Junie B. Jones and the Yucky Blucky Fruitcake

To say that kindergarten miscreant Junie B. Jones is competitive would be a great understatement. When her school holds a Carnival Night, Junie B. imagines herself winning every one of the carnival games. It’s no spoiler to note that she’s not going to.

Many adults are horrified by Junie B.’s antics; however, in this fifth chapter book in the series, as in all of them, the 5-year-old pays the price for misbehavior and not listening. Children are smarter than their adults, and see Junie B. as a cautionary tale, not a role model. And a hilarious cautionary tale at that. Recommended for all ages.

This girl is deliberately disobedient, deliberately rude, deliberately mean to her friends, and seeks out ways to get in trouble. Wtf is the appeal? Other child characters get in trouble a lot, but seem more human. I like Calvin, and Ramona, and Clementine... but, at least in this episode, Junie is more self-centered than her baby brother!

Reading this Junie B. Jones book brought back so many memories. It reminded me of being in elementary school because of how well the author portrays the story from the viewpoint of a child. I liked reading this book for several reasons. First, I loved that it was written in child-like speech. It truly reflects the way a child expresses themselves and is relatable to readers because they can understand exactly what the speaker is saying and not feel like they are challenged. Even though the book does not use Standard English, the book reinforces literacy and is a great stepping stool to using proper English. Second, the plot was well developed because in each chapter Junie B. went through a different conflict, but there was also the show more overarching challenge of wanting to win and be the best at something. This engaged readers and related to them because at that age it is very important to them to be socially accepted by their peers, which they often do through being the best at something. Readers can easily point out Junie B’s mistakes and wrong doings, which serves as a social story to them, pointing out what is important in social settings and what is not appropriate. The purpose of this story was to reach younger readers and engage them in a transitional chapter book about experiences relevant to them. show less

When Junie B. wins the Cake Walk at a carnival, she chooses the one wrapped in sparkly aluminum foil. How was she supposed to know it was a lethal weapon?

Junie B. Jones becomes obsessed with winning, but she finds herself losing out and getting in trouble for being a sore loser at the school carnival. She finally does win something- a fruitcake! It is not the delicious cake she imagines, but she finds out that she can sit on it and enjoy its aluminum wrapping.

I had mixed feelings about the book “Junie B. Jones and the Yucky Blucky Fruitcake” by Barbara Park. One reason I liked the book was because of the few illustrations it had. The illustrations were colored in black and white, and they helped the reader follow along in the book. One picture shows Junie B. Jones looking at her fruit cake she just won. It shows a disgusted look on her face. The reader can then understand she is not happy with what she picked. An aspect that I did not like was the writing. I understand that these books are written not correctly on purpose but I do not like it. “And guess what? I winned all of those games, too!” When I read a book, I want it to be written grammatically correct. It is understandable show more that some people like these books and others do not. The big idea of this story is to not let yourself get upset about little things. Junie B. Jones gets very upset that she cannot win anything. She ends up winning a cake and picks a fruit cake which she ends up not liking, although she does find a good use for the cake. show less

I understand that a lot of children love Junie B. Jones and I am a fan of providing any materials my students are interested in reading. However, personally, I hate Junie B. Jones. I think that she is an irritating and rude little girl and I think her parents sound exhausted. I do not subscribe to the idea that children's behavior is influenced by what they read, so I don't think there is any harm in reading a book about a child whose behavior I do not appreciate, however, if I had to read many of these books, I would not enjoy it.