Summer Reading is Killing Me! [Paperback]

Product Details

• Paperback
• Publisher: Puffin Books (1998)
• ASIN: B001L9QGYS
• Product Dimensions: 7.5 x 5 x 0.3 inches
• Shipping Weight: 2.4 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 4.7 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (21 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #3,236,455 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Jon Scieszka was born in Flint, Michigan on September 8th, 1954. He grew up with five brothers, has the same birthday as Peter Sellers and the Virgin Mary, and a sneaking suspicion that the characters in his Dick and Jane reader were not of this world. Those plain facts, plus his elementary school principal dad, Louis, his registered nurse mom, Shirley (who once took Jon's Cub Scout den on a field trip to the prenatal ward), Mad Magazine, four years of pre-med undergrad, "The Rocky and Bullwinkle Show", an M.F.A. in Fiction from Columbia University, Robert Benchley, five years of painting apartments in New York City, his lovely wife Jeri Hansen who introduced him to Molly Leach and Lane Smith, Green Eggs and Ham, his teenage daughter Casey and almost teenage son Jake, ten years of teaching a little bit of everything from first grade to eighth grade, and the last twenty years of living in Brooklyn...are just some of Jon's answers to the questions, "Where do you get your ideas?" and/or "How did you become a writer?" I don't know, just because, none of your beeswax, and flapdoodle poppycock and balderdash are some more of Jon's answers to questions you can imagine on your own. Jon met up with Lane Smith around 1986 or so, and nothing has been the same since. Their first book, the wiseguy fairy tale retelling, The True Story of the 3 Little Pigs! was initially rejected by most publishers as "too weird" and "too sophisticated". Published by Viking in 1989, The True Story has now sold over a million copies, been translated into ten languages, and been called a "classic picture book for all ages". Jon and Lane's The Stinky Cheese Man and Other Fairly Stupid Tales (1992) took the world of the picture book a few steps further. Goofing with the conventions of fairy tales and even being a book, The Stinky Cheese Man became a household word, sold another mess of copies in multiple languages, offended a few purists, and still managed to win a Caldecott Honor medal. Math Curse (1995) further stretched the notion of what subjects make good picture books, selling more books faster than either 3 Little Pigs or Stinky Cheese, and winning a whole slew of awards --all for a book full of mathematics.More recently, Jon and Lane have resurrected fables (in the smart, funny, and a little bit wicked way Aesop would have wanted them) in their latest collaboration, Squids Will Be Squids (1998). No telling where they might take the picture book next. Someone once wrote, "Jon Scieszka has forever changed the face of children's literature." And while there is still some confusion over exactly who that someone was, and whether children's literature does, in fact, have a face, most would agree-from The True Story of the 3 Little Pigs! to Squids Will Be Squids, since Scieszka put pen to paper, children's literature sure has been...different.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

16 of 16 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Absolutely Terrific!, June 4, 2000

By 

Roz Levine - See all my reviews

This review is from: Summer Reading Is Killing Me (Time Warp Trio) (Hardcover)

The Time Warp Trio set out on their best adventure yet, when Fred leaves their school's summer reading list stuck inside the pages of their time travel vehicle, "The Book". Now, the three are stuck in literature, where the bad and evil characters are out to get all the good ones and take over the stories. This is a wonderfully written, witty, funny story that will have your kids laughing out loud. Perfect for third through sixth graders, kids will recognize characters from stories they've read and some that parents and teachers have read to them. A page turner to the end, this is the perfect book to read once the school year has ended. The only negative thing I can say about Summer Reading is Killing Me, is that it's over way too soon.

9 of 9 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars It's the best of the Time Warp Trio!, July 21, 1998

By A Customer

This review is from: Summer Reading Is Killing Me (Time Warp Trio) (Hardcover)

As a Michigan teacher who has met the author personally I look forward to each new book Scieszka writes. I especially enjoyed reading the latest adventures of Scieszka's Time Warp Trio. The adventure is fast paced and I caught myself laughing out loud as I read. In my classroom I will read it at the beginning of the school year and at the end of the year to arouse interest in the many book characters mentioned in the story.

6 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars This is one Time Warp Trio book you won't want to miss., June 29, 1998

By A Customer

This review is from: Summer Reading Is Killing Me (Time Warp Trio) (Hardcover)

I recommend this book to any boy in third or fourth grade. It was a very funny book to read and was adventuous also. After reading many other Time Warp Trio books, this was a welcome addition to my summer reading list. P. S. After reading this book pay good attention to the summer reading at the end. It will make you chuckle!