Say What? [Paperback]

Margaret Peterson Haddix (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: 2004

Sukie is worried- her parents are acting strange. When she runs in the house, her dad asks, "If all your friends jumped off a bridge, would you jump off a bridge too?" When she eats peas with her finders, Mom yells, "You'll put an eye out with that thing!" What is going on? She and her older brothers decide to investigate. And what they discover leads to a kids-against-parents war!

Product Details

• Paperback: 91 pages
• Publisher: Aladdin (2004)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1416911901
• ISBN-13: 978-1416911906
• Product Dimensions: 7.4 x 5.2 x 0.2 inches
• Shipping Weight: 2.4 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 4.9 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (8 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #4,281,571 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

I grew up on a farm outside Washington Court House, Ohio. As a kid, I liked to read a lot, and was also involved in 4-H, various bands and choirs (I played flute and piano), church youth group, the school newspaper, and a quiz-bowl type team. I was pretty disastrous as an athlete, although I did run track one year in high school. After graduating from Miami University (of Ohio), I worked as a newspaper copy editor in Fort Wayne, Indiana; a newspaper reporter in Indianapolis; and a part-time community college instructor and freelance writer in Danville, Illinois, before my first book was published. I've moved around a lot as an adult, having also lived in Luxembourg (during a college semester abroad) and in Clarks Summit, Pennsylvania. Several years ago, I moved back to Ohio with my husband and kids; we now live in Columbus, Ohio. My husband trains investigative journalists, and my kids are in high school, so there's always a lot going on around our house.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

6 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars a enjoyable story for young readers, May 18, 2004

By 

KidsReads (New York, NY) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Say What? (Ready-for-Chapters) (Hardcover)

Something is definitely wrong in the Robinson household. Mom and Dad's responses to the children's misbehavior are completely unrelated to their actions. For example, when Sukie kicks her brother Brian, her mother responds, "Waste not, want not." Another time Sukie is running through the living room with glitter in her hand. When the glitter spills, her father's response is, "If all your friends jumped off a bridge, would you jump off a bridge too?"

Sukie talks to her brothers about these bizarre occurrences. They are determined to learn why their parents are acting so strangely and decide that they must be bad on purpose in order to gather evidence. After overhearing their parents talking, the kids finally understand what's going on. This leads to a kids-against-parents WAR.

Who exactly will win the war of the words --- the children or the adults? You will have to read SAY WHAT? to find out.

The jokes in this book go on a little too long, but young readers will enjoy the humorous situations and detailed pencil drawings. SAY WHAT? is an easy read for those children just making the transition to chapter books.

--- Reviewed by Renee Kirchner (...)

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Another Great Book By MPH!!!, April 28, 2004

A Kid's Review

This review is from: Say What? (Ready-for-Chapters) (Hardcover)

Great book! Very funny and cute. Story Line:
Sukie, Reed, and Brian are confused. Their parents are saying weird things, normal parent-speaks, but at the wrong time! The kids find out that Mom and Dad got the idea from a magazine. It's supposed to turn children into sweet angels wanting their parents to tell them to do a chore. The kids aren't happy about it and decide that this means war! They do the same thing back, Sukie spills her milk and when Mom says 'No, you can't have a snack, dinner is in 5 minutes.' Sukie says 'Reed had more than me.' Hilarious! A short book, but funny, none the less.

4 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Sunshine State Readers Award, August 6, 2007

By 

L M Kellogg "lmkellogg" (FL United States) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Say What? (Ready-for-Chapters) (Paperback)

This review is for the Grades 3-5 Sunshine State Readers Award:

After a lot of research I have found that there are only 4 books on the list that are appropriate for the younger 3rd grade reader. They are Say What?, Drita My Homegirl, Christopher Mouse and Wildfire. The rest of the list is simply to difficult for the younger readers. My daughter reads at a 3.7 level and even these books have higher vocabulary and more mature subject content then what she usually reads.