We Love Jon Scieszka because...

*He's hilarious!
*He's nice!
*He's the first National Ambassador for Young People's Literature!
*He created Guys Read!

Squids will be Squids Review

Jon Scieszka's love of fables comes alive in "Squids will be Squids: Fresh Morals-Beastly Fables." Each page is a zany new take on a fable with an appropriate or random moral attached. Lane Smith, as usual, makes Scieszka's stories come alive with his amazingly drawn characters. Not only does the book have odd-ball humor that kids will get a big kick out of, Scieszka interacts with his readers within the book's format. At the beginning he outlines what a fable is and why they were created, in his classic smart alec tone. Scieszka instructs the readers to come up with their own moral to the last fable in the book. He ends with a suggestion for the reader to go write their own fables and a little blurb about Aesop. This guy really knows how to engage his readers. This book not only inspires readers to create, a friend of mine wrote a song based on his Shark Wasp and Bacteria fable. If only the song was in digital format there'd be a link to it right here. But alas, you will have to imagine it. Or even better, go make one of your own.

Science Verse

In the vein of Math Curse, Jon Scieszka has created another witty book, exposing children to school subjects in a fresh way! Written in verse, this book chronicles a day in the life of a boy who begins thinking about science as a poem. Everything is rhyming in his mind as he thinks about the food chain, dinosaurs, parasites and much much more.

Once again I am blown away with Sieszka's approach to science. His funny poetry is complimented perfectly by Lane Smith's vibrant and active illustrations. It ends with what I can only hope is a trailer for another book "DO NOT think of this as a little art project. Your art project must be your whole life." Let's hope Art Disperse is coming out soon!

Math Curse

Who knew that we are surrounded by math?

One morning Mr. Fibonacci, the math teacher, says "YOU KNOW, you can think of almost everything as a math problem." A girl wakes up the next morning to find her life is one big math problem. As she takes out the milk for her cereal she wonders " How many quarts in a gallon? How many pints in a quart? How many inches in a foot? How many feet in a yard? How many yards in my neighborhood? How many inches in a pint? How many feet in my shoes?" She has fallen into the math curse. Read this book to see how her math-filled day turns out and see how she breaks the curse.

Math Curse written Jon Scieszka and illustrated by Lane Smith. Viking Press:1995.

Time Warp Trio Series

How did 3 Boys from Brooklyn end up battling Gladiators, hanging out with Thomas Edison and walking around in the year 2095 with their great-granddaughters? It's all because of "The Book." Joe got it as a gift from his magician uncle. They don't know how it works but every so often green time warping mist comes out of the book and they are transported to another time and space. Join Joe, Fred and Sam through 16 books as they discover new things while trying find out how the heck to get home! Hopefully one day they'll even figure out how that darn book works!

All books written by Jon Scieszka
1. Knights of the Kitchen Table (1991)
2. The Not-So-Jolly Roger (1991)
3. The Good, The Bad, and The Goofy (1992)
4. Your Mother Was a Neanderthal (1993)
5. 2095 (1995)
6. Tut, Tut (1996)
7. Summer Reading Is Killing Me! (1998)
8. It's All Greek to Me (1999)
9. See You Later, Gladiator (2000)
10. Sam Samurai (2001)
11. Hey Kid, Want to Buy a Bridge? (2002)
12. Viking It and Liking It (2002)
13. Me Oh Maya (2003)
14. Da Wild, Da Crazy, Da Vinci (2004)
15. Oh Say, I Can't See (2005)
16. Marco? Polo! (2006)

Links to Jon Scieszka's Websites

Guys Read

Jon Scieszka Worldwide

Baloney

Time Warp Trio

The Stinky Cheese Man and other Fairly Stupid Fairy Tales

This set of fractured fairy tales will leave your rolling with laughter. Jack (the character formally known from Jack and the bean stock)takes you through this jumbled mess of stories. He has to deal with a stinky cheese man who thinks everyone wants to eat him (when really they are trying to get away from his bad smell), little red running shorts who doesn't want any part of the story because Jack blurt out the ending and a whole list of colorful characters. Check it out and you'll find what is really falling from the sky!


The Stinky Cheese Man and Other Fairly Stupid Tales by John Scieszka illustrations by Lane Smith. Viking:1992.