Roxie and the Hooligans

I've decided to add a few books that I've recently read aloud to my 4th graders. This is a new book in our library and was a fun and fast read....

The book takes place in a small seaside town in the northeast. Roxie is a meek and mild girl who lives through her uncle's adventure stories as he accompanies Lord Thistlebottom to the wilds and through many narrow escapes. She has poured over each of his books and memorized his many methods of escapes - always beginning with "Don't Panic."

Roxie's life is also filled with adventures - but of a nasty nature. She is ruthlessly harrassed by a gang of bullies she calls the hooligans. They have chosen this little girl due to her huge ears. Each day they pursue her and the escape gap gets narrower and narrower until one day...

Roxie is walking along the edge of a dumpster to get to an open window - the holligans are right behind her. And bing, bang, boom they all fall down...into the depths of garbage. At that moment, the dumpster man arrives to take the dumpster away - to a ship - to be dumped in the ocean.

So begins the real adventure. Roxie uses her wits and the wisdom of her uncle's books to keep herself and the hooligans alive on a small island - not deserted but inhabited by 2 bank robbers.

This book sounds English - and seemed a little hard to get into... but only at first. My 4th graders loved it!

it's got a great anti-bullying message - the harrassed girl saves the savages and they begin to understand one another!

We all loved it!

In this beginning chapter book, nine-year-old Roxie Warbler knows just what to do if she finds herself buried in an avalanche, but she doesn't know what to do about Helvetia's Hooligans. The gang at Public School Number Thirty-Seven has chosen her to be Victim of the Year, thanks to her ears, which stick straight out. The Hooligans chase Roxie into the Dumpster, fall into it themselves, and everyone is soon spilled onto a barge being pulled out to sea. The children end up stranded on an island with a couple of nasty thieves. With only the survival tips Roxie remembers from Uncle Dangerfoot's stories of his fantastical adventures with famous thrill-seeker and author Lord Thistlebottom to help her, Roxie finds herself leading the four hungry, thirsty, and scared bullies to safety. Full-page pencil illustrations perfectly complement this clever story that will leave readers cheering for Roxie as she proves to be as successful an adventurer as her famous uncle. (School Library Journal)

This book was funny and interesting. It kept me on my toes and was fun to read.

A nostalgic read about a bullied girl who buries herself in the daring exploits of her Uncle Dangerfoot. This comes in handy when she finds herself marooned on an island with her gang of tormentors, and uses her survival knowledge to their mutual advantage. The tone is light-hearted and old-timey, not unlike Roald Dahl. Grades 2 and up.

A delightful story of a fourth-grade girl who, stranded on an island with the group of bullies who have been tormenting her for the whole school year, uses the survival skills she's learned from her adventurer uncle.

The way they're stranded is, I promise, actually believable, though unlikely. Roxie's smart thinking under pressure makes her a wonderful role model, especially since she's convinced she's a coward (the story proves her wrong)!

Completely charming and I look forward to discussing this with my book group! (made up of girls going into 3rd-5th grade)

Highly recommended! ( )