Meanwhile... [Hardcover]

Jules Feiffer (Author, Illustrator)

Book Description

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

Raymond, I want you! Just when Raymond is in the middle of a comic book, his mother calls him. Not once but five times. It's not fair! Raymond thinks. Then he thinks: What if I had my own MEANWHILE...? Comic books always use MEANWHILE... to change the scene. So Raymond tries writing it on the wall behind his bed.

To his astonishment, Raymond discovers that he can MEANWHILE...from one perilous adventure to another'from pirates on the high seas, to Martians in outer space, to a posse and a mountain lion out West. Then, at the worst possible moment, Raymond's MEANWHILE... fails him, leaving him in a spot that spells certain doom! Unless . . . ‘Raymond, I want you!’ Raymond is reading a comic book when his mother calls him, not once but five times! ‘It’s not fair!’ Raymond thinks. Then: ‘What if I had my own MEANWHILE . . . ?’ Comic books always use MEANWHILE . . . to change the scene. So Raymond tries writing it on the wall behind his bed.

To his astonishment, Raymond discovers that he can MEANWHILE . . . from one perilous adventure to another—from pirates on the high seas, to Martians in outer space, to a posse and a mountain lion out West. Then, at the worst possible moment, Raymond’s MEANWHILE . . . fails him, leaving him in a spot that spells certain doom! Unless . . .

Editorial Reviews

From School Library Journal

Kindergarten-Grade 3. This nonsensical story gives new meaning to the phrase "absorbed in a book." When Raymond's mom calls him, he ignores her, engrossed in his comic book. As she becomes more insistent, the boy notices a boxed word in the middle of the page: MEANWHILE.... If comic books can use a word to change scenes, why can't he? Raymond writes the word on the wall and is instantly transported to a pirate ship where he is forced to walk the plank. Escaping by writing the magic word with a quill provided by the maiden he rescues, he appears in the old West, where he escapes from a posse and a ferocious mountain lion; and outer space, where he survives an attack by an evil, two-headed Martian. He begins switching back and forth among the three desperate situations, always finding it more difficult to escape. Finally, he is hurtling through space straight into his own roof. Readers will laugh at his inventive solution, not to mention his change of heart toward his still-irate mother. Repeated phrases add humor to the story and invite participation. The revolving plots lend energy and a kid-appealing pace and keep the art exciting. Each scene takes on a completely new palette, giving children the sense of being immersed in new environments along with Raymond. Bold boxes and dialogue balloons give the story the look of a comic book. Frantic action and the clever theme make this a great read-aloud.?Lisa S. Murphy, formerly at Dauphin County Library System, Harrisburg, PA
Copyright 1997 Reed Business Information, Inc.

From Kirkus Reviews

Ignoring his mother's increasingly irritated summonses, and noting that a boxed ``meanwhile'' in his comic books always signals a change of scene, Raymond tries writing the word on his bedroom wall--and drops into an exciting pirate adventure. Forced to walk the plank, he uses the trick again, and this time he's being chased by a posse. Things begin to spiral out of control; in the next ``meanwhile,'' his spacecraft is blown apart by Martians, then he's back on the plank, then facing a cougar . . . where will it end? Excitedly, he shouts, ``THE END!'' and then hurries out of his room to do whatever his mother bids. Feiffer (A Barrel of Laughs, a Vale of Tears, 1995, etc.) uses a watercolor comic-strip style for the illustrations, which are more simply drawn than his cartoons for adults; with few large panels per page, Raymond has ample space to express pop-eyed dismay in the face of flying bullets, toothy sharks, and other menaces. Children will chortle. (Picture book. 6-8) -- Copyright ©1997, Kirkus Associates, LP. All rights reserved.

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Reading level: Ages 3 and up
  
• Hardcover: 32 pages
• Publisher: HarperCollins; 1st edition (September 26, 1997)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0062051555
• ISBN-13: 978-0062051554
• Product Dimensions: 11.1 x 8.7 x 0.4 inches
• Shipping Weight: 8.8 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 4.6 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (7 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #2,883,746 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Jules Feiffer lives in New York City with his wife, Jenny. Along with being a famed cartoonist, Feiffer is also the author of numerous novels, children's books, plays and screenplays, including Carnal Knowledge, Harry, The Rat with Women and Little Murders, which was made into a celebrated movie.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

14 of 15 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars This book was GREAT!, September 14, 1999

By A Customer

This review is from: Meanwhile... (Hardcover)

I really liked this book! It is about a kid who writes meanwhile on the wall and when his mother calls him, he thinks to himself It's not fair. When ever he writes "MEANWHILE", he ends up in a toattly diffrent place, from a pirate ship to the wild west. But when the kid (Raymond) comes back to the pirate ship, he doesn't have time to write "MEANWHILE" And meats his doom.

10 of 10 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Meanwhile, Jules Feiffer writes another winner..., December 31, 2002

By 

bensmomma "bensmomma" (Ann Arbor, Michigan) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)   

This review is from: Meanwhile... (Paperback)

Those of you who are long-ago fans of the wit of Feiffer's Phantom Tollbooth will be charmed by this picture book about young Raymond, who gets out of chores, perils with pirates, mountain lions, and Martians by writing out the magic word "MEANWHILE...," thus zipping himself instantaneously into a new story.

The book is filled with Feiffer's imaginative comic-style illustrations to go with the amusing story. I surely do wish Feiffer would write more children's books, his books are unbeatable for their combination of humor and imagination. Especially good (but not only good) for little boys.

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Jules Feiffer strikes again, July 18, 2002

By 

Catherine S. Vodrey (East Liverpool, Ohio United States) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Meanwhile... (Hardcover)

Jules Feiffer's "Meanwhile" is another great example of his feverish, wonderful brain at work. "Meanwhile" looks at the life of Raymond, a young boy who just WANTS TO FINISH READING HIS COMIC BOOK, FOR CRYIN' OUT LOUD! But no, his mother is calling him to do a chore and Raymond mutters, "It's not fair!" and then realizes that he can "meanwhile . . . " out of his life just like his comic book heroes do. Raymond zigs and zags around from one adventure to the next, always depending on "meanwhile . . . " to get him out of increasingly dangerous scrapes (it's hilarious to see the lengths he goes to to "meanwhile" in different situations).

When Raymond finally ends his adventures . . . well, I don't want to give too much away. Suffice it to say that Feiffer uses his usual masterfully simple line drawings to jack up the feverish pace of this wonderful tale. Boys and girls, kids and adults, will all enjoy this ripping good yarn.