Agapanthus Hum and the Eyeglasses (Easy-to-Read, Puffin) [Mass Market Paperback]

Joy Cowley (Author), Jennifer Plecas (Illustrator)

Book Description

Publication Date: January 29, 2001 | Age Level: 5 and up | Series: Easy-to-Read, Puffin

Agapanthus Hum is a whirlwind. She hums, she cartwheels, and she is always running around. Now that Agapanthus has eyeglasses, her parents want her to be careful. Agapanthus tries to slow down; she even wears a bag on her head so her glasses won't get lost, but more often then not, her glasses go flying. What do grown-up acrobats do with their eyeglasses? Agapanthus's parents bring her to a performance so that she can find out.

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

Agapanthus Hum, the altogether winning heroine of Cowley's (Mrs. Wishy Washy) spunky chapter book, has an exuberance befitting her name: "she was called Hum because she was such a whizzer, humming and whizzing like a button on a string." Her rushing, twirling and cartwheeling, however, sometimes results in minor accidents and often spells trouble for her eyeglasses, which fall off and get bent and twisted. Though they warn her to be cautious, Agapanthus's parents encourage their daughter's acrobatics and also treat her to a trip to the circus, where Agapanthus is in awe of the trapeze artist ("I am going to do that," she announces). Cowley's tale features playful language, characters that have their quirks yet stay believable, and a fun-to-read pace that is sure to keep beginning readers entertained as well as a bit challenged. Plecas (Rattlebone Rock) plays up the text's sweet-natured humor with her springy-limbed heroine, who indeed looks as if she can barely contain her energy; and with the introduction of a busy little dog, a constant companion that is Agapanthus's equal when it comes to childlike glee. Ages 5-8.
Copyright 1998 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

From School Library Journal

Kindergarten-Grade 3-The text of this beginning chapter book races along just like its main character. Agapanthus Hum is a bundle of energy with "...tunes inside her, tunes for running and whirling, tunes for dancing in the wind...." Because she is always "humming and whizzing" and tumbling with acrobatic abandon, accidents often happen and her glasses swing, slip, and drop, and are constantly in need of repair. When her understanding (and comically exaggerated) parents, "good little Mommy" and "good little Daddy," take her to a show, they discover how a real gymnast saves her glasses. Unlike many books for newly independent readers, Cowley's word choices provide readers with interesting images-"tunes that bubbled toothpaste and gurgled lemonade," "her hum puffed out like a birthday candle," "beads went everywhere, like blue hailstones," etc. Plecas's illustrations extend the humor and reinforce the seven-chapter text. There is at least one Agapanthus Hum in every classroom and that child is waiting for this delightful book.
Gale W. Sherman, Pocatello Public Library, ID
Copyright 1999 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Reading level: Ages 5 and up
  
• Mass Market Paperback: 48 pages
• Publisher: Puffin; Reprint edition (January 29, 2001)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0698118839
• ISBN-13: 978-0698118836
• Product Dimensions: 8.8 x 5.9 x 0.2 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.6 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (1 customer review)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #2,570,884 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

0 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars good, November 18, 2009

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M. MOJARRO "marmoj30" (usa) - See all my reviews
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