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Summary
Summary
The long-awaited prequel to the bestseller Fourth Grade Rats
George, aka "Suds," has just entered third grade. He's heard the rhyme about "first grade babies/second grade cats/third grade angels/fourth grade rats," but what does this mean for his school year? It means that his teacher, Mrs. Simms, will hold a competition every month to see which student deserves to be awarded "the halo"-which student is best-behaved, kindest to others, and, in short, perfect. Suds is determined to be the first to earn the halo, but he's finding the challenge of always being good to be more stressful than he had anticipated. Does he have to be good even outside of school? (Does he have to be nice to his annoying little sister?) And if Mrs. Simms doesn't actually see him doing a good deed, does it even count?
A heartwarming return to elementary school from master storyteller Spinelli.
Author Notes
Jerry Spinelli was born in Norristown, Pennsylvania on February 1, 1941. He received a bachelor's degree from Gettysburg College and a master's degree from Johns Hopkins University. He worked as an editor with Chilton from 1966 to 1989. He launched his career in children's literature with Space Station 7th Grade in 1982. He has written over 30 books including The Bathwater Gang, Picklemania, Stargirl, Milkweed, and Mama Seeton's Whistle. In 1991, he won the Newbery Award for Maniac Magee. In 1998, Wringer was named a Newbery Honor book.
(Bowker Author Biography)
Reviews (2)
School Library Journal Review
Gr 2-4-In keeping with the rhyme, "First grade babies! Second grade cats! Third grade angels! Fourth grade rats!," Suds Morton's new teacher considers each of her students an angel. She has high expectations, and the prize-spending a week as boss angel while wearing a cardboard halo-has Suds and his classmates falling over one another to prove just how angelic they are. Everyone wants to earn the first halo of the year-especially Suds. He picks up trash, holds the door for others, and even treats his little sister kindly. Will Mrs. Simms notice his hard work? This beginning chapter book moves at an enjoyably brisk pace; readers will appreciate the familiar school and home settings, and they'll look forward to meeting the characters again in a forthcoming book. A story kids will relate to, with valuable, down-to-earth messages about character and motives.-Amanda Struckmeyer, Middleton Public Library, Madison, WI (c) Copyright 2012. Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
Publisher's Weekly Review
In this peppy prequel to Fourth Grade Rats (1991), Spinelli builds on the childhood rhyme from that novel ("First grade babies!/ Second grade cats!/ Third grade angels!/ Fourth grade rats!") as George (aka Suds) eagerly tries to earn the first cardboard halo that his teacher, Mrs. Simms, will award throughout the year for good behavior. Spinelli's careful characterizations give the story its emotional honesty, and Suds's obsession with snagging the halo-and his resulting angst-inspire some genuinely funny moments. In fact, he surprises even himself at the lengths he'll go in pursuit of a halo, progressing from holding the door for girls to a far more angelic gesture: "I hold the door for boys." Nicely developed adult figures, including Suds's mother and Mrs. Simms, add to the story's comedy and warmhearted quality. A climactic good deed by Suds takes place just before the announcement of the first halo award, the results of which few readers will see coming. An entertaining lead-in to this earnest hero's fourth-grade year. Final art not seen by PW. Ages 7-10. (Sept.) (c) Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved.
Excerpts
Excerpts
From Third Grade Angels It was a warm and sunny day, but really windy. Swings were flapping even when nobody sat on them. Basketball shots were curving. Besides the wind, everything was going along pretty normal until a yellow baseball cap came flying onto the playground. On the other side of the fence a lady in a sweat suit was stopped, jogging in place. She was pointing to her hat, which had blown off and landed among a bunch of us third-graders. For a second nobody moved. And then it hit all of us at once: Good deed! About ten of us pounced on the hat. There were so many hands the best I could do was grab somebody's wrist. We were wrenching and pulling and twisting ten different ways. "I got it!" "I got it!" "Let go!" "I was first!" "I was first!" "Oww!" Suddenly we all snapped apart like a broken wishbone. Eddie Shank was holding the rim of the cap. Diana Briggs was holding the rest. Somebody said, "Uh-oh." Excerpted from Third Grade Angels by Jerry Spinelli All rights reserved by the original copyright owners. Excerpts are provided for display purposes only and may not be reproduced, reprinted or distributed without the written permission of the publisher.