Books I Enjoy - Days 6-10 Junie B. Jones series

O.K., so no more catch up. I am using the Junie B. Jones books to get caught up to the current day because the series has 27+ books. I am not going to misuse that number, but I really hate being behind and since I am a perfectionist frustrated perfectionist this is bothering the stew out of me. From here on out, I intend to post daily as planned.

Down to business . . .

I know that Junie B. has created a lot of controversy. She is mouthy, uses bad grammar and tends towards having a bad attitude. Not qualities we wish to see in our children. However, the entertainment factor is almost off my chart. My kids and I listened to Junie B. in the car. (A practice I HIGHLY recommend. Not necessarily with Junie B., but you can get some great, and some just-for-fun, literature in this way. And it keeps the drive-time bickering to a minimum.) We laughed so hard and have picked up many "Junieisims". My personal favorite is "I am a hoot I tell you!" I would like to put that saying on a shirt, but I am afraid too many people just wouldn't get it.

Ms. Parks did a marvelous job writing this series from the perspective of a child. If you can get past the bad grammar and the mouthiness, it really is worth using this book to look at the world through a child's eyes. We as adults tend to just drag our children along with us on the crazy roller coaster ride we call life. They really are good sports about it, but bless their hearts, it must be so confusing.

I will submit that these books were probably a lot more enjoyable because we listened to the audio versions. I would not have had the patience to just sit down and read them for myself. The audio version was read by Lana Quintal and she did a wonderful job creating the character of Junie.

My personal opinion about the grammar issues--if you are teaching your children proper grammar, they will be able to spot the incorrect grammar used by Junie. It is part and parcel of the character. The children know when she is misbehaving. It is my belief that they are not going to learn bad habits from Junie any more than they are going to learn to fly from Harry or command water at will from Percy.

Hmmm, I think it may be time to invite Junie in from her shelf at the library again--speedy quick, and I mean it!!!