Can Anyone Outclass Fox in Cleverness?

The other day, I sat back and enjoyed Herbie Goes Bananas, a film starring my all-time favorite vehicle, that lovable little Volkswagen beetle with a mind of his own. When I glanced at the cover of Fox Outfoxed, part of the James Marshall series for early readers about a self-involved fox who's always getting himself into trouble, I couldn't help but think of Herbie. The picture is of Fox literally flying down the sidewalk in a homemade car painted red with an angry, sharp-toothed mouth. It would seem that Fox is in a race. It soon becomes apparent that in this small-time tournament, he is not Jim Douglas, Herbie's talented driver, but Peter Thorndike, Jim's nemesis, who resorts to extremely dubious tactics in order to win races.

In A Faster Fox, after watching his friends building cars so they can race them for a grand prize of a candy store shopping spree, Fox decides to build his own vehicle. His little sister Louise offers to lend a helping paw, and at first he shoos her away, but then he realizes that with some ingenuity and some sisterly aid, that shopping spree might just be within easy reach. Fox is a real twerp in this story, though he's worse in the third tale. His unethical behavior here is rewarded accordingly, though, so children won't likely be inspired to attempt cheating based on his example. In fact, I would say his experience is a very effective deterrent, though the lesson is imparted with humor, particularly in the droll illustrations, rather than heavy-handedness.

Comic Fox makes me sad. Fox is extremely fond of comic books, as we see in the picture in which he sits surrounded by massive piles of them. He is unmoved when his mom teases him about his obsession, but then his pretty neighbor Lulu catches him out front reading his ten favorite comics. And her teasing is a little harder to take, so he pretends he was just on his way to toss them out, leading her to snatch them, supposedly for her little brother. Fox learns a lesson about the value of swallowing his pride while discovering he might not be the cleverest trickster in the neighborhood.

The book ends with Fox Outfoxed, in which Fox, wearing a hideous homemade costume, is forced to let Louise tag along with him and his friends while they go trick-or-treating. Louise is the trickster here, and she gives him the scare of his life after he ditches her on a park bench. My favorite aspect of this story is Louise's costume. She's dressed as a pumpkin, and all we can see is her legs, arms and tail. She's absolutely adorable, especially when she's sitting on that bench, as forlorn as a pumpkin can look. What I don't like is the way Fox's friends goad him into mistreating Louise on their trick-or-treating expedition. Fox is a jerk in this story, but his Dexter and Carmen are worse.

Fox is a sly young devil, but in this book, his tricks backfire on him on three different occasions. While his antics are amusing, they also carry a warning that children would be wise to heed. Even the cleverest among us can sometimes be outfoxed.