Freddy and the Men from Mars facts for kids
First edition cover showing Freddy in detective disguise and the phony Martians
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| Author | Walter R. Brooks |
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| Illustrator | Kurt Wiese |
| Country | U.S. |
| Language | American English |
| Series | Freddy the Pig |
| Genre | Children's novel, Comic novel |
| Published | 1954 Knopf 2002 The Overlook Press |
| Media type | Print (hardback, paperback) |
| Pages | 244 (pp. 3-246) |
| ISBN | 1-58567-269-6 (Overlook Press hardback) |
| OCLC | 50174198 |
| LC Class | PZ7.B7994 Fqm 2002 |
| Preceded by | 'The Collected Poems of Freddy the Pig |
| Followed by | 'Freddy and the Baseball Team From Mars |
| (1954 hardback) | |
Freddy and the Men from Mars is a funny children's book from 1954. It's the 22nd story in the popular Freddy the Pig series. The book was written by American author Walter R. Brooks and drawn by Kurt Wiese. In this adventure, Freddy the pig and his animal friends meet some fake Martians, some real Martians, and a tricky circus owner. It's a tale of mystery and fun!
Contents
Plot Summary: Freddy's Martian Adventure
Freddy's Big Mystery: Are Martians Real?
The story begins when Freddy reads a newspaper article. It says that a man named Mr. Garble saw a flying saucer. It also says that Martians are now on display at Mr. Boomschmidt's circus. Mr. Garble is an old enemy of Freddy's. But Mr. Boom is a good friend. So, Freddy decides to visit the circus. He wants to warn Mr. Boom about Mr. Garble's strange claims.
Investigating the Circus Martians
Mr. Garble only lets a few people see the Martians. So, Freddy's friend, Mrs. Peppercorn, sneaks in. She sees the Martians. They have beards and wear red costumes and gloves. They also walk strangely, "like a dog walking on its hind legs." One Martian introduces himself as S-i-m-g-h-k (with a silent "i"). Oddly, Simghk knows about Freddy's poems. He praises Mrs. Peppercorn, who then shares her own very long poem. The Martians get bored and fall asleep!
Later, Freddy investigates more. He tricks the "Martians" into saying Mars is closer to the sun than Earth. This makes Freddy realize they are fakes! But Freddy doesn't tell Mr. Boom right away. He worries it would hurt the circus's reputation. Freddy believes that sometimes, when things look bad, you just need to "stir it up good."
The Case of the Missing Chicks
One night, Willy, the circus boa constrictor, is staying at Freddy's farm. Charles and Henrietta, two chickens, wake them up. They accuse Willy of taking their chicks! Freddy quickly switches into detective mode. He checks the chicken house door. It's a revolving door, too small for Willy. Freddy gets stuck and squeals loudly. This wakes up everyone in the barnyard.
The farm dogs follow a rat smell and find a hole. Willy the snake slithers in. He comes out with Simon the rat, who is Freddy's old enemy. They capture Simon. Soon after, Mr. Garble announces one of his "Martians" is missing. Garble also reveals he bought the land next to the Bean farm. He demands that Uncle Ben Bean remove his spaceship. Freddy figures out that Garble's fake Martians are actually rats! He threatens to expose Garble's trick. This forces Garble to let the spaceship stay.
Tricking the Fakes and Meeting Real Aliens
Freddy comes up with a clever plan. He uses a rabbit to replace the captured fake Martian rat. The other rats in the circus aren't fooled. But Jinx the cat stays in their cage, making them cooperate. The crowd doesn't notice the difference. So, Freddy replaces all the "Martian" rats with his "Martian" rabbits.
Freddy then investigates Garble's property. An ex-burglar helps him. But Garble traps them in his cellar. Suddenly, real Martians land on Earth! They are pear-shaped, have three eyes, and four arms. They are very friendly. They came to see the fake Martians and Uncle Ben's spaceship. They can't talk to humans. But then, they discover that spiders, like Mr. and Mrs. Webb, can understand them!
A Space Adventure and New Friends
Freddy finds the missing chicks in Garble's cellar. He tricks Garble by spreading strawberry jam on the burglar and shouting for help. The burglar escapes, thinking Freddy has too. The real Martians enjoy several joyrides in their spaceship. They land at the circus and are amused by the fake Martians.
They soon realize Freddy still needs help. So, the sheriff, the Martians, and the circus people go to Garble's house. They free Freddy and the chicks. Garble escapes to join his rat friends. Rats are hard to get rid of. So, Freddy uses ten sacks of rotten onions to spoil the food at Garble's place. The rats get angry. They invade Uncle Ben's spaceship and eat all the food inside. The Bean farm animals surround the spaceship. But the rats accidentally make it lift off! The rats are rescued from space much later. Sadly, Uncle Ben's spaceship is lost. The real Martians stay with the circus. They give saucer rides and have a great time.
Characters in the Story
Freddy the pig lives on the Bean farm. He has many animal friends, including cats, dogs, cows, chickens, and rabbits. There are also many birds and insects. Several of these animals help Freddy in this book. Simon is a mean and tricky rat. He leads a gang of rats and often tries to get revenge on Freddy. Mr. Garble is another enemy of Freddy's. Freddy had already outsmarted him in an earlier book, Freddy and the Bean Home News.
Illustrations
The book has 42 black and white drawings by Kurt Wiese. These are pen and ink drawings. There are also special drawings inside the front and back covers (called endpapers). A frontispiece is a picture at the very beginning of the book. The full-color cover shows Freddy dressed as a detective with the fake Martians. Each chapter starts with a half-page drawing. A full-page drawing is also placed near an important event in each chapter.
