Paws Off, Cheddarface!

Paws Off, Cheddarface!
Publication
Series	Geronimo Stilton
Italian title	Giù le zampe, faccia di fontina!
ISBN	(0439559685) (9780439559683)
Number in the series	3 (Original) 6 (Scholastic reprint)
Date of publication	2000 (Original) 2004 (Scholastic)
Number of pages	113
Illustrators	Larry Keys
Chronology
Previous book	Four Mice Deep in the Jungle
Next book	Red Pizzas for a Blue Count

Paws Off, Cheddarface! is the third book of the Geronimo Stilton series, and sixth book of the Scholastic's Geronimo Stilton series.

Description

It was the strangest thing... all across New Mouse City, rodents kept telling me I'd done things I had no memory of! I soon discovered why... there was a Geronimo look-alike out there, pretending to be me. He'd even fooled my sister Thea! And worst of all, he was trying to take over my newspaper. I had to find a way to strike back -- but how??

Plot

Warning! This article section contains major spoilers. Read on at your own discretion.

 

The book starts off with Geronimo getting whacked by an elderly mouse who claims that he stepped on her foot the other day and never apologized, an event that he strangely does not remember. Next, his friend Benny Bluewhiskers accosts him for "making fun of [him] at The Nibbler", a popular diner. After he thinks that Geronimo is fibbing when Geronimo tells him the truth, he declares that he's cutting his ties with him as a friend. Later that day, a gossip radio personality named Simon Squealer calls Geronimo up for a meeting on the air that Geronimo doesn't remember scheduling. After Geronimo Stilton is able to escape that call, a Samuel Stuffymouse from a Sweet Selects chocolate store calls to tell him that an order he made is ready and on its way to the Rodent's Gazette. Despite not at all recalling having made such an order, Geronimo has no other choice to pay an extremely expensive bill for an extremely expensive box of chocolates that he never asked for.

Later, as he's walking home, Geronimo sees an ad of him promoting a toilet called the Flusher Rat, which he once again doesn't remember doing. Almost immediately after, he is surrounded by reporters who show him a newspaper of himself openly boycotting books, claiming that TV is a better source. This scandal results in Geronimo's Press Club membership terminated. Once an exhausted Geronimo finally makes it home, he finds a slew of messages on his answering machine from mice who he either did or didn't know, who were gleeful or upset at him for things he doesn't recall doing.

Upon calling Thea, he also discovers to his horror that Thea has been fooled and has seen Geronimo do things that he normally wouldn't do. When he tells her that it was not in fact him who did that wheelie the other day, Thea makes an appointment for him with a psychiatrist, who theorizes that he may have split personality disorder, which doesn't help to soothe Geronimo's nerves. It doesn't take long afterward for them to discover that Geronimo apparently has a stage show later that evening, which they go to investigate. After the show, Geronimo chases the mouse impersonating him, discovering that his real identity is Sydney Starfur, an actor working for Sally Ratmousen.

Geronimo ends up oversleeping the next day, so he winds up late to work. Strangely enough, the barista at his local coffee shop and the newspaper vendor he frequents daily claim to have already seen him, which confuses him. Eventually he makes it to the The Rodent's Gazette, and to his horror finds that Sydney has successfully taken his place, deeming himself the "real Geronimo Stilton".

The real real Geronimo Stilton is kicked out of the Rodent's Gazette and shunned by everyone whose phone number he has. He also finds that the lock to his house has changed, leaving him homeless. Sydney Starfur has taken his place in every aspect of the life he worked to, the life he lived. With not much left to do after a futile one-sided shouting match with Starfur, Geronimo walks the streets of New Mouse City in the dark, alone.

The next day, Geronimo uses the last of his change to buy a newspaper, to discover to his horror that Sally Ratmousen had bought the Rodent's Gazette for dirt-cheap and fired all of the staff. This finally explains why Starfur had been hired by Sally in the first place. Geronimo's first move, he turns to call Thea and convinces her that he's the real Geronimo. Upon realizing, Thea invites Geronimo into her house to take a bath and eat breakfast as he tells her about his night of being homeless. She tearfully apologizes. Shortly after, Benjamin and Trap arrive, reconciling with Geronimo and offering to help him get the Rodent's Gazette back. During their brainstorming, they realize that giving Sally a taste of her own medicine just might be the solution to their problem, thus before Trap, a mouse about the same height and body shape as Sally, can even realize it, he's being dragged to Thea's favorite salon to be given a makeover.

The next day, the Stilton family puts their plan into action: while Benjamin distracts Sally with a supposed Sally Ratmousen fan club celebration, Trap infiltrates the Rodent's Gazette (now having been turned into the Daily Rat's head office) dressed as Sally. To make sure the real Sally doesn't interfere with the next phase of their plan, Trap rings up the security guard and tells him that "A mouse who looks exactly like [Trap as Sally] is on her way here" and that the guard should "tell her [Trap] is the real Ratmousen". This part is executed flawlessly, the only casualty being the security guard's back being used as a trampoline.

With Geronimo and Thea's help, Trap writes a new contract by the Daily Rat that returns the Rodent's Gazette as it was to Geronimo, declares Sally's workers will be given raises and free vacations to the Bahamas, and agrees to sponsor a weekly writing competition hosted by the Rodent's Gazette. Later, during a party the Daily Rat's employees are having (as organized by Trap as Sally), the real Sally returns to the Daily Rat with Starfur while onboard a real army tank. Within seconds she is horrified and brought to a stupor with the things Trap did using her name that she doesn't recall doing, and with that, her scheme to acquire the Rodent's Gazette is foiled.

Some time passes, and everything listed on the contract has been carried out: Sally's employees are now being paid better and their vacation in the Bahamas has concluded. The writing contest has been a huge success and Geronimo is receiving a lot of stories to read for the contest. Syndey Starfur has since apologized for his involvement in the identity theft scheme and has offered them tickets to his show as compensation. However, with all the seminars and stories and events Geronimo has to go to, it does get exhausting for the real Geronimo alone to keep track of. Perhaps having a second copy of himself wouldn't be so bad in this case after all...

Trivia

• Geronimo mentions Mel Gibsqueak, a parody of Mel Gibson.
• In the Scholastic translation, when Sydney Starfur sings an opera, Geronimo guesses he is singing in Italian. This is most likely a reference to the original series, which was Italian.
• This book was adapted into an episode of Geronimo Stilton cartoon, though instead of trying to take over the Rodent's Gazette, Sally simply hired the Geronimo Stilton look-alike to ruin Geronimo's reputation. This was also only one of 2 books to be adapted into an episode of the TV series, the other being The Mummy With No Name.
• The mice Franz Ratka, Edgar Allan Paw, Agatha Ratsie, and Chews Dickens are clear parodies of Franz Kafka, Edgar Allan Poe, Agatha Christie, and Charles Dickens