Book Review

 

Bibliography-

Viorst, J. (1987). ALEXANDER AND THE TERRIBLE, HORRIBLE, NO GOOD, VERY BAD DAY. (R. Cruz, Ill.). Atheneum Books for Young Readers.

 

Plot Summary-

This is a cute, humerous story about a boy named Alexander. He could tell it was going to be a terrible, horrible, no good, very bad day because he went to sleep with gum in his mouth and woke up with gum in his hair. Then he got out of bed, tripped over his skateboard and by mistake dropped his sweater in the sink while the water was running.

It was definitely a terrible, horrible, no good, very bad day. Nothing at all was right and everything went wrong, right down to lima beans for supper and kissing on TV.
What does Alexander do on a day like that? Well, he contemplates going to Australia, of course! This story might make you feel glad to find that some days are like that for other people too.

 

Critical Analysis-

The theme of this story is simple, everyone has bad days. The hopeful message by the end is that every bad day comes to an end, eventually. Viorst uses relatable topics and simple pictures in hopes that the reader can better appreciate the theme of the book. It provides insight into bad days through the eyes of a child. The difficult situations Alexander finds himself in lend themselves to discussions that are easily modified depending on the age of the students.  

The detailed black and white sketches help the reader to see Alexander’s range of emotions throughout the story. The illustrations along with the text convey the message of how a bad day feels for a kid. This book is a classic that can be read aloud to all ages.

 

 Review Excerpts-

ALA’s Notable Children’s Book award

Publisher’s Weekly review: “Objecting loudly to his family's plans to relocate, the hero of Alexander and the Terrible, Horrible, No Good, Very Bad Day makes a gratifying return."

 

 Connections-

-Discuss relevant vocabulary words before reading the story. After reading the title, discuss and explain synonyms and antonyms. Ask students to brainstorm a list of synonyms for the words in the title, the a list of antonyms for the words in the title.

-Use the events in the story to allow the students to practice sequencing.  

-Gather other books by Judith Viorst to compare different aspects of the storyline, illustrations, and themes.

*Viorst, Judith. Alexander, Who Used to be Rich Last Sunday. ISBN 0689711999

*Viorst, Judith. Alexander, Who’s Not (Do You Hear Me? I Mean It!) Going to Move. ISBN 0689820895 

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