Gooney Bird Greene

I just finished reading the early chapter book, Gooney Bird Greene by Lois Lowry. Really, I don't rave over every book I read. (Remember: I had to read 100 books this month for my picture book class...well, I read close to double that to find good examples that met the requirements. Most of these were not rave-worthy!)

Gooney Bird Greene is a fantastic chapter book that boys, girls, parents and teachers will love. Gooney Bird is the new kid at school and, at first, it appears she's a big, fat liar. The teacher has her tell stories to the class and we learn that all her very creative stories are absolutely true. Besides introducing a very lovable and quirky character, Lowry teaches the basics of story telling. The inspiring ending will have grown ups and kids ready to tell big stories of their own.

I have ordered the second Gooney Bird book; it's in the mail! I hope this is the beginning of a Gooney Bird series. Gooney Bird is quirky like Junie B, but is smarter and more mature. (She IS a second grader, after all.) As a parent, I have issues with Junie B--my daughter loves JB, but even she has problems with the grammar and behavior. This book has all the charm --and more--without the negatives I hear parents complain about.

Highly recommended!