Status
Available
Call number
Publication
Scholastic Inc.
Pages
268
Description
A collection of humorous stories featuring a teenaged mummy, a homicidal turkey, and the world's largest pool of chocolate milk.
Description
It’s here: Volume One of the official Guys Read Library. Jon Scieszka’s Guys Read initiative was founded on a simple premise: that young guys enjoy reading most when they have reading they can enjoy. And out of this comes a series that aims to give them just that. Ten books, arranged by theme, featuring the best of the best where writing for kids is concerned. Each book is a collection of original short stories, but these aren’t your typical anthologies: each book is edgy, inventive, visual, and one-of-a-kind, featuring a different theme for guys to get excited about.
Funny Business is based around the theme of—what else?—humor, and if you’re familiar with Jon and Guys Read, you already know what you’re in store for: ten hilarious stories from some of the funniest writers around. Before you’re through, you’ll meet a teenage mummy; a kid desperate to take a dip in the world’s largest pool of chocolate milk; a homicidal turkey; parents who hand over their son’s room to a biker; the only kid in his middle school who hasn’t turned into a vampire, wizard, or superhero; and more. And the contributor list includes bestselling authors, award winners, and fresh new talent alike: Mac Barnett, Eoin Colfer, Christopher Paul Curtis, Kate DiCamillo (writing with Jon Scieszka), Paul Feig, Jack Gantos, Jeff Kinney, David Lubar, Adam Rex, and David Yoo.
Guys Read is all about turning young readers into lifelong ones—and with this book, and each subsequent installment in the series, we aim to leave no guy unturned.
Includes the following stories:
Best of friends / Mac Barnett --
Will / Adam Rex --
Artemis begins / Eoin Colfer --
Kid appeal / David Lubar --
Your question for author her / Kate DiCamillo & Jon Scieszka --
A fistful of feathers / David Yoo --
Unaccompanied minors / Jeff Kinney --
"What? You think you got it rough??" / Christopher Paul Curtis --
My parents give my bedroom to a biker / Paul Feig --
The bloody souvenir / Jack Gantos.
Funny Business is based around the theme of—what else?—humor, and if you’re familiar with Jon and Guys Read, you already know what you’re in store for: ten hilarious stories from some of the funniest writers around. Before you’re through, you’ll meet a teenage mummy; a kid desperate to take a dip in the world’s largest pool of chocolate milk; a homicidal turkey; parents who hand over their son’s room to a biker; the only kid in his middle school who hasn’t turned into a vampire, wizard, or superhero; and more. And the contributor list includes bestselling authors, award winners, and fresh new talent alike: Mac Barnett, Eoin Colfer, Christopher Paul Curtis, Kate DiCamillo (writing with Jon Scieszka), Paul Feig, Jack Gantos, Jeff Kinney, David Lubar, Adam Rex, and David Yoo.
Guys Read is all about turning young readers into lifelong ones—and with this book, and each subsequent installment in the series, we aim to leave no guy unturned.
Includes the following stories:
Best of friends / Mac Barnett --
Will / Adam Rex --
Artemis begins / Eoin Colfer --
Kid appeal / David Lubar --
Your question for author her / Kate DiCamillo & Jon Scieszka --
A fistful of feathers / David Yoo --
Unaccompanied minors / Jeff Kinney --
"What? You think you got it rough??" / Christopher Paul Curtis --
My parents give my bedroom to a biker / Paul Feig --
The bloody souvenir / Jack Gantos.
Collection
Language
Original language
English
Physical description
268 p.; 7.6 inches
ISBN
9780545324403
Similar in this library
Pie by Sarah Weeks
Lexile
840L
User reviews
LibraryThing member CatheOlson
This is a collection of stories by various children's authors, such as Adam Rex, Eoin Colfer, David Lubar, etc. While there were a couple of stories that were just so-so for me, most of them were freaking hilarious. I was laughing out loud through most of the book and ended up reading a couple of
Though the recommended age range for the book is 8-12, I felt like some of the stories were more for older kids. I think this would be a perfect book for middle-schoolers -- boys and girls!
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stories to my daughters because they just had to know what I was laughing about. I especially liked David Yoo's story of the boy being ousted from his family by a macho turkey and Sciezka and DiCamillo's collaborative story that parodies the book Dear Mr. Henshaw. The only think I didn't like about the book was that Jeff Kinney's story was left out of this advanced review copy . . . but you better believe I will be getting the final version.Though the recommended age range for the book is 8-12, I felt like some of the stories were more for older kids. I think this would be a perfect book for middle-schoolers -- boys and girls!
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LibraryThing member elissajanine
I enjoyed this book of humorous short stories and will be able to find many ways to use this with my middle school students! Loved the Jon Scieszka and Kate diCamillo story with the letters to the author! So cool!
LibraryThing member KimJD
October 2010 SLJ: Gr 5-8–
Building on the success of Guys Write for Guys Read (Viking, 2005), Scieszka continues his mission to take the “reluctant” out of readers with this first volume of the “Guys Read Library.” For this title, Scieszka invited some of today’s top writers of
Building on the success of Guys Write for Guys Read (Viking, 2005), Scieszka continues his mission to take the “reluctant” out of readers with this first volume of the “Guys Read Library.” For this title, Scieszka invited some of today’s top writers of
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children’s fiction to contribute a humorous short story. Not surprisingly, the resulting compilation has something for everyone. Looking for a story heavy on the ick-factor? Suggest Jack Gantos’s “The Bloody Souvenir,” in which the Pagoda brothers return to wreak more havoc. David Yoo’s “A Fistful of Feathers” features a bloodthirsty turkey intent on destroying the narrator’s life. Eoin Colfer offers an autobiographical piece that shares how his younger brother was his real-life inspiration for Artemis Fowl. Kate DiCamillo and Scieszka team up to offer a hilarious correspondence between Joe and an author who knows how to hold her own with unmotivated students. While these shorter stories may not have the liveliness of the authors’ full novels, each one is solid, and more importantly, it offers an introduction to that author’s style and voice. Don’t be surprised if students come seeking longer works by David Lubar, Christopher Paul Curtis, and other contributors after sampling them in this collection. Scieszka promises future volumes featuring other genres, among them nonfiction, sports, and action/adventure.–Kim Dare, Fairfax County Public Schools, VA Show Less
LibraryThing member foraclass
Boys can be some of the toughest to get excited about reading. This is a great resource for helping boys find something that interests them. The names of some of the categories were great, such as "At Least One Explosion". Under each category, there is a list of books. The books are all linked to a
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brief description. The description addresses plot and various other factors such as author and page count. Not all information is available for each book, which is a downside. The site also has reading lists suggested by famous authors. Show Less
LibraryThing member Octokitten
Contains daily essays on children's book recommendations for toddlers through teens alongside events and activities for every day of the year. Seems like a really fantastic resource to follow, especially as someone who constantly needs ideas for storytime. The site is easy to use either casually or
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to create booklists with the search feature that allows the user to pull up books by author, age, subject, or type of book. Show Less
LibraryThing member Megs_Scrambled
I am familiar with Jon Scieszka's Guys Read promotion, but not so much with this website as a reader's advisory resource. I think it's incredibly important to keep boys reading when as the website mentions, there are so many reasons they stop. The subject headings are exactly what I can imagine
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boys actually ask for. For example, "books about space, without aliens" is great way to describe some sci-fi plots. This is a great resource for reluctant readers in general, regardless of gender, and that is this resource's true strength. Show Less
LibraryThing member Cheryl_in_CC_NV
Perfect for most 9-12 year-old boys, also pretty darn funny even for a mom. Dramatic, crude, stupid - and laugh-out-loud funny. I am thankful that one story was about a boy who wasn't as macho as the others.
LibraryThing member BrynDahlquis
I surprised myself by enjoying the majority of these stories. Even the ones I didn't like weren't all that bad, either.
My favorites:
"Will" by Adam Rex was super good. I didn't want that one to end, and would love to read a full-blown novel version.
"Artemis Begins" by Eoin Colfer was also really
"Your Question for Author Here" by Kate DiCamillo and Jon Scieszka. LOVED this one. I'm a sucker for letter stories, but this one was really well done.
"A Fistful of Feathers" by David Yoo genuinely scared me. Very disturbing.
Like I said, the rest of the stories weren't bad. I would recommend the anthology not just to boys, but girls too.
My favorites:
"Will" by Adam Rex was super good. I didn't want that one to end, and would love to read a full-blown novel version.
"Artemis Begins" by Eoin Colfer was also really
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good, and not just because I'm an Artemis Fowl fan."Your Question for Author Here" by Kate DiCamillo and Jon Scieszka. LOVED this one. I'm a sucker for letter stories, but this one was really well done.
"A Fistful of Feathers" by David Yoo genuinely scared me. Very disturbing.
Like I said, the rest of the stories weren't bad. I would recommend the anthology not just to boys, but girls too.
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LibraryThing member reader1009
children's short stories/humor. Finally, something to satisfy reluctant readers (both boys and girls). Though some of the stories were definitely better than others, I look forward to seeing more of these compilations.
LibraryThing member grandpahobo
Given that all the stories are about kids, they are pretty entertaining and amusing.
Awards
Read Aloud Indiana Book Award (Middle Grades — 2013-2015)
The Best Children's Books of the Year (Nine to Twelve — 2011)
Call number
J4D.Sci