Summer Reading is Killing Me! (Time Warp Trio) (Paperback)

by Jon Scieszka (Author), Adam McCauley (Illustrator) "CLUCK, CLUCK" the thing rumbled in a deep voice..." (more)
Key Phrases: summer reading list, Long John Silver, Horned King, Peter Rabbit (more...)

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com Review
Sam, Fred, and Joe--the Time Warp Trio--find themselves face-to-beak with a giant, 266-pound chicken ... who, unfortunately, looks hungry. As the chicken begins to chase them, the boys realize with horror that they are smack-dab in the middle of Daniel Pinkwater's The Hoboken Chicken Emergency! How did they get there? Fred accidentally stuck the school's summer reading list between the pages of "The Book"--a time-warping, green-mist-expelling book that triggers time travel in all of Jon Scieszka's well-loved Time Warp Trio action-adventures.

In Summer Reading Is Killing Me!, illustrated by innovative artist Lane Smith, the boys find themselves trapped in a dreadfully skewed literary world where Joe, the narrator, says "I saw Homer Price being carried by the Headless Horseman. Dracula was dragging Winnie the Pooh in a headlock. Mr. Twit was breaking Harold's Purple Crayon." It becomes the boys' charge to find "The Book" and yank the summer reading list out of it before children's literature is destroyed forever as the "bad" characters knock off the "good" characters and take over the stories. The literary references accelerate to a breakneck pace: "We stepped over a very hungry caterpillar eating his way through a dictionary.... We made our way through a crowd of Robinson Crusoe, a blue moose, Julie with some wolves, a snowman, a plain and tall lady named Sarah, a kid with a hatchet, and a very confused-looking Robin Hood helping Eeyore reattach his tail." Whether or not young readers register every literary allusion is inconsequential--Summer Reading Is Killing Me! is a rollicking, sarcastic, ultraweird, suspenseful adventure that kids will like regardless. And for teachers, parents, and librarians who are deeply enmeshed in kid-erature--it's purely delicious. (Ages 8 and older) --Karin Snelson --This text refers to the Hardcover edition.

From School Library Journal
Grade 3-5?The Time Warp Trio is back. This time, the mayhem begins when Fred puts their school's summer reading list in The Book, the mysterious tome that has magically transported the boys to the past and the future in previous escapades. This causes Fred, Sam, and Joe to encounter the Hoboken Chicken, George and Martha, Peter Rabbit, Curious George, Frog and Toad, and a host of other children's book characters. It seems that the bad characters?the Twits, Long John Silver, the Wild Things, etc., all led by a maniacal Teddy Bear?have decided to do away with the good ones. The boys initially manage to convince the villains that they, too, are villains from an action-adventure series (whose author "starts with an s...maybe...?"), but they are soon found out. It takes a girl (Laura Ingalls? Anne of Green Gables? one of the Little Women??they can't tell since they haven't read them!) to help them find The Book so that they can put an end to the shenanigans. Nonstop action and lots of laughs prevail throughout as the friends try to find their way out of their current predicament. Smith's black-and-white illustrations are filled with his traditional brand of zany humor. The literary references will delight teachers and librarians, and perhaps inspire readers to learn more about those characters (good or bad) unfamiliar to them.
Robin L. Gibson, Muskingum County Library System, Zanesville, OH
Copyright 1998 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to the Hardcover edition.

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Product Details

• Reading level: Ages 9-12
  
• Paperback: 80 pages
• Publisher: Puffin (June 19, 2000)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0141308206
• ISBN-13: 978-0141308203
• Product Dimensions: 7.8 x 5 x 0.2 inches
• Shipping Weight: 2.9 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 4.7 out of 5 stars See all reviews (20 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #285,619 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

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  #22 in	Books > Children's Books > Series > Humorous > Time Warp Trio
  #54 in	Books > Children's Books > Authors & Illustrators, A-Z > ( S ) > Scieszka, Jon

• This item is part of The Time Warp Trio Series.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

13 of 13 people found the following review helpful:

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

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

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.

7 of 7 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!