Otis Spofford [Paperback]

Beverly Cleary (Author), Tracy Dockray (Illustrator)

Book Description

Age Level: 8 and up | Grade Level: 2 and up

When it comes to stirring up a little excitement in class, Otis Spofford knows just what to do. He can turn a folk dance fiesta into a three-ring circus . . . or an arithmetic lesson into a spitball marathon. Best of all, Otis likes teasing neat, well-behaved Ellen Tebbits—until the day his teasing goes too far. Now Otis is nervous, because Ellen isn't just mad . . . she's planning something!

Editorial Reviews

From School Library Journal

Grade 2-5-Otis Spofford's uncontrollable urge for mischief makes him a surprisingly contemporary third grader, despite the fact that this story was written by Beverly Cleary (Morrow, 1953) almost a half-century ago. The setting for most of the story is Otis' school, where his one-size-fits-all classroom teacher orchestrates the class lessons accompanied by Otis, the class clown. Cleary sums up Otis this way: "Except for learning things, Otis liked school." His goal in life seems to be to stir up excitement, which often backfires, until arch rival Ellen Tebbits teaches him the difference between good-natured teasing and bullying. The timeless appeal of this well-written story overshadows the infrequent references to dated details, like 20-cent school lunches, cloakrooms, and phonographs. Johnny Heller's clear, crisp voice is perfect for the story. As a comedian, Heller lends an element of levity to his reading. His acting skills are apparent as the story's characters take on subtly different voice inflections. Appropriate for classroom read-alongs, listening centers, and individual use, this entertaining audiobook would make a nice addition to any collection. Larger libraries will want to consider purchasing multiple copies.
Kirsten Martindale, Buford Academy, GA
Copyright 2000 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to the Audio Cassette edition.

Review

“A really hilarious boy who is a classroom comedian, a show-off and a pest, but still very lovable.” (Publishers Weekly )

“Mrs. Cleary writes from a sure knowledge of the third grader’s world. It all rings true.” (The New York Times )

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Reading level: Ages 8 and up
  
• Paperback: 208 pages
• Publisher: HarperCollins (January 1, 2001)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0380709198
• ISBN-13: 978-0380709199
• Product Dimensions: 7.5 x 5.1 x 0.4 inches
• Shipping Weight: 4.8 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.6 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (19 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #336,793 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
  • #25 in Books > 4-for-3 Books > Children's Books > Authors & Illustrators, A-Z > ( C ) > Cleary, Beverly

More About the Author

Beverly Cleary's birthday, April 12th, is celebrated across the country on D.E.A.R. Day, with activities related to the Drop Everything and Read Program. One of the most popular and honored authors of all time, Beverly Cleary has won the Newbery Medal for Dear Mr. Henshaw, and both Ramona Quimby, Age 8 and Ramona and Her Father have been named Newbery Honor Books. She makes her home in coastal California.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

18 of 18 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Perfect for non-readers!, June 19, 2000

By A Customer

This review is from: Otis Spofford (Paperback)

Otis Spofford is a boy just looking for a little excitement. To Otis excitement means upstaging a playacting toreador, shooting spitballs at classmates and even his teacher, sabotaging a class experiment, upstaging a friend while helping the local football hero, and especially chasing and teasing the very prim and proper Ellen Tebbitts. Otis' classmates and teacher warn him that someday he will get his comeuppance for his antics. When Otis takes his teasing of Ellen too far then his comeuppance finally happens.

Beverly Cleary's "Otis Spofford" was one of the funniest books I ever read. I particularly enjoyed Otis' comments on how "dopey" the characters in the books he had to read for school acted. Ms. Cleary obviously wrote "Otis Spofford" for children who felt the same way about reading as Otis did. Otis is no dope and non-readers will love him for it!

Some of Ms. Cleary's older books are sometimes dismissed as being "quaint" or out of date with their 50's settings and families (father works and mom stays at home.) "Otis Spofford" was written in 1961, but Otis has a single mother who owns her own business and they live in an apartment. In some ways Ms. Cleary was ahead of her time; but there is no denying that Otis is a wildboy of the 50's. "Otis Spofford" is an extremely readable and hilarious book featuring the wonderful drawings of illustrator Louis Darling. (I've always preferred Mr. Darling's idealized illustrations of very 50's looking children (the girls in dresses or rolled up pants with moptop hairstyles, the boys in canvas hightop sneakers and bristled haircuts) which are in Ms. Cleary's older books to the illustrations of her more recent books which make some of the characters look rather ugly- Ramona is so much cuter when drawn by Louis Darling than Alan Tiegrin.)

8 of 8 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A great read-aloud!, May 17, 2005

By 

Jennifer K. Mayer "J.Mayer" (Glendive, MT USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Otis Spofford (Paperback)

I read this to my third grade class and they loved it. Every day we wanted to see what Otis was up to. He is so mischievious that some of the kids really relate, especially when Otis talks about how boring school is (I took no offense). My students couldn't believe the stuff he pulled on his teacher and this was written over 50 years ago! Our favorite was the hair cutting incident. They couldn't believe he actually cut a girl's hair.

If you liked this book I would recommend Joey Pigza Swallowed the Key, another story of a boy looking for some excitement. Enjoy!

8 of 8 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A book for even non-readers, January 24, 2000

By A Customer

This review is from: Otis Spofford (Paperback)

My 4th grade elementary school teacher was an elderly woman entering the last years of a very long career. She was feared throughout the school as a very strict, no-nonsense diciplinarian. She was a teacher of the old school. She had mandatory oral book reports and woe to the student who was not ready.

She was fairly open as to what topic the books could be about; but she did not allow "war" books. Being a big military history buff even at age 10, this shrunk my preferences significantly. She did offer some recommendations on what was acceptable and prominent was the name of Beverly Cleary.

I went to the library and discovered quite a collection of Beverly Cleary books. I picked out "Henry Huggins" and took it home with me. I started to read it because I had to do a book report on something. As I read I began to enjoy it more and more. I found myself laughing at Henry's adventures. I was hooked. Every week I took out another Beverly Cleary book from the library. Henry, Ribsy, Beezus, and troublesome Ramona were the topics of most of my book reports. I would laugh while I gave my report and soon other students in my class were also reading Ms. Cleary's works.

"Otis Spofford" was different. Wheras Henry Huggins was just an average boy; Otis Spofford was a class clown and an instigator. Otis loved stirring the pot and sometimes his antics went too far. As a boy, I could not help but be enthralled by this wild kid. It is a very funny book.

Among my best friends in grade school were many of the "non-readers" of my class. These were the boys who dreaded being made to read out loud. The boys who never had a book report ready when it was their turn. The boys who got embarrassed by our old school teacher for not being ready. These were the boys for whom Beverly Cleary wrote "Otis Spofford."

I told my friends about "Otis Spofford." And several of them actually read it! Not only did they read it, they loved it! The class must have heard four or five reports on "Otis Spofford" all by students who were known to dislike reading. I think that is as big a compliment for a children's book as there can possibly be.