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Toimorrow is April Fools’ Day and your Writing Prompt is to come up with the best April Fools’ joke ever. It can be a prank you pulled on someone, or that someone has pulled on you. Or it can be a prank you dreamed up, but might not ever actually do to anyone.
Read these prank ideas for inspiration, including the pranks that Zach Gordon and Devon Bostick pulled on each on the set of the Wimpy Kid movie.
Wysaki created phony self-help books; some of the titles include So Your Son is a Centaur, Learn to…Dress Yourself!, and The Beginner’s Guide to Human Sacrifice. He posted several photos on his blog, which is called pleated jeans, to showcase his antics.
Not too long ago, this hilarious mischief maker played around with the section labels at a bookshop. That little escapade inspired him to move forward with this project. In an interview with Bored Panda, Wysaski reported that “the employees [of the bookstore] actually loved them [the fake books]…I’m told they are now on display with an asking price of $7 million per book.\"
Miles is moving away from his beloved home at the beach to Yawnee Valley, where the slogan is "Come Look at our Cows." Miles Murphy, the best-known prankster at his old school, will be attending the Yawnee Valley Science and Letters Academy,
Miles awoke with a sense of dread. He opened his eyes and stared at his blank ceiling. Last night he'd dreamed it had all been a dream, and now he wished he were still dreaming. Miles shut his eyes tight. He tried to fall back asleep, but downstairs he could hear his mother shuffling around the kitchen, preparing breakfast. Breakfast smelled like eggs. And cows. Although that might have just been the cows. Miles ate his eggs. They tasted like dread, although that might've just been the dread.
When he's paired up with the insufferable school helper, Niles Sparks, Miles thinks things can't get worse, but they do. Someone else in school is a prankster, and whoever it is, he's outpranking Miles.
What's the best part about pulling a great prank? Getting away with it, or getting credit for it? Miles is about to find out!
This illustrated novel is the first in a series that's sure to appeal to middle-grade jokers and pranksters. The writing style is conversationally funny with great black-and-white illustrations that add to the humor, A goofy, cud-chewing cow with a bell stands in a pasture adorning half of page one, which reads,
Welcome to Yawnee Valley, an idyllic place with rolling green hills that slope down to creeks, and cows as far as the eye can see. There's one now.
The Terrible Two has more than just humor. There are some intricate pranks woven into the plot, and there are well-developed characters in Miles, Niles, and Principal Barkin - all of whom are sure to reappear in future installments. It's got more text and fewer illustrations, but this series should be popular with Diary of a Wimpy Kid fans.
Note: I have to add that this book had the best Advance Reader Copy promotion ever! I was totally pranked! I received a large box in the mail marked "Perishable." Inside was the big milk carton, and inside the milk carton was my copy of The Terrible Two, a coffee cup featuring cartoon images of the authors, and a signed certificate from The International Order of Disorder proclaiming the holder to be "a distinguished member of the International Order of Disorder." I will raffle this off to the members of my book club. Someone is going to be as happy as a cow in a cornfield!
Advance Reader Copy supplied (with coffee cup and milk carton) by the publisher.
0 Comments on The Terrible Two - a review as of 12/3/2014 6:59:00 AM
by Marko Kitti
published by Marko Kitti 4/28/2014
978-1-4974-5822-2
Age 7 to 9 152 pages x
“Jesper Jinx is eleven, and probably the unluckiest person in all of Puffington Hill. Everything he touches seems to end up in sweet disaster. Hence his nickname “Jinx.” In this first book of Jesper Jinx’s wonderfully wicked adventures you’re going to meet Jesper’s family and Snowy the Cat. Also, there’s a mysterious new classmate with a moustache. And it‘s up to Jesper to launch his famous Boredom Breaker. What harm would it do to have a little fun?”
Opening
“Jesper Jinx watched as his older sister Melinda popped her soda an open and took a small sip from it.”
The Story
Jesper Jinx loves his pranks but the pranks have earned him a nickname. Even some of his best pranks are jinxed, like the time he switched his sister’s beloved energy drink, Guaraná Antarctica, with a horrible homemade concoction. She deserved it. She snooped at his diary. At dinner, dad took a swing of Melinda’s “energy drink” and about gagged, no, wait, he did gag and so did Melinda. She was well worth it, but not dad. Jesper ran out of the house before anyone could accuse him and ran into the author of this book. Sworn to secrecy, the author agreed to write a book only Jesper’s eyes would see. This is that book.
Two short stories are included in book 1: Jesper Jinx and the Colourful Cat and Jesper Jinx and the Spanish Shenanigans. For animal lovers, the first story will amuse you, especially if you are owned by a dog. Jesper accidentally causes Snowy, the cat, to turn several shades of red moments before his mother is to show her off to a disliked neighbor. To make matters worse, the cat, named for its pure white coat of fur, disappears, like magic. One minute, she was under a towel and the next, gone. Of course, this is when the dreaded neighbor rings the doorbell. Is it really magic? Is Snowy a magical cat? Mom believes so, if only for a short minute. Then she realizes Jesper is involved and has him bathe Snowy. Everyone knows cats do not like bathes. Jinxed! With claws!
In the Spanish Shenanigans, it is not Jesper pulling the shenanigans. There is a new kid in class, and he has a moustache on his upper lip. His name is José Maria, and he has a moustache, a real one, and a deep voice. José claims everything grows faster in the hot Spanish sun, but Jasper is not inclined to believe him, well, he is inclined enough to show José all of his best pranks. School will not be the same for Jesper and his best friend Oliver. Their teacher, Miss Parrot, who likes to repeat what she hears, has a life-changing experience and leaves school—for good. Jesper and Oliver will get a new teacher. A short-for-his-age teacher who has a deep voice (girls will swoon over), and a real moustache on his upper lip. The new teacher now knows all of Jesper and Oliver’s favorite pranks. Jinxed!
Review
I read Jesper Jinx in one sitting and enjoyed the crazy antics of both Jesper and the author. The author begins by explaining how he came to Puffington Hill, home of Jesper, and how he acquired Jesper’s stories— and the secrecy by which he swore to handle his stories. There is even a certificate of secrecy readers must sign. Running out of the house after dad takes a swing of Melinda’s tampered Guaraná Antarctica energy drink, Jesper runs into the vacationing author. Then the stories begin. Oh, yes, Jesper Jinx is Finnish author, Marco Kitti’s first English language chapter book.
I like the story of the red Snowy cat and its disappearance from under the towel. The cat’s portrayal is realistic. I cannot count the number of times my cat is not where he was only moments before and then suddenly shows up where he could not possibly be at. The behavior is enough to drive a person to dogs. The humor is well timed and Jesper’s reactions are convincing. I love that mom is going to show off a cat she otherwise wants nothing to do with. Snowy belongs to Jesper when the litter box needs cleaned or the cat is in mom’s space. But bring the snooty neighbor comes around Snowy becomes mom’s treasure. I like how the author includes bits of life that are true for many readers. Like dad, engrossed in his newspaper, only coming up for air when he wants something, but don’t try to talk to him.
In the shenanigans story, it is confusing why this new kid is suddenly in class and why the teacher swooned whenever she said his name. The teacher is wacky, repeating what the student said, before answering.
“Yes, Jesper?” said Miss Parrot. “Do you have something to share with us all?”
“No,” said Jesper.
“No,” said Miss Parrot. “Is there something . . . ?”
“No, Miss Parrot,” said Jesper.
“No, Miss Parrot,” repeated Miss Parrot. “Then how about you, Oliver?”
“I can’t think of any questions, Miss Parrot,” said Oliver.
“Think of any questions, Miss Parrot!” said the teacher.
Yes, it can get tiring, but then Miss Parrot quickly disappears. She is busy driving her souped-up Mercedes. The story is about José Maria, Jesper, and Oliver’s budding friendship. It is odd that José has a moustache but then, I can remember certain boys tended to get their hairy lip early. So, I believed this. The deep voice at eleven I also believed. Maybe he is older and flunked a few grades. You must believe or the story cannot go on. Poor Jesper, he is jinxed the moment the man-boy walks into his classroom. Trying to be a nice kid, Jesper and his friend Oliver befriend José. José asks Jesper about pranks, so Jesper shows him the best pranks he an Oliver pull on teachers.
Jesper is a likable character, kids age 7 and up will enjoy, along with all of his the crazy stories. The stories are short, and the vocabulary basic, so a reluctant reader can enjoy Jesper’s antics. Jesper Jinx will entertain both boys and girls who like crazy plot twists you don’t expect. The antics are similar to those in the the Aldo Zelnick alphabet book series.(Reviewed here: “J” “K”) Just remember one important detail, you must keep the contents of these books a secret. Jesper believes the author is only printing one copy for himself only. If he finds out that is not true, he will stop telling the author his stories. Jesper Jinx is a welcome addition to chapter books and books for reluctant readers.
4 StarsBabysitting SugarPaw
V.S. Grenier
Kevin Scott Collier
(SP) Halo Publishing
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In Babysitting SugarPaw, SugarPaw is a young bear who will be spending the evening with a babysitter, but is not happy about the situation.
“I don’t want a babysitter!”
Papa Bear assures SugarPaw everything will be okay, but SugarPaw is going to make sure that’s not true. First, he runs down and changes the rules chart.
………………
……….No TV after 7 P.M.
……….No TV after 10 P.M.
……….No playing with paints
……….Play with paints.
Every rule on SugarPaw’s rules chart now has a counter rule designed to get the babysitter in trouble.
The babysitter is indeed the best around. Bonnie Whiskers knows just how to handle sneaky little bears who think they are too old for a babysitter. She lets SugarPaw get away with his rules, cleans up after the messes he deliberately makes, and does it all kindly. SugarPaw starts to feel guilty.
This is a cute book appropriate for any child who thinks they are too old for a sitter, getting a new babysitter, or who usually acts up for the babysitter. Kids will love the characters and the mischief SugarPaw tries to create. The story can be an icebreaker for parents with a child adamantly against a babysitter, regardless of age.
The illustrations by Kevin Scott Collier of adorable, funny, and bright-eyed characters enhance the story and increase the laugh factor of SugarPaw’s antics. Such as the one of SugarPaw sitting in an over-flowing bathtub, with the biggest smile on his face and looking like he is having the best time, while Bunny Whiskers looks on with a mop in her hand.
Babysitting SugarPaw is also a good bedtime story. It is a fast read, kids will love hearing the story night after night, and parents will not mind reading it repeatedly. I do wonder why Bunny Whiskers reads the rules chart—the correct rules chart—and then allows her charge to do a switch-a-roo on her. Maybe she felt SugarPaw needed some control over the situation, something kids usually do not have. Whatever the reason, the babysitter takes it all in stride giving us a wonderful time and a beautiful ending.
SugarPaw’s creator, V.S. Grenier, visited Kid Lit Reviews yesterday and sat down for a chat. To read more about SugarPaw and the author, click HERE!
Author: V.S. Grenier websitefor kids
Illustrator: Kevin Scott Collier website
Publisher: (SP) Halo Publishing website
Release Date: June 30, 2009
Number of Pages: 32
Ages: 3 to 9
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In honor of April Fools’ Day, fake publishing news has been circulating the Internet all day. We rounded up a few examples. Above, we’ve embedded that Harry Potter/Dangerous Minds parody skit from College Humor.
Smashwords revealed plans to purchase Amazon to create Smashazon.com, a site dedicated to making “your eBook, your way.”
Author Jane Friedman offered her funny predictions with The Future of Publishing: Enigma Variations. She imagined that authors James Patterson, Stephen King, and Dan Brown will create United Authors, an collective earning $11 billion by 2016.
DISCLAIMER: None of these links are in the spirit of April Fools, so worry not. You’re not going to click anything that will cause a startling pop-up or download something you don’t want on your computer. We wouldn’t do that to you. (Or would we?) (No, we would not.) -Lauren & Kirsty
*Senior pranks can be cause for trouble within the school or law. Make sure the prank is appropriate and doesn’t harm any person, property, or animal. I am not held responsible for any of the punishment, damage, or any other causes of these pranks. Trespassing, vandalism, or any other crime is not acceptable in the process of carrying out a prank.
A great idea for a senior prank is to fill an office, classroom, gym, or car full of balloons, popcorn, packing peanuts, or any other item that consumes up space. This is a hilarious prank that is pretty harmless.
This classic prank will also create problems within the school. Buy 700-1000 Dixie cups or how many you find appropriate. Fill them up with a little bit of water, but not to much. And place them all next to each other but very close so that you cannot step between the cups without knocking them down. Make sure you start on the opposite side of the room and make your way backwards toward the exit!
Order and Buy thousands of bouncy balls, most likely online. Get a good group of friends and distribute them amongst each other. Plan out a certain time in the day where everyone is spread out throughout the school and then just make it rain bouncy balls! This prank would definitely cause chaos and confusion, but would be hilarious.
An easy prank would be to saran wrap other student’s cars. Juniors would be the primary target seeing they are the other grade that can drive. Faculty may be a risky idea, but they would be an option. This may be one of the more expensive pranks, but it deserves to be on the list.
Forking the school yard would be another senior prank. Students would go to a store and buy hundreds of forks, and during the middle of the night they would stick them into the school’s courtyard, lobby, or football field. This prank would be a risky one seeing that it could be considered vandalism. A vulgar message may cross the line.
This classic prank is known all over. I don’t think I need to explain, but I will. Buy a bunch of toilet paper rolls and just go crazy. You can never buy too much toilet paper. Throw them all over the school’s building, trees, and anything else that works.
This prank involves getting as many seniors as possible and camping out for a night in the parking lot or any other good area. This would be a fun prank that seems pretty harmless if everything goes right. Grilling out, chilling, and playing some sports would make this a fun night.
This prank involves putting as many for sale signs as possible in the front lawn of your school. This would be a pretty humorous prank not to mention harmless. Another option is to put a real estate ad in the local newspaper.
For this prank you need to get a group of seniors, and while class is in session this group needs to run around with numerous jars of Vaseline and rub it all over door handles and lockers. This will definitely cause students to be mad and will leave a mark in your school’s history.
This final prank is pretty self-explanatory. You need to get a whole group of seniors and buy a bunch of post-it note packages. Then during school sometime or after when no one is in the hallways cover everything with post-it notes. Completely yellow-out the school hallway and it will look flawless.
Fleischman, Paul. 2009. The Dunderheads. Illustrated by David Roberts. Candlewick Press.
I'll be honest. I did not like this one...much. I know that it's intended to be funny and snarky. And irresistible too. Clever kids outwitting a mean adult, a teacher. It's not that the teacher didn't deserve it. She did. And then some. And it's not even that I am so offended by the mean-and-ugly teacher stereotype going on.
"Never," shrieked Miss Breakbone, "have I been asked to teach such a scraping-together of fiddling, twiddling, time-squandering, mind-wandering, doodling, dozing, don't-knowing dunderheads!"
Okay, so that is pretty rhythmic and catchy. If you're going to insult someone, I guess you could always do worse.
That was her first mistake: the insult. Mistake number 2: no eye for talent. An easy mistake to make, in our case.
Note the electric chair in the classroom. Perhaps because of this, the teacher underestimates her class.
Miss Breakbone hated kids. Every time she made a student cry, she gave herself a gold star. Confiscating was her specialty. Rumor had it she'd bought her electric chair from selling all the stuff she'd taken away.
When the kids in her class have had enough, they plot, plot, plot a way to get their stuff back, a way to teach Miss Breakbone a lesson. Individually, no one can tackle her...and hope to win. But working together, can this team of students do the impossible? Can they break Miss Breakbone?
The premise of this is fun. And most readers will probably enjoy it more than I did. What with the plotting, pranking, and spitting. In some ways, it reminded me of one of my favorite cartoons--Recess. Man, I loved that show!
This is a picture book for older readers. (Still elementary-aged, mind you. But not for the preschool/pre-K crowd. Perhaps for third and fourth graders?) And it's nice to see an engaging picture book for older readers with a lot of appeal.
I'm not sure why I didn't like this one...excepting that the illustrations aren't to my taste. I think they're suited to the story. They match the style of the story well enough. I think this book will be appealing to others. It's just not my style.
Hi Becky! I wasn't crazy about this one either, but my students LOVED it! The illustrations got their attention and they liked how all of the kids used their unique talents to work together. It took about a week for them to quit calling each other "Dunderheads."
Pranks, Tricks & Challenges to Amuse & Annoy Your Friendswritten and drawn by master tricksterSam BartlettWorkman 2008While I recognize that April is National Poetry Month it also happens to be the month that begins with one of my favorite non-holiday holidays: April Fool's Day. Is there anything more delicious than planning and pulling off that perfect prank, that preposterous practical joke?
3 Comments on The Best of Stuntology, last added: 4/10/2009
David, What about age level? Is this something I can put in the Children's Room? I can think of many a child who would enjoy something like this, but I'm not getting a good sense of whether or not it would be appropriate.
Age level is an excellent point, and I probably should have noted that.I'm going to have to nix the idea of the children's room only because there are a number of stunts that have "adults only" warnings that are clearly winks to teens. There is a disclaimer up front about the contents being "for reading enjoyment" and for that I would say this book works best at the teen level.It's too bad, now
Well, you know, I'd rather find out from you than an irate parent calling me about the whole burning-down-the-house thing. That's always so uncomfortable. I'm going to recommend it to our teen librarian, though.
Frankie has always been underestimated by people. From her family calling her "Bunny Rabbit", to her virtual invisibility on campus her first year at Alabaster, Frankie is seen as less than. Less than her big sister Zada. Less than the boys on campus who take up too much space. Not even capable of wandering into town on her own at the Jersey shore.
And then she falls off her bike.
Suddenly, gorgeous senior Matthew Livingstone is Frankie's boyfriend. His friends are her friends and she loves all of the attention that she gets. But she doesn't like the fact that Matthew seems to be at Alessandro's (Alpha) beck and call. So one day when Matthew dumps her for the boys, Frankie engages in some espionage. Turns out that the old boy network that her dad is always going on about is still alive and well at Alabaster. Frankie is certain that she could do it better.
Since this is still in arc format, I am not going to give too much away, other than to say that I love this book. Boarding school, feminist sensibilities, and smart characters. From wordplay to the introduction of other authors and social theory, from discussions of class to that of following the crowd and the rules, there is so much going on in this book. Frankie is an amazing girl, and I think that E. Lockhart has outdone herself. Every student at our school who has read this is raving about it. The readers who love Waiting for Alaska will fall for this title as well.
0 Comments on The Disreputable History of Frankie Landau-Banks as of 1/1/1900
I meant to post earlier this week about Natalie Angier's most recent NYT "Basics" science column when it first appeared, but schoolwork and festivities got in the way. You can read the entire column here (registration is free); and here are some bits and pieces (emphases, as always, mine):
[Faye Cascio’s ninth-grade physical science] ... students can articulate their reasoning because, for one
0 Comments on Learning to think like scientists, and learning how to think about science as of 11/2/2007 1:37:00 PM
John Holt, on helping a very young boy learn the names of different words, from How Children Learn:I was careful, when I told him the name of something, not to tell him as if it were a lesson, something he had to remember. Nor did I test him by saying, "What's this? What's that?" This kind of checking up is not necessary, and it puts a child in a spot where he will feel that, if he says the wrong
0 Comments on Science with Tom Edison as of 9/8/2007 1:21:00 PM
I shouldn't even be here posting, because we're getting ready for the big 4H Beef Club weekend -- achievement day, interclub show, and sale. (No, Laura doesn't have to sell her heifer calf; only the steers get sold, heading straight to their doom and little wrapped packages. One reason an older friend of hers and longtime 4H member suggested a heifer over a steer.)
I've been reading and hearing
0 Comments on I typed this all by myself with my opposable thumbs as of 5/26/2007 1:11:00 PM
April Fools’ Day Jokes
— 
x
With claws!
the stories begin. Oh, yes, Jesper Jinx is Finnish author, Marco Kitti’s first English language chapter book.
Hi Becky! I wasn't crazy about this one either, but my students LOVED it! The illustrations got their attention and they liked how all of the kids used their unique talents to work together. It took about a week for them to quit calling each other "Dunderheads."