Guts by Raina Telgemeier

From Goodreads, 

"Raina wakes up one night with a terrible upset stomach. Her mom has one, too, so it's probably just a bug. Raina eventually returns to school, where she's dealing with the usual highs and lows: friends, not-friends, and classmates who think the school year is just one long gross-out session. It soon becomes clear that Raina's tummy trouble isn't going away... and it coincides with her worries about food, school, and changing friendships. What's going on?

Raina Telgemeier once again brings us a thoughtful, charming, and funny true story about growing up and gathering the courage to face -- and conquer -- her fears."

Goodreads - Guts

Awards and Nominations: 

• Goodreads Choice Award Nominee for Middle Grade and Children's (2019)

A few weeks ago, school started back.  The first week is filled with getting to know students and them getting to know me.  We go over the rules and procedures, as well as expectations for the year.  I also talked about my classroom library and let students finally browse the shelves for a book.  Usually, the first book students get isn't "the one".  It's either too hard, too easy, or doesn't hold their attention.  I had multiple students ask about graphic novels.  I have mixed feelings about graphic novels.  They are great for kids who need the support of a picture, but they are holding students back from reading full chapter books.

Guts is a graphic novel about a girl named Raina who gets a stomach bug at the same time as her mom.  Raina eventually gets over the bug and school starts back, but she feels sick when she has to talk in front of the class.  Soon, Raina avoids eating foods because she fears it will make her sick.  Will Raina ever figure out what is wrong with her? 

This book had a big focus on getting over fears and anxiety.  But I thought the most important piece was when Raina started going to therapy.  She eventually tells her friends she is going to therapy and they shrug it off and tell her that's normal.  I have always been a very emotional human.  I wear my heart on my sleeve, take everything to heart, but I act tough as nails.  As a kid, I cried a lot.  I don't know why, maybe anxiety, but I remember being asked if I needed to go see a counselor.  I saw that as such a taboo thing that I always declared no as I cried a little harder.  Honestly, I probably should have seen a therapist.  It wouldn't have been the worst thing.  Now, I feel things are shifting regarding the stigma around mental health and seeing a therapist.  And after the pandemic, I feel we all need to check in with a therapist.  This book normalizes seeing a therapist and I absolutely love that.  More and more kids are seeing a therapist or a counselor.  Most of these kids are pretty open that they see a therapist.  There are a quiet few that don't disclose that information to literally anyone.  I think students who see a therapist will be able to find some comfort in Raina and they will be able to connect with her.

I of course don't like that this book is a graphic novel.  I have a real love-hate relationship with graphic novels.  I feel like kids aren't getting a "full" story from a graphic novel.  There are minimal details included in writing because there are pictures.  I would much rather kids read a chapter book than a graphic novel.  I will give his book a pass of sorts just because it does have a heavier topic that is being presented in more of a kid-friendly way. 

This book was good even though I felt like it lacked plot and details.  It will go into my classroom library and I'm sure there will be kids who will devour this book.  I give this 3 stars.  If you have a child or student needing a graphic novel with a therapy or anxiety theme, then this is the perfect book. 

The Next Person You Meet in Heaven by Mitch Albom

From Goodreads, 

"In this enchanting sequel to the number one bestseller The Five People You Meet in Heaven, Mitch Albom tells the story of Eddie’s heavenly reunion with Annie—the little girl he saved on earth—in an unforgettable novel of how our lives and losses intersect.

Fifteen years ago, in Mitch Albom’s beloved novel, The Five People You Meet in Heaven, the world fell in love with Eddie, a grizzled war veteran- turned-amusement park mechanic who died saving the life of a young girl named Annie. Eddie’s journey to heaven taught him that every life matters. Now, in this magical sequel, Mitch Albom reveals Annie’s story.

The accident that killed Eddie left an indelible mark on Annie. It took her left hand, which needed to be surgically reattached. Injured, scarred, and unable to remember why, Annie’s life is forever changed by a guilt-ravaged mother who whisks her away from the world she knew. Bullied by her peers and haunted by something she cannot recall, Annie struggles to find acceptance as she grows. When, as a young woman, she reconnects with Paulo, her childhood love, she believes she has finally found happiness.

As the novel opens, Annie is marrying Paulo. But when her wedding night day ends in an unimaginable accident, Annie finds herself on her own heavenly journey—and an inevitable reunion with Eddie, one of the five people who will show her how her life mattered in ways she could not have fathomed.

Poignant and beautiful, filled with unexpected twists, The Next Person You Meet in Heaven reminds us that not only does every life matter, but that every ending is also a beginning—we only need to open our eyes to see it."

Goodreads - The Next Person You Meet in Heaven

I've had this book hanging out on my bookshelf and collecting dust since it was released.  After rereading The Five People You Meet in Heaven I decided I should definitely read this book.  Once I realized that it was about Annie, the little girl that Eddie saved, I was beyond excited. 

Annie's life was changed when an old man named Eddie pushed her out of the way and saved her life as a child.  Annie suffered some trauma to her hand and an empty memory of the accident.  Annie's mom quickly moved her away to start fresh.  Annie meets a boy named Paulo at her new school, but soon life takes them down different paths.  As adults, they reconnect and immediately fall in love.  Annie and Paulo get married, but Annie keeps seeing Eddie.  She knows that isn't possible because he died years ago.  After the wedding, Annie and Paulo prepare to leave for their honeymoon, but there is a constant barrage of choices that are made that impact lives.  This leads to a major accident that sends Annie on her own heavenly journey to meet her five people. 

Favorite quote from The Next Person You Meet in Heaven

"The tale of your life is written second by second, as shifting as the flip of a pencil to an eraser.  There are so many times our lives are altered invisibly.  The flip of a pencil, from written to erased."

I was so excited that this book followed Annie.  I really enjoyed getting to learn where life led her and the PTSD from the accident.  Even moreso I enjoyed reading about Annie's five people.  As I mentioned last week, this series leads you to inquire what five people impacted you and what five people you've impacted.  But honestly, this book had a plot twist and a half in it.  There are spoilers from this point forward, so go ahead and buckle up.  First thing is that there was this insane storyline of Annie and Paulo being in a hot air balloon accident.  They end up in the hospital and Annie says she will do whatever to save Paulo.  And the next thing we know Annie is in heaven meeting her five people.  This was an insane concept for me because it ends up that Annie doesn't die!  Which this entire concept that you meet five people when you die is crazy enough and there is absolutely no way to ever prove this happens.  But the premise that if you flatline and they revive you, you will still meet your five people is crazy.  Paulo ends up dying in the book and is Annie's final person.  He explains that she needs to save someone else much like she was saved years earlier.  Annie eventually finds out that she is pregnant and that the baby is the person she is supposed to save.  I just think it is a wild concept that you would meet your five people even though you aren't officially dead.  

I also really liked the entire concept of choices impacting our lives second by second.  By choosing to go left instead of right while driving could mean the difference between life or death in some instances.  It makes you really think about all the choices and decisions that we make in a day.  Some seem so small and trivial, but they are a drop that can cause a major ripple and change the outcomes of so many different things.  There were a ton of examples of this after 9/11.  There was a story about a man whose child got sick on 9/10.  So he called in the next morning and in turn it saved his life.  Something so small can change the lives of those around you.  This idea of small changes makes me reflect and think about the things that I have said or done and how things would be different.  The first thing that comes to mind on this is when I left a long term relationship in February.  He snapped at me a couple different times one Sunday.  The next day it felt like there were a thousand different things building up and I couldn't handle it and the way I was being treated.  So I "snapped" and broke up with him.  I told him he needed to take over our lease or move out.  One small moment changed life for me.  I think at where I would be now if we were still together.  I wasn't happy then, would I be happy now?  Probably not.  Things weren't going to get any better.  I went through a month of complete chaos because I had no idea where I was going to live, how I was going to pay for utilities and rent, or how I would manage being on my own again.  There were good days and there were bad.  But I am so much better off and way happier by making that decision to be done.  One small decision can impact your life in wonderful and magical ways, but it can also end in disaster.  

This book was really good, but it didn't have the same magic and flow that The Five People You Meet in Heaven had.  Fans of Mitch Albom will absolutely love this book and if you've read The Five People You Meet in Heaven then this is a must read.  I give this 3 out of 5 stars.  

The Five People You Meet in Heaven by Mitch Albom

From Goodreads, 

"From the author of the phenomenal #1 New York Times bestseller Tuesdays with Morrie, a novel that explores the unexpected connections of our lives, and the idea that heaven is more than a place; it's an answer.

Eddie is a wounded war veteran, an old man who has lived, in his mind, an uninspired life. His job is fixing rides at a seaside amusement park. On his 83rd birthday, a tragic accident kills him as he tries to save a little girl from a falling cart. He awakes in the afterlife, where he learns that heaven is not a destination. It's a place where your life is explained to you by five people, some of whom you knew, others who may have been strangers. One by one, from childhood to soldier to old age, Eddie's five people revisit their connections to him on earth, illuminating the mysteries of his "meaningless" life, and revealing the haunting secret behind the eternal question: "Why was I here?""

Goodreads - The Five People You Meet in Heaven

Awards and Nominations: 

• Lincoln Award Nominee (2008)

I will forever and always be a huge fan of Mitch Albom's books.  The first book I read of his was Tuesdays with Morrie and I was absolutely in love.  So many of his books are moving works of literature that should be reread every few years.  You're guaranteed to get some kind of new and moving advice on every reread.  

Eddie is just a maintenance man who works at Ruby Pier.  He has lived what seems like his whole life working at the pier.  But on his 83rd birthday, he changes the course of his life and of a little girl when he attempts to save her life when a ride comes crashing down.  The next thing Eddie is aware of is that he is on an empty Ruby Pier from decades earlier.  He soon learns that he is dead and that he is going to meet 5 people from his life.  Along the way, he will learn the role and purpose he had on Earth.  

There is no way for me to sit here and act like I didn't get emotional at times over this book.  In February I decided to flip life upside down.  I got out of a long-term relationship, moved, and had to figure out how I was going to financially cover all the changes happening.  It was a lot.  So as I reread this book I found myself asking "What is my purpose?"  I question what impact I've had on those I've encountered.  This book will make you take a deep dive into yourself and make you think of who your 5 people would be.  Who are 5 people that have either dramatically impacted my life or who I've impacted?  As a teacher, I like to think that I've impacted hundreds of lives, but then I stop and ask myself who I've made a difference with.  There have been 1 or 2 kids every year that I feel like I had a special connection with and that I made an impact on them during that school year.  I remember their names and the experience I had with them.  This book also leads me to ask have I made an impact on any of my family or friends?  Are there strangers that I've impacted unknowingly?  I love Albom's concept that when we die we will meet 5 people who have impacted us or who we have impacted.  It makes death seem a little less scary. 

This book is formatted so that you get slivers of the story that will piece together to form the entire story.  There are pieces of present-day, pieces of Eddie's past, pieces of the lessons to be learned, and pieces of the people that Eddie meets.  The unique writing style keeps just enough mystery to the story itself.  I have no complaints about this book.  I did watch the movie shortly after finishing this and there were almost no differences between the two. 

I really enjoyed this reread.  It made me question what my purpose is and what impact I've had and what impact people have had on me.  Since reading it I feel like I've sort of realigned my goals and purpose.  I've been working on myself for the last few months and I'm so glad that this book just further fueled my fire.   

Words on Bathroom Walls by Julia Walton

 

From Goodreads, 

"Soon to be a major motion picture starring Charlie Plummer, AnnaSophia Robb, and Taylor Russell!

Fans of More Happy Than Not and The Perks of Being a Wallflower will cheer for Adam in this uplifting and surprisingly funny story of a boy living with schizophrenia.

When you can't trust your mind, trust your heart.

Adam is a pretty regular teen, except he's navigating high school life while living with paranoid schizophrenia. His hallucinations include a cast of characters that range from the good (beautiful Rebecca) to the bad (angry Mob Boss) to the just plain weird (polite naked guy). An experimental drug promises to help him hide his illness from the world. When Adam meets Maya, a fiercely intelligent girl, he desperately wants to be the normal, great guy that she thinks he is. But as the miracle drug begins to fail, how long can he keep this secret from the girl of his dreams?"

Goodreads - Words on Bathroom Walls

Awards and Nominations: 

• Rhode Island Teen Book Award Nominee (2019)

I've recently been drawn to books that have a movie adaptation.  I really enjoy reading the book and then watching the movie and determining which is better.  After a summer stroll through Books-A-Million, I noticed this book with the large print across the top reading "NOW A MAJOR MOTION PICTURE".  I immediately snatched the book up and knew I would find the movie somehow, somewhere.  

Adam is just a normal teenager, except that he has schizophrenia.  He is transferring to a new school and is part of a new drug study to hopefully help relieve him of some of his hallucinations.  Adam struggles to ignore the cast of characters that appear to only him.  Things become even trickier once he starts making friends and meets a girl that he really likes.  Will the drug work and will Adam get away with his secret?

This book was really dry and kind of boring.  I felt like it let me get a glimpse inside the mind of someone who has schizophrenia, but it wasn't very exciting.  I didn't like that the entire book is in a journal format because Adam is supposed to be talking to his therapist, but he refuses to talk.  The therapist decides to have him write in a journal so that there is some form of communication going on between them.  There were conversations in the book, but I felt like all of the characters were flat.  Even Adam with his multiple character hallucinations was boring.  There wasn't a real plot and there was nothing exciting until prom happened.  And even then the book fizzled after the situation at prom.  I was also kind of confused by the title of the book.  I thought that the words on the bathroom walls would be some big and moving piece in the book and it most definitely wasn't.  They were just words on a wall.  

I was able to rent this movie from Redbox.  I watched part of it one evening and was fairly bored by it.  I finished it the next day and tried my hardest not to rage over the movie.  The movie was NOTHING like the book.  Adam was of course the main character and sure he had schizophrenia, but that was about the only thing that was the same.  Adam's hallucinations were different than they were in the book.  Dwight, Adam's friend from the book, didn't even exist in the movie.  Maya had a tragic life and story in the movie because she didn't have a mom and they were basically in a financial crisis.  Maya was also way more abrasive in the movie than she was in the book.  Ian, who was a jerk and a bully in the book didn't have a role in the movie, which was kind of a big deal considering he was a pivotal breaking point in the book.  There were just so many big differences between the two that it didn't even feel like I was watching the movie adaptation of the book.  

Overall, I wasn't impressed with the book or the movie.  The book was better than the movie, but it still lacked the pizazz that I thought it would have.  This obviously isn't a book I can put in my classroom library.  I think that people who enjoy books about mental illnesses would like this, but know that it is a bit of a struggle to get through in my opinion.  I give this 2 stars.  

Dear Evan Hansen by Val Emmich, Justin Paul, Steven Levenson, and Benj Pasek

 

From Goodreads, 

"From the show's creators comes the groundbreaking novel inspired by the Broadway smash hit Dear Evan Hansen.

Dear Evan Hansen,

Today's going to be an amazing day and here's why...

When a letter that was never meant to be seen by anyone draws high school senior Evan Hansen into a family's grief over the loss of their son, he is given the chance of a lifetime: to belong. He just has to stick to a lie he never meant to tell, that the notoriously troubled Connor Murphy was his secret best friend.

Suddenly, Evan isn't invisible anymore--even to the girl of his dreams. And Connor Murphy's parents, with their beautiful home on the other side of town, have taken him in like he was their own, desperate to know more about their enigmatic son from his closest friend. As Evan gets pulled deeper into their swirl of anger, regret, and confusion, he knows that what he's doing can't be right, but if he's helping people, how wrong can it be?

No longer tangled in his once-incapacitating anxiety, this new Evan has a purpose. And a website. He's confident. He's a viral phenomenon. Every day is amazing. Until everything is in danger of unraveling and he comes face to face with his greatest obstacle: himself.

A simple lie leads to complicated truths in this big-hearted coming-of-age story of grief, authenticity and the struggle to belong in an age of instant connectivity and profound isolation."

Goodreads - Dear Evan Hansen

I'm one of those people that are either reading all the trending books or reading none of them.  A few months back a trailer was released for the movie Dear Evan Hansen.  I did a little research and realized there was a book that the movie was based on (and the book is based on a play).  Once I recognized the cover I realized I had seen the book on Scholastic before.  I did a little digging and searching but was unable to find it.  I ended up finding a copy at Books-A-Million on the CLEARANCE AISLE.  I'm not mad about it being on sale, but I was definitely shocked considering there's a movie being released in September. 

Dear Evan Hansen is the story of two boys.  Evan Hansen has a broken arm, social anxiety, and an assignment from his therapist to write a letter to himself.  Connor Murphy is a loner and an outsider who decides to sign Evan's cast and steal his letter to himself.  But the next day at school Connor doesn't show up.  Or the day after that.  Evan gets called to the office and meets Connor's parents.  They return Evan's letter saying that it Connor wrote it for Evan before he took his life.  Evan's social anxiety is at an insanely high level and he goes along with the lie that he was friends with Connor.  Will Evan ever tell the truth about his friendship, or lack thereof, with Connor?

It has been a long time since I have read a book as quickly as I read this one.  I felt like I couldn't put it down.  I absolutely loved the two viewpoints that were present in this book.  For the majority of the book we get to read Evan's point of view, but we periodically get a glimpse from Connor who is basically hanging out as a ghost.  I thought it was so unique to have that glimpse from Connor because it told just a piece of his narrative.  Connor took his own life, but he doesn't have a real voice in the book.  Unfortunately, Evan creates an entire narrative of his relationship with Connor and paints a picture of who Connor was, even though that's not at all who Connor was.  I had very mixed emotions throughout the entire book concerning the characters.  I almost sympathized with Connor.  I felt so sorry for him that he didn't have a voice and that he wasn't ever able to be the real him.  And at times I sympathized with Evan.  When he finally admits how he broke his arm and the struggles he has with his anxiety I was hoping that he would get the help that he needed.  But when Evan was being a conniving human that was trying to be popular and get with Connor's sister Zoe I was livid and frustrated at this character.  For the majority of the book I felt angry at Evan and his actions.  I kept waiting for a redemption arc, but honestly, it never came.  The ending tried to smooth things over, but at that point I was over it and I was over Evan. 

I kind of went on a negative rant there for a minute, but I want to talk about what I want after reading this book.  I want a prequel.  I want a book that tells Connor's side.  I want the events leading up to where Dear Evan Hansen starts.  Connor is painted as the loner or the "school shooter" type.  I want to know what kind of person Connor really was.  I want to learn about his experiences with his family and Miguel.  This book left so many unanswered questions for Connor and I think that it would be fantastic to get answers.  There is so much potential with a prequel and I would purchase it in a heartbeat. 

I enjoyed this book.  My neighbor's mom almost spoiled the entire thing one day while I was reading on my porch.  I basically had to shut her down and be like I'M NOT FINISHED WITH THE BOOK PLEASE DON'T SPOIL IT.  I give this 4 stars.  This is a great young adult book and I definitely can't wait to watch the movie.  

King and the Dragonflies by Kacen Callender

From Goodreads, 

"Twelve-year-old Kingston James is sure his brother Khalid has turned into a dragonfly. When Khalid unexpectedly passed away, he shed what was his first skin for another to live down by the bayou in their small Louisiana town. Khalid still visits in dreams, and King must keep these secrets to himself as he watches grief transform his family.

It would be easier if King could talk with his best friend, Sandy Sanders. But just days before he died, Khalid told King to end their friendship, after overhearing a secret about Sandy—that he thinks he might be gay. "You don't want anyone to think you're gay too, do you?"

But when Sandy goes missing, sparking a town-wide search, and King finds his former best friend hiding in a tent in his backyard, he agrees to help Sandy escape from his abusive father, and the two begin an adventure as they build their own private paradise down by the bayou and among the dragonflies. As King's friendship with Sandy is reignited, he's forced to confront questions about himself and the reality of his brother's death."

Goodreads - King and the Dragonflies 

Awards and Nominations: 

• National Book Award for Young People's Literature (2020)
• Goodreads Choice Award Nominee for Middle Grade & Children's (2020)
• Lambda Literary Award for LGBTQ Children's/Middle Grade (2021)
• Coretta Scott King Award Nominee for Author (2021)
• Rebecca Caudill Young Readers' Book Award Nominee (2022)

This is another book I received as being a part of the Scholastic Insider program.  I glanced through the chapter books I had remaining to read.  After reading the inside flap I was quickly drawn to this book.  I'm from a small town where no one questions law enforcement and I've heard many people talk down on people who are "different" aka gay.  I devoured this book at an alarming rate.

King is going through a lot.  King's brother passed away unexpectedly and King is trying to process and cope with it.  He honestly believes that his brother is a dragonfly.  He keeps this to himself, along with other things, as his parents try to move through their own grief.  Before Khalid died he had a conversation with King about staying away from a boy named Sandy because Sandy was gay.  Now that Khalid is gone King feels like he should follow the advice of his brother.  But King must sort through his own feelings when Sandy goes missing, only for King to find him in a tent in his backyard.  Sandy confides in King and asks for his help.  Now King must really make a decision to follow the advice of his brother or follow his heart. 

This book.  Guys.  I have no words.  I love, love, LOVE the way that this book handled sexuality and King questioning his.  I want to state that I'm not gay, so I cannot speak for the experience of those who are gay living or having grown up in small towns.  But I know that small towns, especially those in the South, are EXTREMELY judgey.  I live in the bible belt and for the most part it is definitely not accepted to be anything but on the straight and narrow.  I think this book definitely captured that small town vibe and the astigmatism that is around being gay in a small town.  King is told not to be around Sandy because Sandy is gay, but not openly.  King goes through the motions of feeling different, but feeling like he is expected to date girls.  He tries to date Jasmine, but finds he doesn't have the same connection with her that he has when he is with Sandy.  King eventually realizes that he is gay, and he works on coming out to his parents and his friends.  King's entire process of finding himself was so beautifully written.  And with all the confusing feelings he was also grieving the death of his brother.  Callender did a wonderful job at writing King's character and pacing the grieving and the questioning sexuality and the healing.  King had a wonderful character development over the course of this book, and honestly, I would love to read a follow up novel of King and Sandy later in life.  Maybe college? 

My heart absolutely broke for Sandy in this book.  Because his father was sheriff in town and from a family in town that was part of the KKK, Sandy didn't feel he could just go to anyone.  Sandy knew that his family had power and that no one would believe that his father was abusing him.  I felt terrible for this fictional character because he was being abused and he was gay.  He had no safe place.  And honestly, if King hadn't intervened there's a solid chance that Sandy would have ended up killing himself because there wasn't a way out.  I would really like to read a story from Sandy's perspective.  Maybe allow him to be a little older in life and let there be flashbacks that give us a real glimpse into his life being part of a prominent white family in the South.

I absolutely loved this book.  A lot of books nowadays force themes into the story so that the book will fit under multiple categories.  One of the biggest forced themes I read is LGBTQ+ characters.  I feel like so many authors shove a character into the story just so they can label their book as being pro LGBTQ+.  This book didn't do that, but the LGBTQ+ characters were beautifully written and the story centered around them.  It has been a LONG time since I've read a book that felt natural including LGBTQ+ characters.  I really hope that some of my students read this book this upcoming school year, and hopefully if they need help or guidance they will feel safe talking to me.  I give this 5 big and bold stars!

Radio Fifth Grade by Gordon Korman

From Goodreads, 

"Mayhem breaks out in the fifth grade when the Venice Menace bullies his classmates into letting him become a regular guest on Kidsview, the school's radio program!"

Goodreads - Radio Fifth Grade 

Awards and Nominations: 

• Manitoba Young Readers' Choice Award Nominee (1992)

I teach 5th grade and I'm always keeping an eye out for books where the main characters are in 5th grade.  These students can easily relate to these characters because they are the same age and most of the time they are experiencing middle school for the first time.  So when I saw this book on Scholastic I knew I had to order it in hopes that I could use it as a read-aloud in class.  

Radio Fifth Grade is the story of a group of students who are in charge of running the school's radio program on Saturdays.  Every week the radio show has a mascot of the week.  The local pet store sponsors the show and has them try to "sell" the pet on the radio by talking it up and sharing special things about the pet.  One Saturday they get a parrot that is supposed to talk, but no one can get him to speak.  Things fly out of control and the bird doesn't get purchased by anyone the following week.  Plus, the class gets a new teacher who is determined to give the students an abundance of homework for them to do over the weekend.  The homework interferes with the radio show, but things escalate even further when the school bully decides he is going to be a regular on the show reading a poorly written story.  

This book had so much going on in it.  The chaoticness of this book really stressed me out, but honestly, I think kids would enjoy the random things that happen.  I loved Venice Menace in the book.  He was the bully that insisted on being a regular on the show to read his poorly written story.  He was encouraged by a teacher to read the story.  He read it on the air, everyone realized it absolutely stunk, but they didn't tell him.  They were all so scared of him that they told him it was fantastic.  So he decided to play his own little prank by "forcing" everyone to go along with it and having them give reviews and fill out forms about the story.  In the end, we learn that he wanted someone to stand up to him and tell him that the story was bad and he needed to stop.  There are so many kids that will push things and push things and push things just because they want someone to set boundaries and rules and tell them no.  This was the same kind of situation.  I also loved all the ways the students tried to trick their teacher so that they didn't have to do the homework and so she wouldn't listen to the radio show.  

I felt like this story lacked a solid plot.  There was one there, but it was poorly written and buried under the jokes and hijinks.  I wasn't a fan of the pet store owner.  He came across as being really rude and mean, especially to Mark who seemed to always be messing things up.  I personally felt like the pet store owner was being a little over the top and extreme to a kid.  I also wasn't a fan of the radio sponsor.  He was always reading and NEVER helped the kids when something had hit the fan and they seriously needed help.  Even when they would ask for advice or what to do, he would shrug and basically be like figure it out.  I definitely got the vibe that he was just there for the extra stipend on his paycheck. 

This was a fun little book, but it's not like any of the other books I've read by Korman.  I think some of my students will enjoy this, but I don't think it packs enough punch for me to use it as a read-aloud in class.  I give this 2 stars.  It just didn't have the exciting razzle-dazzle that the summary led up to.  I also just want to talk real quick about the original teacher and how she won the lottery, quit her job, and moved to Hawaii.  Because girl, I feel that on a different level.