This summer, Judy Moody, her younger brother Stink, and the rest of their family and friends jumped off of the pages of the bestselling novels by Megan McDonald and landed on the big screen in the feature film Judy Moody and the Not Bummer Summer. I hope the movie inspires young moviegoers - both eager and reluctant readers - to check out the source material. Kids, households, libraries, and schools that enjoy the antics of Beverly Cleary's Ramona Quimby or Judy Blume's Peter and Fudge are certain to find the Moody books delightful. The books, illustrated by Peter Reynolds, have a sense of whimsy and spontaneity that kids will relate to while keeping the text clear enough and the chapters short enough to hold their attention.
The series, which began with the simply-titled Judy Moody and cast the spunky girl as the protagonist, has branched off into an additional line of Stink stories which put her little brother in the spotlight. As this is the GuysLitWire blog, I'll put him in the spotlight here today as well.
The Stink books are easier and shorter than Judy's, and they make a great stepping stone between easy-to-read/beginning readers and "real" chapter books. Plus, the Stink books have comic panels between chapters that are drawn by Stink himself! (That's what I tell young readers. The art is really by talented illustrator Peter Reynolds.) There are also books that are Judy & Stink books, giving each of the siblings equal time as (third-person) narrators.
In his first book, Stink: The Incredible Shrinking Kid, he deals with the fact that he's short. Three-foot-eight, to be exact. No, wait -- His most recent height-check marked him at three feet, seven-and-three-quarters inches! Is he shrinking?! In this book, as in those that follow, Stink's concerns are age-appropriate and his antics will make readers giggle. Like his sister, Stink is adventurous and curious. Put these books in the hands of kids who aren't quite old enough to read Diary of a Wimpy Kid but are ready to start checking out chapter books!
Here's a list of titles currently related to the Moody brood:
Judy Moody
Judy Moody Gets Famous
Judy Moody Saves the World!
Judy Moody Predicts the Future
Judy Moody, M.D.: The Doctor is In!
Judy Moody Declares Independence
Judy Moody Around the World in 8 1/2 Days
Judy Moody Goes to College
Judy Moody: Girl Detective
Stink: The Incredible Shrinking Kid
Stink and the Incredible Super-Galactic Jawbreaker
Stink and the World's Worst Super-Stinky Sneakers
Stink and the Great Guinea Pig Express
Stink: Solar System Superhero
Stink and the Ultimate Thumb-Wrestling Smackdown
Stink-O-Pedia: Super Stink-y Stuff from A to Zzzzz
Stink-O-Pedia, Volume Two: More Stink-y Stuff from A to Z
Judy Moody & Stink: The Holly Joliday
Judy Moody & Stink: The Mad, Mad, Mad Treasure Hunt
...plus the journals, activity books, and the books related to the film.
Learn more about the books at http://www.judymoody.com and http://www.stinkmoody.com/
2 comments :
While reading you review, I missed the books I used to read! So, I'd probably go back reading children's books one of these days! ;)
That's sweet!
Post a Comment