Noisy Nora

"Jack had dinner early, Father played with Kate, Jack needed burping, so Nora had to wait. First she banged the window, Then she slammed the door, Then she dropped her sister's marbles on the kitchen floor." And so begins this amusing tale, told with a rollicking rhythm and rhyme, of a middle child who begins to feel a bit neglected, as her mother concentrates on her baby brother, and her father on her older sister, and who decides that the best way to get attention is to make a lot of noise. Nothing she does seems to work, however, until 'Noisy Nora' decides to try something a little different: silence...

Originally published in 1973, with simple artwork in two or three colors, and then reprinted in this 1997 edition, with new, show more all-color illustrations, Noisy Nora is an immensely engaging, thoroughly readable picture-book, one that would make a fabulous story-hour selection! Middle children will identify with Nora's feeling of neglect - as will most children, really - and sympathize with her determined efforts to gain attention. The ending, in which her family is revealed to be very aware of her after all, is both amusing and reassuring. Thanks, Miriam, for pointing me toward this one! show less

Noisy Nora was one of my favorite picture books growing up, not only because I share a name with the title character- but also because it does a great job capturing a range of childhood emotions involving feeling ignored, jealous, and starved for attention. Re-reading it as an adult, I am especially taken by the story’s minimalist language and ambiguous ending.

Wells’ whimsical illustrations tell the story of Nora the mouse making loud mischief because she is receiving little attention while her parents focus on their new baby boy and her younger sister. In a final desperate attempt to be noticed Nora “runs away “ only to come crashing out of the broom closet the moment the family laments her disappearance.

While the plot remains show more simple and unfolds with equally uncomplicated rhymes, the illustrations weave humor and love into scenes of universal family challenges. This would be a great book to read to a young child adjusting to a growing family or a parent’s busy schedule. It is a fun and simple story sure to make a young reader laugh. show less

Middle child Nora is always overlooked in favor of her older sister Kate and younger brother Jack; the constant refrain is "So Nora had to wait." While she "waits," she draws attention to herself by making as big a racket as she can - until she decides she's fed up with things, and suddenly all is quiet. The quiet alarms her family most of all - where is Nora?

"Quiet!" said her father.
"Hush!" said her mum.
"Nora!" said her sister, "Why are you so dumb?"

While the last line is a perfectly normal thing for one sibling to say to another, I didn't love bringing the word "dumb" into the house.

*

She chose this from the library again April 2018. And July 2018. And asked for it specifically September 2019.

Noisy Nora perfectly portrays what life is like as the middle child in a family. Nora's parents are constantly paying attention to her younger brother and older sister. In her eyes, they always ignore her. The only way she can get their attention is to make a lot of noise by slamming, banging, dropping, and breaking things around the house. I like this book for a few reasons. First, the illustrations definitely enhance the story and engage the reader. Next, the language and writing is not overwhelming. There are only a few words per page which makes it easy for younger elementary grades to read and understand. Finally, the plot is enjoyable and can create great classroom discussions about how it feels to be the middle child, etc. The show more "big idea" of this book is that even if Nora's parents pay attention to her younger and older siblings, does not mean they will not pay attention to her and it does not mean they do not love her! Making noise and breaking things is not a good way to get attention. This is a great book to read with young students that have younger siblings, because it teaches them that even though their siblings may require more attention, it does not mean their parents forgot about them! I think this book would be great to read with students that already have younger siblings, or that will have younger siblings in the future. show less

ISBN 0803718357 - It's been a while since I've reviewed a kids' book that needed a note for certain parents with certain child-raising ideas. If you're one of them, you'll want to pass up this book - Nora's sister calls her "dumb" twice and Nora's behavior is... well, bad. If, however, you're able to overlook that, or just don't care about it, and want to get your child into books, this is one that I guarantee they'll love to have read to them.

Nora's parents are spending all of their time with Jack, the baby, and their sister Kate. Nora feels neglected and makes noise, hoping to get their attention, but all she gets is shushed. She finally does get it - by announcing that she's leaving! They worry and look for her until she reappears show more again, quite noisily.

Other than the "dumb" comments, some parents might find Nora's behavior bad enough to keep them from getting this book for their child. She slams the door, knocks over the lamp and flies a kite in the house. Personally, she's a mouse, I never expected my child to take his behavioral cues from rodents and he didn't; if you think yours might, then you need to find another book.

Those exceptions out of the way, I think this book is adorable. If, at first glance, you think Nora resembles Max, she should - they have the same mother. Author and illustrator Rosemary Wells, mom of Max and Ruby and Nora, seems to understand what will work for children and laughing, something Nora will make them do, is a surefire way to get them to come back again and again. The illustrations are great, Nora is just hilarious in her frustrated efforts to get attention and there's the chance for a parent to talk to their own child about the RIGHT way to get attention - once everyone's stopped laughing at Nora. Parents with a new baby in the house might find that aspect particularly appealing because a new baby's arrival is certainly a time when an older sibling might feel ignored.

- AnnaLovesBooks show less

Being a middle child I found Noisy Nora perfectly portrayed what life is like as the middle child in a family. This story was lighthearted and easy to laugh at. The first thing that I liked about this story was that the author only wrote one sentence per page. I found this to be great for new readers, so the number of words does not overwhelm them and also it is easy to follow the words with a finger or pointer. The second thing I liked about this story was how well the pictures connected to each sentence. This is great for new readers, if they do not understand a word to look at the picture and make a connection. The illustrations definitely enhance the story and engage the reader. Finally, the plot is enjoyable and can guide great show more classroom discussions about how it feels to be the middle child, or even if the students have done some of the noisy things Nora did throughout the story. The "big idea" of this book is that even if Nora's parents pay attention to her younger and older siblings, it does not mean they do not love her! I also liked that the story emphasized that making noise and breaking things is not a good way to get attention. show less

My absolutely favorite picture book as an elementary schooler, as I empathized with "Nora had to wait" and her noises (intentional and unintentional!). A strong rhyme scheme means that most of my family can still quote whole chunks by heart, and still adore the pictures.