The Cricket in Times Square (Chester Cricket and His Friends)
by George Selden
from Square Fish
One night, the sounds of New York City--the rumbling of subway trains, thrumming of automobile tires, hooting of horns, howling of brakes, and the babbling of voices--is interrupted by a sound that even Tucker Mouse, a jaded inhabitant of Times Square, has never heard before. Mario, the son of Mama and Papa Bellini, proprietors of the subway-station newsstand, had only heard the sound once. What was this new, strangely musical chirping? None other than the mellifluous leg-rubbing of the somewhat disoriented Chester Cricket from Connecticut. Attracted by the irresistible smell of liverwurst, Chester had foolishly jumped into the picnic basket of some unsuspecting New Yorkers on a junket to the country. Despite the insect's wurst intentions, he ends up in a pile of dirt in Times Square.
Mario is elated to find Chester. He begs his parents to let him keep the shiny insect in the newsstand, assuring his bug-fearing mother that crickets are harmless, maybe even good luck. What ensues is an altogether captivating spin on the city mouse/country mouse story, as Chester adjusts to the bustle of the big city. Despite the cricket's comfortable matchbox bed (with Kleenex sheets); the fancy, seven-tiered pagoda cricket cage from Sai Fong's novelty shop; tasty mulberry leaves; the jolly company of Tucker Mouse and Harry Cat; and even his new-found fame as "the most famous musician in New York City," Chester begins to miss his peaceful life in the Connecticut countryside. The Cricket in Times Square--a Newbery Award runner-up in 1961--is charmingly illustrated by the well-loved Garth Williams, and the tiniest details of this elegantly spun, vividly told, surprisingly suspenseful tale will stick with children for years and years. Make sure this classic sits on the shelf of your favorite child, right next to The Wind in the Willows. (Ages 9 to 12)
Chester makes a third friend, too. It is a boy, Mario, who rescues Chester from a dusty corner of the subway station and brings him to live in the safety of his parents’ newsstand. He hopes at first to keep Chester as a pet, but Mario soon understands that the cricket is more than that. Because Chester has a hidden talent and no one—not even Chester himself—realizes that the little country cricket may just be able to teach even the toughest New Yorkers a thing or two.
Harry Kitten and Tucker Mouse (Chester Cricket and His Friends)
by George Selden
from Farrar, Straus and Giroux (BYR)
Chester Cricket's New Home
by George Selden
from Yearling
Crash!  One minute Chester Cricket is calmly sifting inside his stump house.  The next thing he knows, the roof is collapsing upon him!  Left without a home, Chester is forced to move in with one neighbor after another in Tucker's Countryside.  Nothing works out quite right--John Robin throws loud all-night parties, Henry and Emily Chipmunk are too tidy, and Donald Dragonfly's twig is much too small for both of them.  Even his good pal Walter Water Snake can't help joking about Chester's predicament.  All of his friends have found a happy home.  Will Chester ever find a place to call his own?
Chester Cricket's Pigeon Ride (Chester Cricket and His Friends)
by George Selden
from Farrar, Straus and Giroux (BYR)
The Genie of Sutton Place
by George Selden
from Farrar, Straus and Giroux
Tucker's Countryside
by George Selden
from Yearling
Chester Cricket needs help. That's the message John Robin carries into the Times Square subway station where Harry Cat and Tucker Mouse live. Quickly, Chester's good friends set off on the long, hard journey to the Old Meadow, where all is not well.
Houses are creeping closer. Bulldozers and construction are everywhere. It looks like Chester and his friends' home will be ruined and the children of the town won't have a place to play. Harry Cat and Tucker Mouse are used to the city life. Now they need to find a place to stay and good things to eat. And most of all they must think of a plan--a special plan to help their friends.
Un Grillo En Time Square: Spanish paperback edition of The Cricket in Times Square (Chester Cricket and His Friends)
by George Selden
from Farrar, Straus and Giroux (BYR)
Chester makes a third friend, too. It is a boy, Mario, who rescues Chester from a dusty corner of the subway station and brings him to live in the safety of his parents’ newsstand. He hopes at first to keep Chester as a pet, but Mario soon understands that the cricket is more than that. Because Chester has a hidden talent and no one—not even Chester himself—realizes that the little country cricket may just be able to teach even the toughest New Yorkers a thing or two.
Harry Cat's Pet Puppy
The Old Meadow (Chester Cricket and His Friends)
by George Selden
from Farrar, Straus and Giroux (BYR)
The final adventure of Chester Cricket and friends
Black-and-white pictures
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