Casual Friday: Winning Reader interest with "Percy Jackson: the Lightning Thief"
The Lightning Thief brings readers in by pushing them away.
Munsch Ado About Nothing: “The Boy in the Drawer” as an Allegory for Tantrums
Munsch's stories very often grant children power and label adults as inconsistent, selfish, unreasonable, unhelpful, or incompetent. No wonder the books are so popular with kids.
Alexander is a Terrible, Horrible, No Good, Very Bad Kid
Man, that invisible castle thing? You got lazy and didn’t draw a picture, didn’t you, and now you’re upset ‘cause the teacher liked an actual picture better than your blank page? If you’re gonna be a jerk about drawing time, at least have the courage of your convictions to stand by your BS move and not act like you weren’t trying to be clever and lazy. And what have you got against sixteen, mister?