Official Rating: PG
In the BONE series, the rat creatures reference a monster called the Jekk, who comes and drags them away by their tails if they do not remove them. Who or what is this monster? It turns out that this boogeyman exists! He is also a bone, like Fone, Phoney, and Smiley, but he lived in the past. He's the legendary...Big Johnson Bone! When a tornado whirls him, his mule, and his recently acquired monkey to the Valley, he has to help some baby forest creatures rescue their parents from the rat creatures, their queen, and her ENORMOUS son. Will he succeed?
Good Parts: The rat creatures are the main bad guys in the story, but they also provide comic relief due to their stupidity. The baby animals of the valley are also adorable. Funny parts abound and the style is wonderful.
Violence: There are tons of battles with the rat creatures, and lots of Big Johnson Bone's stories deal with fights he has had with cave bears, prides of hungry mountain lions, etc. A dragon drops rocks on people's heads and breathes fire(finally). Lots of rat creature tails are cut off at the end.
Sexual Content: A "Valley of the Full-Figured Gals" and the secret mating rituals of the striped wood pixies are referenced, but never shown. (Editor’s note: the Valley of the Full-Figured Gals is replaced by the Valley of the All-You-Can-Eat Bratwurst Cabbage Buffet in some editions- see Tall Tales)
Language: There are lots of potty-humor jokes and references to the posterior such as "Kick[ing] some serious tail" and "you guys are a pain in the butt." The only bad word is the d—one. Threats of bashing heads in are also expressed.
Other: Big Johnson Bone cheats at cards and is a trapper, which disturbs some of the animals for a while. A porcupine burps the alphabet. A rat creature farts and several throw up.
Summary: "Stupid, Stupid Rat Tails" is an uproariously funny prequel to the main series! It also includes a bonus story which will be reviewed later. Score 9/10
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