Customer Reviews

CHALK BOX KID BK/CASS (Stepping Stone Book and Cassette Library)

5 star:		(18)
4 star:		(2)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

Nine-year-old Gregory's going through a tough time: his dad lost his job recently, he just moved to a new neighborhood, he switched schools, he didn't get to celebrate his birthday this year, and the one bright spot of everything -- the bedroom his parents added on to the house just for him (Gregory's never had his own room before) -- he has to share with his 20-year-old slacker Uncle Max, who just moved in. To make things worse, the kids at school aren't exactly standing in line to be his friends and his family doesn't have a lot of time for him now.

Things start to look up when Gregory discovers an abandoned chalk factory next door. Under the rubble are boxes and boxes of leftover chalk and Gregory starts drawing on the walls. What he draws and what happens when others take notice is the story.

Discussion:
This is one of the best beginning chapter books I've read in a long time. There are no 50 cent words and the sentences are short but the paragraphs pull you along so you'd never notice it. What makes this book so unique are the topics it skids around.

Gregory is a very frustrated little boy. His parents both work and can't afford to give him the art supplies, clothes, garden space, etc that his friends have access to. His uncle is more of a spoiled new brother than an adult and neither he nor Gregory's parents take much interest in Gregory's concerns and activities. His new teacher is nice but he's having trouble fitting in at school. There is no place in his house that is private. Nothing horrible ever happens but little things build up and although he doesn't know how to say it, Gregory's pent-up frustrations need an outlet. (He's not the only child in this book with this problem: a classmate, Ivy, also has difficulty putting words what's bothering her.)

In a typical beginner reader book an adult would take notice and step in and find a way to make Gregory feel special. Instead the author has Gregory discover an unlimited supply of chalk and 3 walls of the chalk factory to draw on. Now that Gregory has a place that he can make his own, everything else is more bearable. When he finds that he's the only one in his class without a yard to grow a garden in, he simply draws one on the walls outside.

It doesn't take long before others catch on to what he's doing, but by then Gregory has a little more control over his feelings (he no longer feels like kicking things). Again, Bulla is realistic: Nothing fantastic happens but things work out anyway and the ending is more satisfying because of it.

Three burned and sooty walls prove an irresistable lure to a lonely 9-year-old boy. Friendless in a new school in a decaying neighborhood, and disrespected by his unemployed young uncle, Gregory discovers the remains of a chalk factory behind his
cement-filled back yard. Who says he can't have a garden like the other kids in his class--it's in the eye and the heart of the gardener, after all. In this case the gardener is a budding
artist, who wants to recreate the beauty of nature and living things in this--his only private space. Even his skeptical parents discover that their son has talent, thanks to his conscientious teacher.

Bulla's literary strokes are characterized by short, simple sentences and minmal kid dialogue. The author's canvas depicts a world of pre teen loneliness, peer pressure and the innate need for social
appreciation. But who will prove brave enough to defy the crowd? This is a good book for young readers who have suffered the trauma of moving or familial rejection, with good insight into the artistic temperament.

I really liked this book because it was about a kid named Gregory who moves to a new town with his mother and father. It is bad enough moving without having any friends, but not making any new ones is pretty bad too. Everyone was given some seeds to plant a garden. But at his new house he doesn't have much of a yard so he can't make a garden. Behind his house is a burned down chalk factory, so he draws a garden. If you want to find out if he makes any friends read this book.

This book is about a nine-year-old boy named Gregory. The story starts with the worst birthday of his life because he is moving to a house that he has never seen before and it ends with a friendship. When he moves to a new house, at the beginning, his birthday is the best, because he has his own room.

Towards the middle of the book, he finds a burned down chalk factory, with only three walls left standing. He draws a beautiful garden on these three walls, with the chalk that he has found.

In the beginning of the summary, we mentioned that it ends with a friendship. The friend's name is Ivy. Ivy is a shy girl who loves art as much as Gregory.

Matthew and Skylar

Third Grade

I like this book because it teaches you to be nice to other people and not to be mean to people like Vance was to Gregory. I think you should read this book you will learn to be nice.

The Chalk box kid teaches you a lesson about how to deal with life when
you move. It shows you that you can make a place your own. It was a wonderful book.Gregory creats a chalk garden. As 3rd graders we give it 5
stars!

Gregory moves into a new house in a new town on his birthday.He starts his new school and his class is doing a project, they are growing gardens at home. Gregory can't grow a regular garden like the other kids, so with some chalk and a burned building behind his house he draws his garden on the walls of the building. He makes a friend, Ivy who also likes to draw. His classmates make fun of his garden, but in the end everyone thought his garden was beautiful.

This book about Gregory tells how a child learns to express himself and win the admiration of his family, teachers and classmates. We have a copy for each of our second graders and use it as a reader. ....

This book is about a boy named Gregory who has a garden that he drew with chalk. He has a friend named Ivy who likes to draw as much as Gregory. You can learn a lot of things from this book.

If you want a book where you can slip into the person's shoes,and feel like you know the character, then this is the book for you. Gregory was staying with his Aunt Grace for his birthday, because his mother and father were moving to a new house.They hade to move because got fired and found another job on the other side of town, so they hade to move.
Then when Gregory's mother and father got to Anut Grace's house they hade to get back home.When they got there Gregory asked do I have my own room? He did and he was so happy he said "This is better then a party and cake this is the best Birthday ever!" The next day he started the first day of school, in his new school. That day when he came home from school he was walking around and found a gate to a burnt down building. He cleaned it up a bit and found a box of chalk. That at school Mr. Hiller, a friend of Miss.Perry, came in and taught Gregory and the rest of the kids all about plants. When Gregory when home that night he said to his mother,"We don't have any grass around here". So he started to draw plants in the building. His mother and father did nit want to see.They were too busy.Don,t worry the end gets gets better.
I could not put the book down because the book never ended,and you would most likely would want to stay up and read it.You will like the book but you have to read it to find out!!!