Gooney Bird Greene

Do you like to read books about interesting and unique main characters? Then I have the best book for you! This book is full of unique characters. Gooney Bird Greene is the best book! My students and I laughed out loud in every chapter.This book is a chapter book, but it is a short chapter book. A new girl, Gooney Bird Greene, moves to Watertower. She is excellet at telling stories. All her stories are absolutely true! One reason you should read this book is because it is too funny! For example, Barry Tuckerman always waves his hand in the air as hard as he can. Another funny part is when Gooney Bird uses all her money to get all the gumballs. Another reason you should read this book is because the pictures show Gooney Bird in very unusual and strange clothing. Gooney Bird wears pajamas and cowboy boots one day. Another day she wears a tutu with a polka-dot shirt. These are crazy outfits to wear to school! The last reason you should read this book is because Gooney BIrd teaches us how to tell absolutely true (and good) stories. She tells us to use the word suddenly when something goes wrong in your story. We give this book 5 stars and hope that you will read this book.

I first chose to read _Gooney Bird Greene_ because it was written by Lois Lowry, the author who wrote _The Giver_, one of my favorite books. Although Lowry has written many books, I hadn't read anything else by her besides _The Giver_. I was surprised by _Gooney Bird Greene_ because it wasn't anything like _The Giver_. I really didn't expect it to be because _Gooney Bird Greene_ is a children's book, and I consider _The Giver_ to be more of a young adult book. However, I was far from disappointed with _Gooney Bird Greene_, and I became even more impressed with Lowry's ability as a writer.
The book begins with a teacher telling her students that they are going to write stories. Of course, Gooney Bird is the new girl in the school, and she is very interesting with her unique clothes. So, everyone wants to hear her stories. The students want to hear a story from Gooney Bird everyday. She tells many different stories from how she got her name to how she directed a symphony orchestra! Most importantly, Gooney Bird serves as an inspiration for the other students; she shows them that they too can tell a good story.
Gooney Bird Greene is a story about a young child who...tells stories. To some people this may sound boring, but it's an interesting little book because the character, Gooney Bird, is so well-developed. The stories she tells are "always true," she insists, but they are not always what the title suggests. For example, one story she titles "Beloved Catman is consumed by a Cow." From the title, you would think, as her classmates did, that her cat was eaten by a cow. But, her cat had "fallen in love" with the cow, so it was "consumed" by its love/fascination for the cow.
If you like a good story, I highly recommend this book, especially for young second grade students. I couldn't help but laugh at the character of Gooney Bird. Lowry gave such a great voice to this unique little girl. She really teaches us a good lesson in storytelling.

Gooney Bird Greene is the new student at Watertower Elementary. She arrived in October, after the first month of school had ended. She arrived, with a dictionary and a lunch box, and not even a mother to introduce her. And, she loves being smack dab in the middle of everything. Soon, the class is learning about writing. They need a main character. Gooney bird is a mysterious kid. The class decides to write about her. And, soon, she's telling fun and silly stories about her life all over the place!

In Gooney Bird Greene by Lois Lowry, the author made us feel as if we were young students again sitting in Mrs. Pigdeon's classroom hearing all of the wonderful stories that Gooney Bird Greene has to tell. These stories were "absolutely true" according to Gooney Bird Greene and although they seemed to be fictitious, they were not and it was inspiring to the other students to write their own true stories.

The main character, Gooney Bird, was introduced in the first chapter. Lowry made her seem very interesting, unique and different based on her attire and the way that she presented herself on the first day. For example, in Chapter 2 it states that "Gooney Bird adjusted the pink ballet tutu she was wearing over a pair of green stretch pants. Her T-shirt was decorated with polka dots. Her red hair was pulled into two pigtails and held there with blue scrunchies." This made all of the students interested in her and made them want to hear a story about Gooney Bird instead of Christopher Columbus. She brought herself to school and seemed very confident even though she was a new student. All of the students were immediately drawn to Gooney Bird and it was as if the entire classroom was uplifted by her spirit.

Chapters 2 through 6 were all centered around the stories that Gooney Bird told to the class. Her first story was "How Gooney Bird Got Her Name" and this was the first of many animated stories. This was the most realistic titled story that she told and it only sparked the childrens' interest to hear her other stories. The second story that she told was "How Gooney Bird Came from China on a Flying Carpet" and this is the first story where the students are taught that the use of the word "suddenly" creates suspense and keeps the listener's attention. She uses it repeatedly so that the story is never boring. It ignites the creation of her other stories and through her word choice she sparks curiosity into other various stories.

In Chapter 4, Lowry emphasizes the fact that what Gooney Bird wears contributes to the stories that she tells the students. For instance, when she wore her large diamond earrings, this caused the students to automatically assume that there had to be an interesting story behind them. Lowry uses this as a major point in her stories to associate clothing with story telling and how it adds to the entirity of each story. The students eventually take a part in dressing unique as well to tie into Gooney Bird and her stories.

This pattern continues throughout the rest of the chapters until Chapter 7 when Lowry has Gooney Bird seem more realistic and relatable to the students. Gooney Bird takes each of her own stories and compares them to stories that the children have themselves about their own real-life experiences. We thought this was another key point in the story because it emphasized the fact that every student has the ability to make their own unique stories and it is not limited to just one person.

We all enjoyed reading this book by Lois Lowry and found that it could be very useful in an elementary school classroom ranging from ages five to nine. We feel that it could be used as a great introduction to teaching about writing and story telling.

The overall theme of the story is that everyone, no matter who you are or where you are from, has the ability to write unique and captivating stories from their everyday lives. This holds true for young children, adults and anyone else who seems inspired to do so.

My daughter checked this out of her school library to read. She started to read it to me one night before bed and we fell in love with it. The next night she read to her father. I had read what I missed on my own to catch up to her because I didn't want to miss out! Gooney Bird is a truly delightful character. Her stories have the kind of unexpected surprises that thrilled my daughter. My daughter and I loved this book so much we had to go out and buy it for ourselves. We also bought the sequel which is just as good. We are anticipating the third book that comes out this spring!

We just finished the book Gooney Bird Greene and it was a hit! An eccentric second grader named Gooney Bird Greene moves to a new school and shares some amazing "absolutely true" stories about her adventures! My six year old couldn't get enough of this book and pleaded to read more with the end of each chapter. As a parent and teacher I found it quite fun to read this book and see the interest that was sparked in my child. The author Lois Lowry finds creative ways to educate children through the amazing adventures of Gooney Bird Greene!

Gooney Bird Greene reminds me a lot of my own children. Full of confidence, knowledge and their own sense of fashion! My daughter loves Fancy Nancy and I found Gooney Bird Greene's character to have a similar personality to that of Fancy Nancy. If your daughter loves Fancy Nancy then she is sure to love Gooney Bird Greene!

Gooneybird is a great storyteller and she almost takes over the class. The riddles are fun to figure out like, she said "a palace" but really was an ice cream shop. I loved this book and I can't wait to read the next Gooneybird Greene book. You'll love it too! Sam, age 7

Mrs. Pidgeon's second grade class will never be the same when Gooney Bird Greene arrives one October morning. She is recognized immediately because of the attire she is wearing and what appears in her lunch, items like suchi and avacodos. Gooney Bird demands she be "right smack in the middle of everything" and indeed she is. She becomes very popular among the other students, as well as, Mrs. Pidgeon for her ability to tell "absolutely true" stories. You won't want to the miss the adventure of her very interesting and detailed stories. For example, "How Gooney Bird Got Her Name" or "The Prince,the Palace, and the Diamond Earrings". She can really bring a crowd to life! I truly enjoyed the uniqueness of Gooney Bird's character and her ability to deomonstrate a proficient story. Lois Lowry has definently turned this second grader into a "hero". This is one you won't want to miss!

I homeschool and I am truly desperate for good literature for my children. This title is recommended by a very popular and rigorous homeschool curriculum publisher and they sell it. The homeschool parent reviews were strong and parents said it was an enjoyable and hilarious read with their children. I borrowed it from the library and honestly, I felt very uncomfortable reading this to my children, because I didn't find it funny and I was uncomfortable with the tone of Juney when discussing some topics. I pushed on for three days in our short read aloud session and just returned it without finishing. I found no value in the book what-so-ever and am thrilled I did not spend money on it. My 6 year old thought it was hilarious and wished I'd continue with the book, but I wasn't comfortable with the perspective he was developing towards other people and their experiences that were in the book...kind of snooty and sarcastic toward them. I realize if I had read the book in advance or even finished it on my own I may have different feelings, but it wasn't a match for us.

Lois Lowry has really saved the day in this house more than once with her great Gooney Bird books. In this book, the first of the Gooney Bird series, Gooney Bird is introduced to her new class. She's confident and smart and has a good time in life and the class does an effective job of welcoming their new member. The "conflict" in these stories is some intellectual problem that one or more of the characters needs to solve, rather than having conflict with each other. This is perfect for us, because we have one daughter that doesn't care for conflict between characters in her fiction. The fact that Gooney is such a great character is stupendous (she likes big words and her dictionary!).

This is a clever book that will keep the parent entertained as well. Well worth every penny and then some!

Gooney Bird Greene, by Lois Lowery, is an excellent book that will have students laughing out loud! This book is great for bringing out the quiet students in any class. Gooney Bird Greene is a new student in Mrs. Pidgeon's second grade class at Watertown Elementary School. She began very quickly to liven up the room with her fun-loving personality and outrageous choicde of clothing. The class is learning how to write stories and Gooney Bird Greene has a story to tell everyday. With her "true stories" she tells, the kids learn probably more about writing ideas than they would from the teacher alone. Gooney Bird Greene is an inspiration to all the students in the class, even the ones who would never speak up or tended to shy away from the rest of the class. I really enjoyed reading this book and you will to.

This was a book recommended by my daughter's school librarian! We borrowed it on Friday and she finished reading it on the same day. She absolutely loved it! I read it after she read it and I LOVED it! It's great way to teach young children the art of telling stories and Gooney Bird Greene is such a FUN character! Each story she tells is absolutely true and they are absolutely fun stories! I have recommended this book to my daughter's other second grade friends and they all loved it! We enjoyed this book so much that I want to get a copy for my 3 year old so she can read it when she's old enough!

Another great children's book by Lowry! This book is absolutely hilarious and educational, too. Great to integrate into an English lesson(s) about writing stories. I would recommend this book to anyone who loves Lowry or anyone who loves the Ramona books by Beverly Cleary.... the books contain great energy & lots of humor.... all with some lessons learned along the way. :)

Talk about a versatile author! And laugh-out-loud funny, too. Teachers in grades 1-4 are going to love reading this one in classrooms. Gooney Bird is an endearing second-grader who has a lot of practical wisdom to dispense and is able to do it with verve and self-confidence (and while wearing a tutu!) Imagination really CAN change the tone of a classroom and this charming book will show everyone just how it does.

I use this book to help students think about writing creatively. Goonie is perfect at making everything absolutely true but sounds unbelievable. With all of testing taking place, it is nice to slow down and have students reflect about how they can write from a different perspective.

This book had captured my daughter's attention. She had a special reader day at school and I brought the book in to read to her 2nd grade class and they were all mesmorized.

I am going to go order the 2nd book now!

Gooney Bird Greene is a humurous book about a very colorful girl who moves to a new school. She adds a little spice to their lives and teaches them how to write a good story while she's at it. A must have at our house and excellent for classroom reading.