Danny Dunn and the Homework Machine
by Jay Williams, Raymond Abrashkin, Ezra Jack Keats (Illustrator)
Danny Dunn (3)
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Description
Danny uses a computer that Professor Bulfinch has created for NASA to prepare his homework, despite Professor Bullfinch's warning that Danny is to leave the machine alone. With his friend Joe Pearson and his new neighbor, Irene Miller, Danny has some success with the machine before it is sabotaged. Can Danny figure out what is wrong with the computer and fix it? And will their teacher learn what's really going on with homework?Tags
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First sentence: Danny Dunn bent over a strange device that hung from the ceiling of his bedroom, directly over his desk.
Premise/plot: Danny Dunn loves to learn, experiment, invent. He's driven by curiosity. However Danny Dunn and his friends--new and old--don't like doing homework. In this "vintage" children's book Danny programs the Professor's computer [large, bulky, not user-friendly computer] to do their homework. This requires a LOT of programming, a LOT of extra work. He first has to teach the computer and then has to teach himself and his friends how to use the computer. Danny is under the belief that he is saving time by using a computer. The adults may be getting amusement out of this realizing that extra homework is what it show more really is.
My thoughts: This book does not age well....for better or worse. On the one hand, I do think vintage books can give you a glimpse into the past, a time capsule if you will. In this book and in the previous Danny Dunn book I've read, it's a glimpse into how THEY in the 1950s thought the future would look like. The first book I read Danny Dunn was about space and space travel. This one was about computers. It can be amusing to see how those living in the past imagined the future playing out. On the other hand, Danny Dunn's life is so out of place--so dated. I have a hard time imagining kids today reading about this super-ancient "advanced" computer that is "oh so miraculous" and "amazing." The story, the dialogue, the characters don't really age well. As an adult I was amused yet not particularly entertained. show less
Premise/plot: Danny Dunn loves to learn, experiment, invent. He's driven by curiosity. However Danny Dunn and his friends--new and old--don't like doing homework. In this "vintage" children's book Danny programs the Professor's computer [large, bulky, not user-friendly computer] to do their homework. This requires a LOT of programming, a LOT of extra work. He first has to teach the computer and then has to teach himself and his friends how to use the computer. Danny is under the belief that he is saving time by using a computer. The adults may be getting amusement out of this realizing that extra homework is what it show more really is.
My thoughts: This book does not age well....for better or worse. On the one hand, I do think vintage books can give you a glimpse into the past, a time capsule if you will. In this book and in the previous Danny Dunn book I've read, it's a glimpse into how THEY in the 1950s thought the future would look like. The first book I read Danny Dunn was about space and space travel. This one was about computers. It can be amusing to see how those living in the past imagined the future playing out. On the other hand, Danny Dunn's life is so out of place--so dated. I have a hard time imagining kids today reading about this super-ancient "advanced" computer that is "oh so miraculous" and "amazing." The story, the dialogue, the characters don't really age well. As an adult I was amused yet not particularly entertained. show less
This book came out in 1958 but I still fondly remember my introduction to computers through it's pages when I was in first grade back in 1963 and I dreamed of actually owning my own computer. It wasn't to happen for 17 more years before I was the proud owner of an Atari 400. But I think the day that I brought that home I was still thinking about the fun Danny, Joe and Irene had with Miniac.
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First book I ever read.
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Author Information
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Ezra Jack Keats was born Jacob Ezra Katz in Brooklyn, New York on March 11, 1916. He was a mural painter for the Works Progress Administration (WPA) for three years before taking a job as a comic book illustrator. During World War II, he joined the United States Air Corp and was a camouflage pattern designer. After the war, he changed his name to show more make his Jewish heritage less noticeable. He wrote and/or illustrated more than 85 children's books. The first book he illustrated was Jubilant for Sure by Elizabeth Hubbard Lansing, which was published in 1954. The first book he wrote was My Dog is Lost, which was published in 1960. His other works include Pet Show and The Snowy Day, which won a Caldecott Medal in 1963. He was also awarded the University of Southern Mississippi Medallion for outstanding contributions in the field of children's literature in 1980. He died of a heart attack on May 6, 1983. (Bowker Author Biography) show less
Awards and Honors
Series
Belongs to Publisher Series
Vintage Scholastic (TX0303)
Work Relationships
Has the adaptation
Common Knowledge
- Canonical title
- Danny Dunn and the Homework Machine
- Original publication date
- 1958
- People/Characters
- Daniel Dunn (Danny); Professor Euclid Bullfinch; Dr. A. J. Grimes; Irene Miller; Joseph Pearson (Joe); Mrs. Dunn
- Dedication
- This book is for the little Foxes--
Jane and John - First words
- Danny Dunn bent over a strange device that hung from the ceiling of his bedroom, directly over his desk.
- Last words
- (Click to show. Warning: May contain spoilers.)They seized his arms and ran, dragging him to the drugstore.
Classifications
Statistics
- Members
- 494
- Popularity
- 60,910
- Reviews
- 4
- Rating
- (3.86)
- Languages
- English
- Media
- Paper, Audiobook, Ebook
- ISBNs
- 10
- ASINs
- 25
