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    A Boy Called Bat
    A Boy Called Bat
    A Boy Called Bat
    Ebook127 pages1 hour

    A Boy Called Bat

    By Elana K. Arnold and Charles Santoso

    4/5

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    About this ebook

    The first book in a funny, heartfelt, and irresistible young middle grade series starring an unforgettable young boy on the autism spectrum.

    For Bixby Alexander Tam (nicknamed Bat), life tends to be full of surprises—some of them good, some not so good. Today, though, is a good-surprise day. Bat’s mom, a veterinarian, has brought home a baby skunk, which she needs to take care of until she can hand him over to a wild-animal shelter.

    But the minute Bat meets the kit, he knows they belong together. And he’s got one month to show his mom that a baby skunk might just make a pretty terrific pet.

    "This sweet and thoughtful novel chronicles Bat’s experiences and challenges at school with friends and teachers and at home with his sister and divorced parents. Approachable for younger or reluctant readers while still delivering a powerful and thoughtful story" (from the review by Brightly, which named A Boy Called Bat a best book of the year).

    Elana K. Arnold's Bat trilogy is a proven winner in the home and classroom—kids love these short illustrated young middle grade books. The trilogy is A Boy Called Bat, Bat and the Waiting Game, and Bat and the End of Everything.

    LanguageEnglish
    PublisherHarperCollins
    Release dateMar 14, 2017
    ISBN9780062445841
    Author

    Elana K. Arnold

    ELANA K. ARNOLD completed her M.A. in Creative Writing/Fiction at the University of California, Davis. She grew up in Southern California, where she was lucky enough to have a family who let her read as many books as she wanted. She is the author of several young adult novels as well as the middle-grade novels The Question of Miracles and Far from Fair. She lives in Long Beach, California, with her husband, two children, and a menagerie of animals. Visit her website at www.elanakarnold.com.

    Read more from Elana K. Arnold

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    Reviews for A Boy Called Bat

    4/5

    110 ratings12 reviews

    What our readers think

    Readers find this title to be a heartwarming story about a boy named Bat and his special bond with a skunk. The book explores themes of kindness and good intentions, and many readers relate to the character's struggles. Overall, it is a cool and nice book that resonates with readers who have similar issues.

    What did you think?

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    Review must be at least 10 words

    • 2/5

      Oct 22, 2018

      For Bixby Alexander Tam (nicknamed Bat), life tends to be full of surprises--some of them good, some not so good. Today, though, is a good-surprise day. Bat's mom, a veterinarian, has brought home a baby skunk, which she needs to take care of until she can hand him over to a wild-animal shelter. But the minute Bat meets the kit, he knows they belong together. And he's got one month to show his mom that a baby skunk might just make a pretty terrific pet. Grades 3-4 (autistic boy)
    • 5/5

      Aug 9, 2021

      Its a cool book bat has alot of issues like i do but its a very nice book!
    • 5/5

      Nov 14, 2020

      It was such a good book! Bat is a sweet, kind kid who has good intentions but doesn't always get things quite right. Then one day, his mom brings home a skunk kit from the vet clinic and Bat quickly bonds with the skunk and begs his mom to let him keep it.
    • 5/5

      Mar 15, 2020

      It was my schools one school one book ⚡️⚡️⚡️⚡️⚡️⚡️⚡️❤️??????its fire??????
    • 3/5

      Sep 26, 2023

      A young boy really wants to keep the skunk kit he discovers, despite his mother's objections.

      I read this book over a year ago and forgot to write a review of it so this one won't be particularly good. I remember really wanting to read this book for years once it came out but never getting around to it for various reasons. Once I finally got to it, I was disappointed. I found the main character to be kind of obnoxious -- I'm not sure if maybe listening to the audiobook's narrator did that or if it's the way the character was written. I understand he was meant to be neurodivergent, but I didn't think this was a great portrayal of that in my humble opinion. I felt like he came across as bratty, which is unlike any neurodivergent child I've interacted with over the years.

      The book was okay enough overall, but not enough for me to want to continue on with the series.
    • 4/5

      Jan 25, 2021

      This is a sweet and charming story that helps children understand how someone on the autistic spectrum views the world. It's a must for every K to 5 library.
    • 3/5

      Mar 16, 2019

      A Boy Called Bat is a fun, engaging and heartwarming book for middle grades to read. This book encourages diversity and empathy without the story being directly about the fact that Bat has autism. This is all done in a way that is easy for kids to understand and makes Bat very easy to relate to about how he sees the world differently than others. This a perfect book to teach new vocabulary and also to bring awareness to students that differences are what make us unique.
    • 4/5

      Jul 24, 2018

      Bat sees the world a little differently than everyone else - he likes rules and when things are the same as he plans for them to be. When Bat's mom brings home a baby skunk, Bat is determined that he is going to look after the skunk. With the help of his teacher and a new friend he contacts a skunk expert and learns more about how to take care of Thor.

      Super cute - and an interesting look at the autism spectrum
    • 4/5

      Jul 6, 2018

      A very cute book! It's an easy read, and not too dramatic, focusing mostly on daily life for Bat and what's going on inside of his head. Bat is on the autism spectrum, but this is mentioned only on the back cover of the book, in the summary. Since he's telling the story, his autism is presented as his normal way of functioning and he goes through his day, dealing with family and friend dynamics and activities that any other kid might understand or relate to.

      A good book for any young audience, unless someone is out for something more adventurous and exciting.
    • 5/5

      Sep 28, 2017

      Bixby Alexander Tam likes his nickname "Bat." He aspires to become a vet one day like his mom, but in the meantime, one of the things he likes to do best is read about animals. This is good, because he doesn't have any friends of his own age, although his teacher and one of his mom's co-workers are very good with him. Its difficult for Bat who has autism to understand what people mean sometimes, to be patient with them and to remember phrases that are polite to say. When his mom brings home an orphaned baby skunk, Bat jumps at the chance to help take care of him until he is old enough to be released to a skunk rescue society. But having a skunk in the house isn't just the thing for everyone, like Bat's big sister. This is a wonderful book from the unique perspective of a boy on the autism spectrum. 1st in a series, this 198 page book would appeal to boys and girls, grades 3-5.
    • 3/5

      Jul 17, 2017

      This is a delightful, quick read about a boy who is autistic. His name is Bixty Alexander Tam, aka, Bat. When his veterinarian mother brought home a baby skunk whose mother was killed, Bat immediately took a liking to the bat baby. He carried him in a sling wrapped round his neck and enclosed within is the baby skunk.

      Warning him not to get too attached to the baby bat, Bat cannot help but take the responsibility of taking care of the baby animal seriously.

      High marks both for the way in which autisum is portrayed, and the sheer wonderment of a boy and his unusual pet.
    • 5/5

      Mar 20, 2017

      Bixby Alexander Tam is a young boy who likes to go by the nickname Bat. Bat loves animals and knows all kinds of facts about animals. Bat's mom is a veterinarian and Bat would like to be a veterinarian just like her some day. However, Bat is still in grade school and must focus on that. It is hard for Bat to make friends since he doesn't like to look people in the eye and likes to flap his arms. One day, Bat's mom brings home an orphaned baby skunk that she plans on taking care of before giving it to a rescue. Bat is amazed by the baby skunk and helps him mom with it's care. Bat doesn't want to give up the skunk so soon and tries to find a way to convince his mom to keep his new friend; and as Bat learns to love a skunk, he may learn to open up to new human friends as well.


      A Boy Called Bat is a fun, engaging and heartwarming middle grade read. Most of all, this book encourages diversity and empathy without the story line being directly about the fact the Bat is on the autism spectrum. In fact, that is not even mentioned within the book, what is mentioned is how Bat perceives the world, how he handles emotions, interacts with other people and his intense love for animals. This is all done in a way that is easy for kids to understand and makes Bat very easy to relate to. I loved that Bat was coupled with a skunk, an animal that most people do not like very much; together, as Bat learns to take care of the infant skunk and convince his mother to keep the skunk for longer, Bat learns skills in how to relate with people. All of the characters in the book were equally as well thought out, though we see most of the people as Bat sees them, everyone surrounding Bat cares for him and wants the best for him. Overall, a great middle grade read, especially for animal lovers.

      This book was received for free in return for an honest review.

    Book preview

    A Boy Called Bat - Elana K. Arnold

    CHAPTER 1

    After School

    Bixby Alexander Tam stared into the refrigerator, trying to decide what to eat. He knew that the longer he took, the more energy he was wasting, and Bixby Alexander Tam did not like to waste energy. But he also didn’t like to eat leftovers, or cheese that had to be sliced, or any of the yogurt flavors in the fridge.

    Bat, close the refrigerator door! yelled his sister, Janie, from the kitchen table, where she sat cutting out pictures from a pile of old magazines. Janie, he was sure, had eaten all the lemon and vanilla yogurts. And she knew he only liked the creamy ones, not the fruit-on-the-bottom kind.

    Bat was what almost everyone called Bixby Alexander Tam, for a couple of reasons: first, because the initials of his name—B, A, and T—spelled Bat.

    But there were maybe other reasons. Bat’s sensitive hearing, for one. He didn’t like loud sounds. What was so unusual about that? And if Janie’s old earmuffs happened to make an outstanding muffling device, was it that funny if he liked to wear them?

    There was also the way he sometimes flapped his hands, when he was nervous or excited or thinking about something interesting. Some of the kids at school seemed to think that was hilarious. And, of course, bats have wings, which they flap.

    So, between the initials and the earmuffs and the hand flapping, the nickname had stuck.

    And, truthfully, Bat didn’t mind. Animals were his very favorite thing. Better even than vanilla yogurt.

    Janie, did you eat all the vanillas?

    "Not all of them, Janie answered. She curved the scissors around the bent arm of the boy she was cutting out. I saw you eat at least two or three of them."

    "Did you eat the last vanilla?"

    Yes, said Janie, and with a final snip, she freed the shiny paper boy. It was delicious.

    Of course it was delicious. All the vanillas were delicious.

    Well, said Bat, closing the refrigerator door a little harder than he needed to, now there is nothing to eat.

    "I wouldn’t say there’s nothing to eat," teased Janie. She knew she wasn’t supposed to tease him.

    "Well, I would, said Bat. Nothing I want to eat."

    Then you must not be very hungry.

    On Tuesdays and Thursdays, after Mom drove Bat home from school, she had to go back to work for a couple more hours. It was Janie’s job to watch Bat. Thursdays were the hardest, and today was a Thursday.

    Make me a snack, Bat demanded.

    "Make me a snack, what?"

    "Make me a snack now."

    No, said Janie. "Make me a snack, please."

    I don’t have to say please, said Bat. Making me an after-school snack is part of your job. You don’t have to say please to get someone to do their job.

    You do if you want them to do it well, said Janie, but she pushed back the magazines and stood up.

    Bat felt his elbows beginning to bend. He felt his hands getting ready to flap. "I’m hungry," he said again. His voice sounded higher.

    Okay, okay, said Janie. Don’t fly away. I’ll fix you peanut butter and jelly.

    Without the crusts, Bat said. He felt better already.

    CHAPTER 2

    Bat’s Cave

    After finishing his snack, Bat went to his room. Bat’s room was his favorite place in the whole world. In his room, Bat felt completely comfortable. Here, he knew where everything was. If something was in the wrong place, it was his own fault, because no one messed with his room but him.

    In the rest of their small house, Bat’s mom and sister knew to put anything that needed to go to Bat’s room in one of three baskets: his clean laundry basket, his book basket, and his miscellaneous stuff basket.

    Miscellaneous was a great word, and one of Bat’s favorites. It meant all the extra stuff, so the miscellaneous stuff basket could have almost anything (except clean laundry and books) in it.

    When the baskets were full, Mom placed them in the hallway outside Bat’s door. He took them into his room and unloaded them himself.

    Once, Mom had tried to reorganize his dresser drawers because she thought he could use some help. After, when he was so upset he couldn’t even speak, she said, "I’m sorry, Bat, but your drawers were just a mess. Your hats mixed in with pants and sweaters. I don’t know how you find anything."

    But the drawers weren’t a mess. Not at all. If Mom had looked more closely, she would have seen that his knit caps were in with his long pants and his sweaters, because he always wore those things together on cold days.

    Shorts and T-shirts were in another drawer because he wore those things together on warm days.

    "But what about this drawer?" Mom had asked, pulling open the bottom right drawer, which held a pair of pants, a wool sweater, and two T-shirts.

    Those are the things I never wear, Bat told her when he finally calmed down. Because they’re itchy and uncomfortable.

    Then Mom cut the tags out of the T-shirts and Bat moved them to his warm-days drawer. After that, Mom left him to his own devices, as she liked to say.

    Once in his room, Bat closed the door. There was a sign on the outside that said Please Knock. Janie had written it for him, because her writing was much neater than his. Janie could do all the hand things better than Bat: write things, cut things out, smooth peanut butter on bread.

    The clock told Bat that Mom would be home in forty-six minutes. Mom was a veterinarian, which was what Bat intended to be, too, one day. Mostly she treated cats and dogs, but sometimes she had unusual patients. Once she had taken a BB pellet out of the wing of a hawk. The pellet had broken one of the bones and Mom had done surgery to mend it. She’d brought home X-rays to show Bat.

    Why would anyone shoot a hawk? Bat had asked. Do you think they were going to eat it?

    No, said Mom. Sometimes people do stupid things. She had been very angry about the hawk, angrier even than when Bat and Janie got into loud screaming fights. Seeing the X-ray of the hawk’s broken wing made Bat angry, too.

    But his room always made him feel better. It had a roll-down bamboo window shade and a fine closet full of shelves and a pull-out trundle

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