Judy Moody Around the World in 8½ Days. (Judy Moody, #7). Susan Juby. Megan McDonald. Illustrated by Peter H. Reynolds. 157 pp., pbk., $7.00. ISBN 978-0-7636-44863-3. Note: Judy Moody Uber-Awesome Collection. ISBN 978-0-7636-5411-5. Contains Volumes 1-9. $54.00. Grades 1-4 / Ages 6-9. Review by Deborah Mervold and Kira Gerein. **** /4

excerpt:

The girl had a notebook and a clipboard. The girl wore a blue plaid skirt like a school uniform, and not one but TWO watches. The girl had a pencil behind her ear. The girl looked very noticeable in her blue-green glasses.

The girl came over to Judy Moody's lunch table and plopped herself down right beside Judy's friends, Rocky and Frank.

She, NOT Judy Moody, looked like she was in a reporter mood.

Who was this important-looking, glasses-wearing girl, anyway? Judy wondered.

"Amy Namey, Girl Reporter," said the girl. "What's the scoop?"

With this conversation [see excerpt above], a new character is added to the series. Amy Namey is confident and in the school's other Grade 3 class. Judy discovers that Amy has been to Bubble Gum Alley and that the two share a common interest in ABC gum collections. ABC stands for already been chewed. However, with the addition of Amy, Judy no longer feels unique and original; she feels like a clone. Judy changes Amy from an enemy into a friend when Amy invites Judy to join the rhyming name club with official name badges. Amy likes Nellie Bly, the famous reporter, just like Judy likes Elizabeth Blackwell, the famous doctor.
Amy is invited to their Grade 3 class to tell the students about Nellie's race around the world.

     The students are then informed that they are going to do a group project with each group selecting a country similar to Nellie's route, and they have criteria which they research and then present to their class. Judy's group of her two friends, Frank and Rocky, plus Jessica, a girl in their class, get off to a great start but then runs into trouble when Judy's relationship with her new friend interrupts their group work time. The students learn what it means to work together and how to be successful and complete their project, although not how it was originally intended.

     The language provides colour and humour to the story. The 12 chapters have titles which add humour as well as develop the plot, with some examples being " Rhyme Time" , "Nellie Bly Says Goodbye" and "No-Talky Rocky vs Judy Snooty" . There is a "Who's Who" page at the beginning of the book with a picture of each character and a comment by Judy. This character gallery adds interest and humour to the text as do the pen and ink illustrations by Peter H. Reynolds.

     Although Judy Moody Around the World in 8½ Days is a part of a series, this book also stands alone. The author includes pages about the author and illustrator at the end of the book, titled " Ten things you might not know about the author and illustrator" . Reference to a Judy Moody website is included.

      Judy Moody Around the World in 8½ Days would appeal to a variety of readers, including readers of humour, and realistic fiction. This book would be an excellent class novel for individual reading or as a read aloud choice. It would be an excellent addition for personal, class, school and public libraries.

Highly Recommended.

Deborah Mervold is an educator from Shellbrook, SK, who is now doing faculty training and program development at Saskatchewan Institute of Applied Science and Technology. Kira Gerein is a Grade 5 student in Saskatoon, SK.

To comment on this title or this review, send mail to cm@umanitoba.ca.

Copyright © the Manitoba Library Association. Reproduction for personal use is permitted only if this copyright notice is maintained. Any other reproduction is prohibited without permission.

Published by The Manitoba Library Association ISSN 1201-9364

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