Anastasia Krupnik [Paperback]

Lois Lowry (Author)

Book Description

Age Level: 9 and up | Grade Level: 4 and up | Series: Anastasia

To Anastasia Krupnik, being ten is very confusing. For one thing, she has this awful teacher who can't understand why Anastasia doesn't capitalize or punctuate her poems. Then, there's Washburn Cummings, a very interesting sixth-grade boy who doesn't even know she is alive. Even her parents have become difficult. They insist she visit her 92-year-old grandmother who can never remember Anastasia's name. On top of that, they're going to have a baby -- at their age! It's enough to make a kid want to do something terrible. Anastasia knows that if she didn't have her secret green notebook to write in, she would never make it to her eleventh birthday.

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com Review

Ages 8-12. The first and best book in the very popular series describes the ups and downs of a precocious ten-year-old girl. Anastasia loves keeping lists of important information in her green notebook; when she discovers that her mother is pregnant, she instantly adds two new items to her "things I hate" list: "My parents" and "babies." But as the year passes, Anastasia finds that the items on her lists keep moving around; by the time her baby brother is born, the only thing left to hate is liver. An unusually warm, insightful and original portrait of childhood and family life, this is a special and memorable story. Horn Book called Anastasia "an amusing and engaging heroine" and The Bulletin of the Center for Children's Books wrote, "the whole book is a delight."

Review

"The well-turned phrase amuses, and the unexpected turn of events surprises in a plot that is tightly strung." Booklist, ALA, Starred Review

--This text refers to the Hardcover edition.

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Product Details

• Reading level: Ages 9 and up
  
• Paperback: 144 pages
• Publisher: Yearling (November 1, 1984)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0440408520
• ISBN-13: 978-0440408529
• Product Dimensions: 5.4 x 0.4 x 7.7 inches
• Shipping Weight: 3.2 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.4 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (39 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #281,819 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

13 of 14 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Anastasia Krupnik: Being ten is no laughing matter., December 15, 2004

By 

Richard Wible (Oceanside, California United States) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Anastasia Krupnik (Paperback)

I read "Anastasia Krupnik: Being ten is no laughing matter," by Lois Lowry, to assist my daughter with her 7th grade language arts assignment. The book was very well written and enjoyable to read.

The story is set in Boston, Massachusetts, where ten-year-old Anastasia is struggling with an identity crisis, eccentric parents, and the pain of growing up an only child in a secular household. Her father is an English professor who writes poetry and her mother is an artist who forgets to do the laundry, which is why they both wear socks that don't match. Anastasia writes a poem without rhyme or meter and reads it to her class, but her teacher doesn't appreciate modern poetry; she gives her an "F" and tells her to follow the rules when writing poems. She has an on-again, off-again crush on a boy who doesn't like her, a grandmother who can't remember her name due to the onset of dementia, and a baby brother soon to be born: even her goldfish "blurps" at her from within the confines of its bowl.

At one point Anastasia decides to become Catholic, so she can change her name, but she soon changes her mind when she learns that stealing cupcakes from her friend is a sin and she will have to confess her sins to become a Catholic. Anastasia chronicles the significant events of her life in a green notebook, listing things she loves in one column and things she hates in another. Sometimes the things she hates become the things she loves and vice versa. By the end of the story, there remains only one item on the list of things she hates - liver - but the list of things she loves is long. The story is told with humorous effect, even though some of the things that happen are sad.

There are a few troublesome comments about her teacher's anatomy and conversations between Anastasia and her parents sometimes show a lack of discretion, but all things considered, it is the tender account of a prepubescent little girl with a prodigious intellect and an eagerness to learn and grow. I wouldn't go so far as to call it a coming-of-age story, but it will definitely hold your little girl's interest and in a subtle way, let her know that she is not alone in her quest to overcome life's many tribulations. It even has a happy ending to boot.

8 of 8 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Grew up on these, January 9, 2005

By 

teacher26 (chicago) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Anastasia Krupnik (Paperback)

One of the major moments in my childhood came when I read that Myron Krupnik kept his poetry manuscripts in the crisper drawer of the fridge so they wouldn't burn in a fire. My father (also a poet, also an English professor) did the exact same thing. I vaguely remember jumping up and down on my bed and wanting to move to Boston.
Buy these for your child, even if you're not a poet. They're wonderful.

6 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A classic series that still warms my heart at 26 yrs of age., October 23, 1999

By A Customer

This review is from: Anastasia Krupnik (Paperback)

I first read this book at the age of eight, and over the years I collected each one as they came out. This was a series I read and reread. I am now saving these books for my daughter-who, by the way,I named Anastasia. Anastasia Krupnik is a wonderful character who will always warm my heart. Lois Lowry created a gem.