#SoRatherBeYoung: Wackiness & Warts
Estelle and I are teaming up to celebrate the books that turned us into readers with "You Make Me Feel So Young." In each post, we'll be highlighting three books: one joint read that we both loved growing up and then we'll each pick a book for one another (something we loved that the other one hasn't read yet).
Joint Pick: WAYSIDE SCHOOL GETS A LITTLE STRANGER by Louis Sachar | First Published: 1995
More Than You Know: Author Louis Sachar wrote Sideways Stories from Wayside School after graduating from the University of California, Berkley. During college, he worked at an elementary school to earn college credit and helped as the Noontime Supervisor (the real-life inspiration behind the "Louis the Yard Teacher" character).
Memories are Made of This: I remember reading Sideways Stories from Wayside School and Wayside School is Falling Down, but I don't know if I ever read any farther into the series! So, I was excited when we decided to read the third book. As I was reading, I was waiting to see if anything in this felt familiar, and it never did. However, I definitely remember the silliness and wackiness of Sachar's humor. It was fun to go back to Wayside!
Second Time Around: While I don't know if this was officially my second read of the book, I enjoyed the time spent in Wayside. My sister is a third grade teacher, and she's told me all about how much her students love this series. And I can see why! I loved that some of the humor was so clever it probably goes over their heads - and it was fun to read the parts that I imagine kids just adore. I liked the smaller vignettes and the longer storylines that were carried through the whole book. Now, I need to go back and re-read the first two books!
You Can Take My Word for It, Baby: I can see myself reading this book (and the series) to my future children. Knowing how much my sister's class loves it - and giggling over it myself - makes me look forward to reading it aloud one day. It will be fun to see what elements of the story they understand and obsess over!
Do You Know Why? I re-read a few Anastasia books a few years ago, and I remember being quite delighted by them. She still held up even after the many years that had passed since I was crazily borrowing each book out of the library. I never hear about her much anymore, and I needed Hannah to try her out. (It's also continued our unofficial tradition of strong female characters in this little feature.) - from Estelle
Can't You Just See Yourself: Anastasia Krupnik was a completely new-to-me read! With the last two books Estelle picked for me, I'd heard of them and had a bit of an idea about what I was about to read. But that wasn't the case with this one! And now, I'm surprised that I somehow missed out on this story and this heroine. I think I would have liked Anastasia as a kid - she reminded me of Harriet (from Harriet the Spy) but way better.
I Give You My Word: I enjoyed Anastasia Krupnik, and I'm glad Estelle picked it for me. As she said, I loved continuing our unofficial tradition of reading about strong heroines. Anastasia was opinionated, smart and fun. I liked that the book focused on the everyday aspects of her life. There were bigger moments but most of them were the smaller joys and trials. My favorite storyline was the one involving Anastasia's grandmother because it made me so emotional. And the best part of the book? Her interactions with her parents! They were amazing, and I imagine Anastasia will be a combination of the two of them when she grows up.
Before the Music Ends: I really enjoyed this book, and I'm actually curious about the rest of the series! This book was such a hidden gem. I've read some of the more well-known books by Lowry (The Giver and Number the Stars), but this definitely motivated me to read more of her backlist. I bet I've been missing out! If you haven't read this series (and like smart and precocious heroines), give it a shot. Anastasia will crack you up!
Have you read either of these books? What do you remember?
Comment or join the conversation with #SoRatherBeYoung.
I was obsessed with that Anastasia Krupnik series when I was younger as well! Anastasia is a great character, and I really wanted to be her friend. Also, all of the nostalgia came rushing back to me seeing Wayside featured in your posts this month!
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