Ellie McDoodle: New Kid in School [Hardcover]

Ruth McNally Barshaw (Author, Illustrator)

Book Description

Publication Date: June 24, 2008 | Age Level: 8 and up | Grade Level: 3 and up | Series: Ellie Mcdoodle

When Ellie’s family moves to a new town, she’s sure she won’t fit in. Nobody else likes to read as much as she does, and even the teachers can’t get her name right. But when the students need someone to help them rally against unfair lunch lines, it’s Ellie to the rescue—and if shorter lines and better food prevail, can friendship be far behind?

Editorial Reviews

From School Library Journal

Grade 2–5—Done in a style reminiscent of Jeff Kinney's Diary of a Wimpy Kid (Abrams, 2007), this sequel to Ellie McDoodle: Have Pen, Will Travel (Bloomsbury, 2007) is a humorous and realistic look at moving. At school and in the neighborhood, Ellie faces many experiences typical to relocation. She gets excited about her first invite, only to end up watching her new friend play a handheld game; at school her classmates secretly play "new kid bingo," waiting for her to mess up or cry. Her story is told through a notebook, which is a combination of handwritten text and line drawings. The pictures, comic frames, and dialogue balloons serve to further the story. Reluctant and struggling readers and young fans of graphic novels are sure to find this title appealing. The book also includes an illustrated interview with the author, tips and directions for keeping a "sketch journal," and a teacher's guide to Have Pen, Will Travel.—Sharon R. Pearce, Longfellow Elementary School, Oak Park, IL
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

About the Author

Ruth McNally Barshaw is a life-long writer and artist who has worked in the advertising field, and illustrated cartoons for newspapers. Ellie McDoodle: Have Pen, Will Travel was her first children’s book. She lives in Lansing, MI, with her family. Visit her website: www.ruthexpress.com

Product Details

• Reading level: Ages 8 and up
  
• Hardcover: 192 pages
• Publisher: Bloomsbury USA Childrens; 1st edition (June 24, 2008)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1599902389
• ISBN-13: 978-1599902388
• Product Dimensions: 8.6 x 5.4 x 0.7 inches
• Shipping Weight: 12 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.7 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (7 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #893,118 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Ruth McNally Barshaw grew up sketching and journaling life around her in little sketchbooks. Little did she realize she would do the same for her career. Today she has more than 300 little sketchjournals chronicling various events, trips, quirky discoveries, and times with beloved friends and family.
Her Ellie McDoodle books borrow the same format, with writing and cartoony art on every page. If you hang out with Ruth, you might get added into one of her sketchjournals. If you read her books, you might be inspired to put your own life on paper. Share your beliefs, memories, dreams ... keep a sketchjournal.
Author website: http://ruthexpress.com

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Courtesy of Teens Read Too, June 25, 2008

By 

TeensReadToo "Eat. Drink. Read. Be Merrier." (All Over the US & Canada) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Ellie McDoodle: New Kid in School (Hardcover)

Ellie McDougal is the new kid in school. She had to leave her happy life behind when her family moved to a new town, and she is sure that her new home cannot possibly measure up. Little by little she begins to adjust, first by settling in at home with her new room, and then by spending time at the local library, where she finds books comforting and familiar.

She is especially nervous about fitting in at school. The other kids tease her, and no one can get her name right. But spunky Ellie does not stay down for long. Her classmates need an advocate to stand up to the principal, and it turns out that Ellie is just the kid for the job. In fact, she meets a number of challenges throughout this story and handles each one head-on, coming up with passionate yet reasoned solutions, and enacting positive change.

Author/illustrator Ruth McNally Barshaw has created something special with this character and with this format. Part novel, part journal, part comic book, Barshaw's unique style of sketch-journaling is a treat. The illustrations tell the story as much as the words, creating a lively, interactive narrative. You won't just read about Ellie's first day at school; you'll go to school with her and see everything through her eyes.

What's best about Ellie is her sense of humor. Occasionally she will pause in her narrative to share a joke, or to let us in on dinner at the McDougal house and all of the warm-hearted shenanigans her family participates in together.

Ellie may struggle with the common problem of starting over, but what sets her apart from other heroines is how she handles her problems. When she isn't happy with her new bedroom situation, she doesn't just complain to her parents or mope about it in her journal; instead she proposes a solution that will make every member of her family happy. Best of all, her parents allow her to take responsibility for herself, in ways that are loving and supportive, but also non-intrusive, so that Ellie can learn from her own experiences.

The book includes bonus features, such as an interview with Barshaw that she conducted in her signature sketch-journal style. There are even instructions on how to make a sketch-journal of your own, and there are tips on how to sketch, and how to draw comics.

Reviewed by: Marie Robinson

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars New kid on the block, August 24, 2008

By 

E. R. Bird "Ramseelbird" (Manhattan, NY) - See all my reviews
(HALL OF FAME REVIEWER)    (TOP 100 REVIEWER)    (REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Ellie McDoodle: New Kid in School (Hardcover)

I know that the whole girl-who-draws story idea isn't necessarily new. I mean, before Ruth McNally Barshaw wrote Ellie McDoodle: Have Pen, Will Travel there were books out there like Amelia's Notebook and the like. But is it just me or has the whole doodling girl idea gotten crazy popular recently? This year alone I've seen Katie Davis and her comic-centered The Curse of Addy McMahon and Margie Palatini's Geek Chic: The Zoey Zone. Girls with pens are in, my friend. So it is that we welcome back our second Barshaw title, "Ellie McDoodle: New Kid in School". Thought surviving in the woods with your relatives sounded bad? Try starting a new grade in a new school. Once again Barshaw puts her finger squarely on kids' fears and anxieties in a format that most everyone can identify with.

It is the end of life as we know it. You may as well just pack it all in right now, because for Ellie the worst possible thing that could ever happen to her has finally occurred. She's moving. Moving away from friends. From her house. Everything. Moving into a new place and making new pals is going to be just terrible and Ellie knows it. But to her surprise there are a couple kids who take to her right away. Then again there's that simply awful art teacher to deal with. But what about the nice librarian Ellie just met? Yeah, she's great but have you seen the really mean New Kid bingo game the other students have been passing around? In spite of this Ellie slowly realizes that her new home isn't that bad after all. More importantly, she finds a way to make a difference that allows her to use her best talents in as cool a way as possible. The end of the book includes an interview with the author (conducted with plenty of visual aids), instructions on how to make and keep a sketch journal, help on how to sketch, and tips on drawing comics. My edition also included a Teacher's Guide and potential projects to do in conjunction with the book.

Flawed protagonists make for good reading. You can get away with heroes that are light and goodness incarnate (and many writers do) but generally those people are not the ones you the reader are going to identify with. You want nasty innnermost thoughts. You want a little bit of grit and gristle. And Ellie, for all her charm and verve, is flawed. She rushes to hasty judgments about people and situations. She is asked to dance with her friend Mo's brother with Down's syndrome and really doesn't want to. Her relationship with her older practical joker of a brother works nicely into this as well. As Ellie says at one point, "I'm torn between wanting revenge and wanting to stay on his good side." Lots of kids will be able to relate.

One of the other things that I like about Ellie is that I find the premise believable. We've all read those pseudo-journals written in what authors think are kids voices. Sometimes it's hard to suspend your belief that a child is writing this stuff (though I admit that this is a very adult point-of-view to take). With Ellie it's a little different. There's something about the quality of the drawings and the stories that feels authentic to me. I mean, this was the case with the first Ellie book, sure, but I feel that the whole idea of going camping with your relatives isn't a particularly universal theme. Being the new kid in class, though? Very familiar. One review I saw of this book mentioned that they thought that this would have been a better beginning to the series. Book #1 was too specific in its situation (i.e. camping with relatives). But since there aren't any numbers on the spines of these titles, and since the situations inside are fairly distinct from one another, I see no reason why you couldn't hand kids the second book to read first, followed by the first. I think I may.

As with "Have Pen, Will Travel", this book is full of cool diagrams and fun instructions for games you can play. As a kid I would have loved to have known how to make a cootie catcher. That was always one of those mysterious kid creations that no one would actually ever teach you. You were just supposed to pick it up (probably from older siblings, which I did not have). So to actually find out how to play Capture the Flag or Ghost in the Graveyard is a bit of a boon to those kids reading the book that wouldn't have another way of learning these secrets of childhood. Now if we could only learn all the words to Miss Susie Had a Baby . . .

I've been trying to think of other trials and tribulations of childhood Ellie can slowly detest and embrace through the course of her stories. So far I've thought of piano lessons (not much of a story unless you involve a Russian spy or a dad who buys you an organ instead, though), summer camp (too similar to book one?), puberty, and underwear modeling. Really, the field is wide open. That's part of what's so nice about the series. Sure the pictures are fun and Ellie's sympathetic but really the flexibility of the situations she can find herself is one of the real draws. Fans of the first book will love the second. Fans of the second will look forward to the third. Fun stuff.

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Another Winner!, January 24, 2009

By 

A. Buckett "teacher" (Longmont, CO USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Ellie McDoodle: New Kid in School (Hardcover)

The girls in my upper elementary classroom LOVED the first Ellie McDoodle and have been pestering me nonstop for the new one. I ordered it over Christmas, and it hasn't hit my bookshelf yet because, as soon as one finishes it is is passed directly to another eager classmate. While my boys seem to enjoy the Diary of a Wimpy Kid books, my girls really relate to the feelings and situations encountered by Ellie McDoodle. I hope another enstallment is on its way to bookstores soon! Ruth McNally Barshaw has a talented handle on our middle grade girls!