Reading about raccoons I get the impression that many Canadians and Northern Americans feel similarly about raccoons to the way Australians feel about possums. They are pests! They eat everything you don't want them to eat. They play havoc in your garden and on your roof, but like possums, they look cute and do have some endearing features. Watch this short video and you will hear what some of those are. Unfortunately I also read that they are called 'trash pandas'. Is that like our 'bin chickens'?
Raccoons feature as characters in a large number of picture books because they look the way they do and the mask adds to their intrigue and subterfuge. Get reading...
Probably the most famous of the picture book raccoons is Chester, the star of
The Kissing Hand, by Audrey Penn. This book and its myriad of sequels highlights issues that young children deal with, but because they are raccoons and not children, the children experience similar fears vicariously and are better able to take the advice on board. There is a toy of Chester and our toy gets to visit the preschool often to soothe students with separation anxiety.
Similarly, Jim Arnosky's Raccoon on His Own allows young children to experience an adventure by paralleling the exciting-and often frightening-experience of a child's first adventure away from home through the eyes of a raccoon.
The Robber Raccoon by Lou Kuenzler and Julia Woolf is much newer. Here Rosie is a mischievous raccoon being chased by the police. Why?
School for Bandits by Hannah Shaw will make you smile. Ralph's parents are worried about him. How will Ralph ever become a great raccoon bandit like Grandpa Cutlass or Uncle Whiskers? It's time Ralph learned some bad manners . . . at Bandit School.
Secret Pizza Party by Adam Rubin and Daniel Salmieri is a big hit in our library. Not sure if it is pizza, secrets or the raccoon but it is worth searching out.
The Littlest Bandit by Ali Pye appeals to my readers because here the littlest of the raccoons is the hero of the day.
Hungry Roscoe by David Plant is a story with a twist. Most animals long to get out of the zoo. Roscoe, however, is set on getting in. Fresh, juicy fish, ripe and shiny vegetables, and most importantly, regular feeding hours - what more could a hungry critter want?
Lucy in the City by Julie Dillimuth and Laura Wood is a story designed to develop children's spatial thinking skills, so here the reader gets to help Lucy navigate her way home.
Hunter's Best Friend at School by Laura Malone Elliott and Lynn Munsinger is a great story about the perils of friendship, peer pressure and mischief-making.
Mine! by Frederica Muia is a nearly textless joy about a greedy raccoon who hoards everything for herself.
Because we are in Australia and do not have raccoons there isn't an abundance of nonfiction texts about raccoons on the shelves. This, Raccoons by Kate Riggs is the best though as it explains the appearance, behaviour, and habitat of the ring-tailed North American mammals and allows our students to compare them to our possums.
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