Junie B. Jones Is (Almost) a Flower Girl

Junie B. Jones Is (Almost) a Flower Girl by Barbara Park, illustrated by Denise Brunkus, is a funny and engaging story about Junie B. as she is excited to be a flower girl in her aunt’s wedding but realizes she may not get the role she expected. The book explores Junie B.’s emotions and highlights how children react when things do not go their way. Her character develops as she exaggerates situations but also learns to handle frustration.
Park uses strong characterization, humor, and realistic dialogue, including misspellings, to show an authentic child’s voice. The illustrations add to the story’s relatability and humor. This realistic fiction story reflects common childhood experiences while helping young readers understand show more emotions like excitement, jealousy, and confusion, while also teaching patience and honesty. show less

This book is a great book for entertainment when children want to read for fun. However, I don't think it teaches a good lesson. Throughout the book, Junie B. misbehaves, ignoring her parents and grandpa. Not only does she ignore them, but she is also disrespectful to them. She creates a scene at Aunt Flo's wedding because she wanted to be the flower girl, showing that one should not behave like that, especially at an important event. Although there isn't a good lesson, the visual images presented in the book give the readers a little bit of a better understanding when Junie B. is mentioning where or what she is doing. For example, there is an image shown when she is talking about arriving at the wedding. There shows multiple people as show more she explains that there are a "bajillion people there already!" I think this is a good book for kids if they want entertainment, but if they choose to read a Junie B. Jones book, a child should already know how to listen and respect their parents or guardians. show less

Junie B. Jones is absolutely hilarious. I'm pretty sure it was actually secretly written for adults. The author, Barbara Park does a wonderful job writing from the perspective of a kindergarten girl, but she can also through in some wisdom from the parents. Junie B. faces typical kindergarten girl problems, and usually ends up solving them or realizing the error of her ways by the end of each book. She is easy to relate to from any age and shows the true childhood spirit. Great series, even if they are a bit dated in some parts.

Collections
Chapter book
Grade: 1-3
Contemporary realistic fiction
I think I enjoyed reading this Junie B. Jones book as an adult even more than I did when I was little. Barbara Park is an absolutely hilarious writer. I really like her use of language throughout the story. Her incorrect grammar is very realistic of a small child, and therefore makes the book seem more real life. For example, on page two Park writes, ""RICARDO!" I hollered real loud. "HEY! RICARDO! 'ZACTLY WHAT DO YOU THINK YOU ARE DOING, MISTER?" Park's use of grammar and punctuation in this passage allows me to hear Junie B. Jone's voice in my head. I thought that this was a very cool method of writing a children's chapter book. Another aspect I really was the pictures. show more There were not too many, and the ones that were there black and white, but it was still nice to see a few scattered throughout the book. I feel like the illustrator, Denise Brunkus, strategically chose which events to draw a picture for. In most of the illustrations Junie B. Jones was doing something hilarious, and I was glad I was able to see it instead of simply picturing it in my head. I thought that overall the main messages of the book were childhood, friendship, and sharing. Junie B. Jones desperately wanted to be the flower girl, but unfortunately she was not chosen. She had to share the position with a little girl named Bo, and Junie B. Jones was only the assistant flower girl. At first this upset Junie B., but eventually she learned how to share, and her and Bo became fast friends. I really enjoyed reading Junie B. Jones is (almost) a Flower Girl, and would recommend it to anyone who wants a humorous quick read. show less

Summary: Junie B. Jones' Aunt Flo is getting married, which is the perfect chance for Junie B. to show everyone how grown up she is. Too bad she wasn't picked to be the flower girl in the wedding so she could really show off; her cousin Bo is chosen instead, and Junie B. has to settle for being the alternate flower girl, and hoping for Bo to get sick so she can step in. She even tries to sabotage Bo's walk down the aisle. But, in the end, Junie B. and Bo end up being friends.

Evaluation/Argument: This is very fun and easy book for children to read. There are different pictures on pages to keep readers interested and able to visualize the events in the story as they unfold. Children can easily read these books independently and parents show more will be so happy to see their children reading on their own. I love the way that Junie B. has her own distinct personality and is comparable to other children her own age. She acts just like most children her age would and is determined to show her parents how grown up she can really be. As a child I loved reading all of the books in the series. Junie B. is a great and very funny character for any child to read about. I remember myself wanting to read this book because of my own experience in a wedding as a young child. I love the illustrations as well and think they really add to the story. Some of the illustrations look like Junie B. drew them herself, which is very different and unique to this book.
The central message of this book is the importance of family and friends in our lives. Junie B. ends up becoming friends with Bo by the end of the story and she learns to value the family that is present in her life. show less

I would recommend this book to anyone who is looking for a comical read. This book makes me laugh and it is quite easy to understand. Even though the book consist of “made up” words, the reader is still able to comprehend the main idea or message. The plot of this specific book is hilarious because it starts out with Junie B. getting “dumped” by her boyfriend. It is clear that the reader and Junie B’s parents believe that Junie B. is way too young to even have a boyfriend. The purpose of this story is for young learns to understand that sometimes it’s better to be young than all grown up.

Junie B.’s aunt Flo is getting married. What a perfect chance for her to show everyone how grown-up she is! Too bad she wasn’t picked to be the flower girl in the wedding so she could really show off. But surely Junie B. can still find some way to get everyone’s attention.