We Can't All Be Rattlesnakes
Sale price
$674
Chapter Book · Ages 8–11 · 2009

We Can't All Be Rattlesnakes

By Patrick Jennings

A captive snake plots escape, defying her captor's expectations.

3.9/5 Goodreads · 757 ratings
144 pages
$6.99Save 4%

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Bookroo's summary

Trapped in a terrarium by a boy named Gunnar, a clever gopher snake, misnamed Crusher, refuses to be a pet. Mistaken for a male, she plans a daring escape, possibly with her live mouse companion, Breakfast. Will she outsmart her captor and find freedom?

From the publisher

I am a snake. No, not a rattlesnake. I just look like one. I’m a gopher snake.One day an oily, filthy, fleshy human child crossed my path. As luck would have it, he knew the difference between a gopher snake and a rattlesnake. He has imprisoned me in a terrarium. His name is Gunnar. He calls me Crusher. He thinks I’m male. I’m not.He dropped in a dead mouse and hoped I’d eat it. I buried it. He then dropped in a live one, which he called “Breakfast.” I didn’t lay a coil on it.Gunnar thinks I’ll be his adoring pet. He’s wrong.In fact, I am planning my escape. I may take Breakfast with me.Crusher will charm readers in this entertaining, clever novel about a snake in captivity and how she turns the tables on her human captor.

At a glance
Format
Paperback
Pages
144
Reading age
8–11
Audience
Juvenile Reader
Lexile
560L
Themes & topics
Books about animalsBooks about petsBooks about mice, hamster, guinea pigs, etc.Books about reptiles and amphibians
For the grown-ups

The parent guide

What families may want to know

Every family reads differently. These are the concepts our editors noticed in this book — worth seeking out for some readers, worth knowing about for others. The list isn't exhaustive, but it's a spoiler-light head start.

Language

This book includes multiple inclusions of profanity, including, "Good God!" and "God, Dad!", as well as saying the father and son were cursing while playing video games.

Sex

This book includes an instance of a boy getting undressed and the snake says, "It was then I learned he was male—what they call a boy."

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The fine print

Book details

Reading levels
ATOS
~3.7
F&P level
~N
Publication
Published
October 4, 2011
First published
January 1, 2009
Publisher
HarperCollins
Edition
Language
English
Type
Chapter Book
Identifiers
ISBN
9780060821173

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