The Fourth Grade Wizards [Paperback]

Barthe DeClements (Author)

Book Description

Age Level: 8 and up | Grade Level: 3 and up

In Fourth Grade Wizards, Ms. DeClements returns to the setting of her most popular books to tell another funny, warm, and appealing story. "A sensitive and, at the same time, entertaining story." -- Boston Herald.

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

These comical, episodic novels of the vicissitudes of grade-school life make their first appearance on the Puffin list. Ages 8-12.
Copyright 1990 Reed Business Information, Inc.

From School Library Journal

Grade 4-6 Marianne desperately misses her mother, killed in an airplane crash; she and her father are living temporarily in a stark apartment; and her pesky neighbor, Brittany, awaits her after school. Encouraged by a sympathetic teacher and the smart-aleck class cut-up, Jack, Marianne works through her loneliness and feelings of abandonment; moves to a new home; gets a puppy; and is happily anticipating the addition of a perfect stepmother at the novel's end. An expert at creating believable classroom situations and realistic dialogue between students, DeClements is less successful with adult characters. These are one-dimensional, stock figures, especially Marianne's father, who seems to sleepwalk through life, oblivious to his only child's very understandable problems and unhappiness. In addition, the humor and realism of the school situation trivialize the sober theme of what a parent's sudden death can do to a nine year old. In O'Neal's A Formal Feeling (Viking, 1982) and Girion's A Tangle of Roots (Putnam, 1985) , both for slightly older children, the feelings engendered by similar tragic events are explored and developed without such abrupt mood shifts. This prequel to Nothing's Fair in Fifth Grade (1981) and Sixth Grade Can Really Kill You (1985, both Viking) will appeal to middle-grade readers seeking another fast-paced, undemanding school story. Those looking for depth of characterization and descriptions of children in crisis will be better served elsewhere. Martha Rosen, Edgewood School, Scarsdale, N.Y.
Copyright 1988 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

Product Details

• Reading level: Ages 8 and up
  
• Paperback: 128 pages
• Publisher: Puffin (May 1, 1990)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0140327606
• ISBN-13: 978-0140327601
• Product Dimensions: 7.5 x 5 x 0.3 inches
• Shipping Weight: 2.4 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 4.4 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (7 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #2,039,949 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

7 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars One Of The Best Books Ever!, December 31, 1999

By A Customer

This review is from: The Fourth Grade Wizards (Paperback)

This book is great! It is about a girl named Marianne whoes mother died. Marianne can't pay attention in school! At her school they have wizards and Marianne can't become one if she doesn't start to pay attention. Marianne gets a puppy and starts to listen and do her work. Now if she keeps working this hard she can become a master wizard! To find out if she does you have to read this book! It is great and I would reccomend it to anyone!

7 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars This is the best book I ever read., December 16, 1998

By A Customer

This review is from: The Fourth Grade Wizards (Paperback)

Have you ever thought about getting a puppy? Well this book is about a girl who gets a puppy because she misses her mother too much after her mother died. At school she is not paying attention to the teacher, that means she might not become a fouth grade wizard. One day her puppy ran away! Will she become a fouth grade wizard? will she find her puppy? Read this to find out what a fouth grade wizard is.

7 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Interesting events but awful characters!, January 26, 2005

By 

AmusingMadWoman (CA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Fourth Grade Wizards (Paperback)

I am a 4th grade teacher and I wanted a quick read-aloud book for my students. I really enjoyed Barthe DeClements when I was a kid, so I thought I'd give this one a try. The story is about a girl named Marianne who recently lost her mom in a plane crash. She is struggling to cope with her sadness as well as her dad's sadness, and there is a really nasty neighbor girl that torments her. What I liked about this book was the main character herself, however, her neighbors-- the mother and daughter, were over-the-top awful, and I found myself growing upset with the father character for not intervening more in his daughter's plight. While this MIGHT have been a subplot of sorts, it really wasn't... in general, I was really dissapointed with the adult characters in this book. It has good moments, though, especially when Marianne brings home a new puppy. I would recommend this to my students to read independently but I will not read it aloud to them.