Chester (Chester)

Chester (Chester)
Author(s)
Genre(s)
Age Range
4+
Release Date
September 01, 2007
ISBN
1554531403
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Chester is more than a picture book. It is a story told, and retold, by dueling author-illustrators.

Melanie Watt starts out with the story of a mouse in a house. Then Melanie's cat, Chester, sends the mouse packing and proceeds to cover the pages with rewrites from his red marker, and the gloves are off. Melanie and her mouse won't take Chester's antics lying down. And Chester is obviously a creative powerhouse with confidence to spare. Where will this war of the picture-book makers lead? Is it a one-way ticket to Chesterville, or will Melanie get her mouse production off the ground?

Chester is more than a picture book. It is a story told, and retold, by dueling author-illustrators.

Melanie Watt starts out with the story of a mouse in a house. Then Melanie's cat, Chester, sends the mouse packing and proceeds to cover the pages with rewrites from his red marker, and the gloves are off. Melanie and her mouse won't take Chester's antics lying down. And Chester is obviously a creative powerhouse with confidence to spare. Where will this war of the picture-book makers lead? Is it a one-way ticket to Chesterville, or will Melanie get her mouse production off the ground?

Editor reviews

2 reviews
Who's Writing This Book, Anyway?
(Updated: June 04, 2026)
Overall rating
 
5.0
Plot
 
5.0
Characters
 
N/A
Writing Style
 
N/A
Illustrations/Photos (if applicable)
 
N/A
Melanie Watt is writing a story about a mouse that lives in the country . . .UNTIL Chester, her self-absorbed cat takes over. Chester feels free to wield his red pen, hijacking the story and making it all about Chester. He sends the mouse packing rapidly, and now Chester lives in the story's house . . .UNTIL Melanie once again takes charge, returning the mouse to his home, along with a big dog with teeth. Chester is undaunted, however. With his red pen, he makes the dog a vegetarian, and returns the story to its rightful star: CHESTER. The power goes back and forth, making the reader wonder who could possibly win, until the ending-- which is absolutely perfect.

The story and illustrations both are absolutely hysterical and fresh; this might be my favorite picture book for fall 2007. It will appeal mightily to fans of "There's a Monster at the End of This Book" . . .or to anyone else, and will be a pleasure to read aloud at story time. Highest recommendation.
G
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