murder her?  Was there someone else who didn’t like their fortune?  Did Madame Rosa know something that someone was afraid that she would tell?

It turns out that Herculeah’s mother holds an important clue.  Madame Rosa came to see her about a troubling client.  A woman visited Madame Rosa to ask if her son could kill someone.  The woman’s son had threatened her, and she wanted to know if he was capable of acting on his threats.  Madame Rosa had asked her to bring something that belonged to her son, and the woman brought her the knife that the son had used to threaten her.  That was when Madame Rosa had a vision of her own death.  It frightened her so much that she fainted, and when she woke up, the woman was gone.  Herculeah’s mother asked Madame Rosa what she’d like her to do, and Madame Rosa told her that she didn’t think anything could be done.  Later, Madame Rosa was murdered with a knife.

So, now Herculeah suspects that the woman’s son came and murdered Madame Rosa, but she has no idea who the woman or the son are.  Then, when Herculeah and Meat go to snoop around Madame Rosa’s house, Herculeah thinks that she sees Madame Rosa.  Is she a ghost, or could Madame Rosa really be alive?

The title of the book comes from the fact that Tarot the parrot always says “Beware” to strangers, but not to Madame Rosa herself.

The book is available to borrow for free online through Internet Archive (multiple copies).

Posted on by TracyC

Max, the Bad-Talking Parrot

Max, the Bad-Talking Parrot by Patricia Brennan Demuth, illustrated by Bo Zaunders, 1986.

Don’t worry, Max’s “bad” talk isn’t really that bad.

Max is a parrot who belongs to a woman named Tillie.  They live in a house that has been made into two apartments.  The woman who lives in the apartment above them is Mrs. Goosebump.  Mrs. Goosebump is Tillie’s friend, and Max likes her, too.

Because Mrs. Goosebump works the night shift in a toll booth, she always comes to see Tillie and Max in the morning, when her shift is over.  Max always greets her with one of his rhymes.  Everything Max says is a rhyme.

However, one day, as Max is dozing on Mrs. Goosebump’s shoulder during one of her visits, he thinks that he hears her calling him an ugly bird.  Max gets upset and returns to his cage, not ever saying goodbye to Mrs. Goosebump when she leaves.  He feels badly about the insult, and when Mrs. Goosebump visits later, he only gives her insulting rhymes, like, “Cupcake, bagel, cinnamon roll, Your brain’s as full as a donut hole!”

Mrs. Goosebump and Tillie have no idea why he’s so angry. The only thing that they can think to do is ignore him.

Later that night, a burglar breaks into Tillie’s apartment and starts stealing some of her things, including Max!  Max is scared, but by coincidence, the burglar stops to pay at Mrs. Goosebump’s tollbooth.  When Max recites some of his rhymes for her, she recognizes one of his usual rhymes and calls the police.

After Max is rescued, he finally tells Mrs. Goosebump why he was so angry, and Mrs. Goosebump explains that she actually said that he was “snugly”, not ugly.  With the misunderstanding cleared up, the two of them become friends again.  Max is also considered a hero for alerting Mrs. Goosebump about the robber.

When I was a kid, I thought that Max’s rhymes were funny, and the scene with the robber at the tollbooth is funny because Max tricks Mrs. Goosebump into believing that the burglar is insulting her before he says the rhyme that Mrs. Goosebump recognizes.  The book is also a good lesson about the importance of talking to people about what you’re feeling in order to clear up misunderstandings.

Posted on by TracyC

No One Noticed Ralph

No One Noticed Ralph by Bonnie Bishop, 1979.

Ralph is a parrot, living in an apartment with Mr. and Mrs. Muggs.  Ralph can whistle and talk, and he likes doing it because he enjoys the attention he gets from people when he does it.

He has certain times when he whistles, like when he wakes up Mr. and Mrs. Muggs in the morning, and certain words he says to get treats.  Sometimes, in the evenings, Mr. and Mrs. Muggs will light a fire in the fireplace and make popcorn, so Ralph will say, “Fire!” to remind them.

Ralph gets lonely when Mr. and Mrs. Muggs leave for work, and one day, he notices that they’ve left a window open.  He decides to fly outside and look for people to give him attention.

When he reaches the street, there are plenty of people, but they don’t pay attention to Ralph.  He tries whistling and using words he knows.  It has an effect on the people around him, but not what Ralph expects, and still no one notices him.

Then, Ralph sees an apartment on fire, and says, “Fire!”  It makes a man nearby notice the fire and call the fire department. The man who called the fire department realizes that Ralph is the one who yelled “Fire!” and calls him a hero.  Finally, Ralph gets attention!

Mr. and Mrs. Muggs return home to see everyone with Ralph and hear the story about how he became a hero.  Ralph is rewarded with a ride on the fire truck, his picture in the paper, and a lifetime supply of sesame seed crackers but it’s the attention he loves most.

I love this picture book and thought it was funny when I was a kid, when I had a pet bird myself.