Punctuation Takes a Vacation (Paperback)

~ (Author), Lynn Rowe Reed (Illustrator)

Editorial Reviews

From School Library Journal

Grade 1-3-"Day after day, the punctuation marks showed up in Mr. Wright's classroom. Day after day, they did their jobs. They put up with being erased and replaced and corrected and ignored and moved around." Miffed when the teacher quips, "Let's give punctuation a vacation," the various marks decide to take a trip and rush out the door. The class misses them almost immediately, as nothing the students read or write makes any sense without them. The vacationers send postcards back to the class requiring the children to dissect the clever wordplay and figure out which marks sent which cards. The youngsters send their own card apologizing, and all ends happily as the punctuation marks return and order is restored. Pulver's clever story moves along at a nice clip and makes its point without belaboring the matter. Reed's acrylics-on-canvas illustrations are rich in color and texture, and add to the amusement of the story. A lighthearted choice to be read independently or used to introduce a language-arts lesson.
Grace Oliff, Ann Blanche Smith School, Hillsdale, NJ
Copyright 2003 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to the Hardcover edition.

From Booklist

Gr. 1-3. On the hottest day Mr. Wright's class has ever seen, the teacher gives punctuation a vacation! Insulted, the punctuation marks take off, and a few days later postcards arrive from Take-a-Break Lake. The kids want to write back, but they can't without any punctuation. Borrowing the unruly marks from the class next door, they write a letter begging the marks to return, a letter filled with usage errors that effectively makes their case. Childlike acrylic paintings on canvas "punctuate" the zaniness by turning the marks into characters whose banter exemplifies the marks' use. The messages on the postcards further typify usage (e.g., "Do you miss us? How much? Why couldn't we take a vacation sooner? Guess who?"). A straightforward list of punctuation rules rounds out this inventive and entertaining device for getting kids to understand usage, which proves that nothing makes sense without punctuation. Right? Right! Julie Cummins
Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved --This text refers to the Hardcover edition.

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Product Details

• Reading level: Ages 4-8
  
• Paperback: 28 pages
• Publisher: Holiday House (March 1, 2004)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0823418200
• ISBN-13: 978-0823418206
• Product Dimensions: 9.8 x 9.8 x 0.1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 5.6 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.6 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (35 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #18,935 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

88 of 90 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Rip Roarin' Grammar Romp....., June 19, 2003

By	Roz Levine (Virginia) - See all my reviews (TOP 500 REVIEWER)

This review is from: Punctuation Takes a Vacation (Hardcover)

"Day after day, the punctuation marks showed up in Mr. Wright's classroom. Day after day, they did their jobs. They put up with being erased and replaced and corrected and ignored and moved around. Then on the hottest, stickiest day the class had ever seen, right in the middle of a lesson about commas, Mr Wright mopped his forehead and said, "Let's give punctuation a vacation..." Those cruel kids cheered and ran out to the playground. The punctuation marks looked at each other in disbelief and grew angry, very angry. If the kids could take a break, well they could too. And with that, they rushed out the door and left school on a little vacation of their own. When Mr. Wright's class returned, they discovered a big problem. They couldn't read or write or learn. In fact, nothing made any sense at all without punctuation. A few days later, some rather unusual postcards began to arrive from Take-a-Break Lake..... Author, Robin Pulver's zany and engaging story is a lesson in disguise, filled with droll humor, clever wordplay, silly sound effects, and lively punctuation fun. Lynn Rowe Reed's bold, bright, and busy childlike illustrations are playful and entertaining. Together, word and art offer a delightful, manic romp that's perfect for story time, or as a help reinforcing grammar lessons. With a straightforward list of rules at the end to complete this manic, fun-filled treasure, Punctuation Takes A Vacation is a delightful crowd pleaser, and kids 6-10 may find that punctuation lessons will never be boring again.

47 of 48 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A World Without Punctuation?, March 7, 2004

By	ardnam "ardnam" (NJ) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Punctuation Takes a Vacation (Hardcover)

This is a great tool for showing children the importance of punctuation in a fun format. In this book a teacher decides to give punctuation a vacation. Postcards arrive and the reader has to guess which form of punctuation wrote it to the class. Children are able to make connections to the chaos of not having punctuation and how it impacts understanding. Fortunately, punctuation returns and classroom life is much improved. I recommend this book.

24 of 24 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A Groundbreaking Title, February 26, 2005

By	Judy Freeman (Highland Park, NJ) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Punctuation Takes a Vacation (Hardcover)

I've been using this book with teachers, librarians, parents, and, best of all, children, over the past year now, and it is a delight. Complex, wildly original, humorous, and meaty, too, this is one glorious read-aloud.

Lynn Truss is still on the Best Seller lists for her Eats Shoots and Leaves, for the grownup set, and Pulver's contribution to the genre is every bit as memorable. As you can see everywhere you read, people have trouble with the dreaded comma and apostrophe. Pulver has taken the sting out of punctuation and made those little marks our pals. When one becomes friends with periods, commas, and exclamation points, one tends to be much less careless about treating them in a cavalier fashion.

As for the hoo ha and hubbub about racial stereotyping in the book, debated on this site, this is an unfortunate distraction and an unwarranted criticism. Two male teachers in an elementary school! Wow! We should be cheering. Of all the many folks with whom I've shared this book, I haven't seen any reaction except laughter and sustained affection. OK, so maybe Mr. Wrongo is a left-brained guy who likes math better than language. So punctuation runs wild in his room. When I read this with several classes of second graders, they had a blast trying to correct the wacky letter Mr. Wright's class concocts.

We've made punctuation puppets, written giant sentence banners that kids punctuated with their puppets, and devised sound effects and hand signs for each punctuation mark. Every classroom teacher from grades 1-5, and then some, will find a memorable way to use this book. One tenth grade English teacher told me she read it aloud to her classes and they loved it. And one mom told me her kindergarten daughter insisted it be read to her, night after night, at bedtime. Just think what her dreams must have been like.

Pulver's warm and humorous writing will lead you to her other titles as well. I can't wait to see what she writes next.