America's best-selling outdoor humorist for adults has a secret following: middle-grade and young-adult readers.
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Never Cry "Arp!" is a lively collection of twelve stories about young Pat's misadventures in the Great American Wilderness.
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All the McManus regulars are here: Crazy Eddie Muldoon, the best friend everybody wishes they had (and everybody's mother wishes they didn't); Rancid Crabtree, the good-hearted, if gamey, woodsman; Pat's skunk dog, Strange, who lives up to his name; and Pat's pal, Retch Sweeney, who does, too.
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This is a book for kids who love to start fishing at 4 a.m. (at least they say they do) or for those who prefer to experience the mighty outdoors in the safety of their homes.
Booklist
"McManus is a natural storyteller, with a voice so strong that readers will be hard-pressed not to believe his tales."
New York Times Book Review
"Everybody should read Patrick McManus."
(Now, everybody can.)
Kirkus Reviews
"[McManus's] stories are not merely amusing, they are laugh-out-loud, stomach-clutching, tears-rolling-down-your-cheeks hilarious. . . . This collection is as welcome as lemonade in the desert."