Miss Smith's Incredible Storybook

Garland, Michael. Miss Smith’s Incredible Storybook. New York: Puffin Books, 2003.

As Zack wonders about the school year, his teacher, Miss Smith, walks into the room. Miss Smith is no ordinary teacher. She has spiked red hair (well, more like bright orange…) and a leather jacket with a button advertising The Clash. In her arms is an amazing, incredible book. When Miss Smith reads her storybook, the characters come to life. The stories are so real the children can feel the wind in their hair.

One day, Miss Smith gets stuck in traffic so Principal Rittenrotten must fill in for her. He reads the storybook, but when the characters begin appearing, he screams and runs out the door. More and more characters flow from the book as different children start, but do not finish, stories. When Miss Smith finally gets to school, there is quite a chaotic mess for her to fix.

This book reminds me of what reading should be. Story time should not be a boring drudgery. Rather, it should be so exciting that the characters do come alive. The pictures are fun. The illustrator added several fine touches. My favorite is the last page where Miss Smith is standing in front of a bookcase that houses several antique books, including The Brownies, A Child’s History of England, and Drifting Around the World.

What others have to say…

“The lively, bright illustrations have a glossy, computer-generated quality that young readers will appreciate…A satisfactory addition to most collections.”

Threadgill, Catherine. Review of Miss Smith’s Incredible Storybook by Michael Garland, School Library Journal, 49, no. 10 (October 2003), http://ezproxy.twu.edu:2111/hww/results/external_link_maincontentframe.jhtml?_DARGS=/hww/results/results_single.jhtml.7 (accessed May 8, 2009).