Children's Review: Back to School, Weird Kids Rule!

Back to School, Weird Kids Rule! (My Weird School Special) by Dan Gutman, June 24, 2014. 144 pages. Published by HarperCollins. Source: Publisher.

A.J. and the gang from My Weird School star in this special series of after-school, holiday-themed chapter books featuring all-new hilarious stories and thirty-two pages of games, puzzles, and more.

Summer is almost over, and you know what that means—time to head back to school! But when a tropical storm ends A.J.'s vacation earlier than expected, he and his family have to stay at Andrea's house. Ugh, disgusting! When everyone in the house starts getting cabin fever, and even back-to-school shopping won't calm the kids down, Andrea and A.J. are sent to Camp Ockatollyquay. The catch? It's a camp to get kids ready for school! But not to worry—Andrea and A.J. rally the Ella Mentry School gang to end their summer on a note they'll never forget.

First Sentence:

My name is Andrea and I love school!

For me, this was one very quick read as it only took me maybe twenty minutes to read it from cover to cover. It was one of those times where you pick up a book, start reading, and then next thing you know you've gone and finished it.  Other than being such a quick read, Back to School, Weird Kids Rule is a charmingly funny read that would perfect for readers 6-10 years old.

While I enjoyed the book and the plot, I was not all that interested in the characters especially the one narrating the story. There's just something about know-it-all type characters that annoy me to know end and Andrea was definitely that type of character. Even though it was interesting to see things play out between her and A.J., the boy she claims she'll marry, I would have liked to have seen her character show some subtlety when it came to her smarts...but then again, she probably would not have been her any other way. So, while the characters may not have worked out for me, I do think they are some that other readers will enjoy. Why, because the characters have a pretty true to age group way of interacting with one another and because they are funny.

So, he thing that made Back to School, Weird Kids Rule an interesting read would have to be the writing. I thought the author did an excellent job of creating such varied characters that actually came across as the age they were projected to be. Sometimes, you see the characters at this age portrayed as more worldly than they are and completely leaving out the quirky fun that makes up children under 10. I do think children within the age range would get a kick out of reading about Andrea, A.J. and the whole lot of them and seeing what they get into in the summer special.

In the end, Back to School, Weird Kids Rule gets my approval because it was a fun quick read where the children, even annoying at times, actually came across as how they are in real life. Sure, the story is kinda of weird and unbelievable but I think that is where it's charm lies.

Final Verdict: Back to School, Weird Kids Rule- Was a quirky yet fun summer read!

Back to School, Weird Kids Rule earns

This book was received from the publisher in exchange for an honest review.