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#87 The Strange Case of Origami Yoda by Tom Angleberger (2010)
22 points
On the one hand, it’s a gimmick. On the other hand, it’s a hilarious gimmick that gets middle school boys and their insecurities down pat. That said, it’s accessible and well-written. You can’t get much better than that. - Melissa Fox
At last! The appearance of a book that has come out recently enough that I had a chance to review it myself!
Here’s the plot description from my own review: “Tommy comes right out with his dilemma on page one. ‘The big question: Is Origami Yoda real? . . . It’s REALLY important for me to figure out if he’s real. Because I’ve got to decide whether to take his advice or not, and if I make the wrong choice, I’m doomed!’ It’s strange to think that Tommy would be this torn up over an origami finger puppet belonging to the school’s biggest dork. But then he starts recounting for us the wonders of Origami Yoda’s advice. It may not always be spot on, but it’s certainly heads and tales more intelligent than Dwight, the boy who created the puppet and who voices him (poorly). Example: How do you get out of a potentially embarrassing situation when you’re in the bathroom and you spill water on your pants so that it looks like you peed yourself? Origami Yoda says: ‘All of pants, you must wet.’ See? Strangely good advice. Of course, then Tommy starts asking Origami about Sara, the girl he likes, and the answer he receives leaves him conflicted. Believe the talking folded paper or consider it a hoax and play it safe? The book is filled with little drawings and sidenotes as different classmates weigh in on the Origami Yoda conundrum.”
Here we have yet another Abrams surprise hit. Angleberger had been writing middle grade novels for years prior to Yoda’s success but it was always under his pseudonym Sam Riddleberger. With Yoda he was able to break out of his confining nom de plume and take advantage of the near universal love of Star Wars we all share (the real Star Wars, not The Clone Wars or the faux prequels, thank you very much). Thanks in part to its brilliant cover, in part to its post-Wimpy Kid era interiors, and the fact that Angleberger knows how to put pen to paper, the book has been popular ever since. There was the sequel starring Darth Paper and another that will be out this fall (I believe) involving a Wookie-related cootie catcher. And yes. Mr. Angleberger does one helluva good wookie call when asked.
For extras, I’m just including my review’s previous links wholesale!
Other Blog Reviews:
The Strange Case of Origami Yoda
is the *WINNER* of the E.B. White Read-Aloud Award for the Middle Reader category!!!
This award is voted on by the booksellers of IndieBound across the country!
The E.B. White Read-Aloud Awards recognize books that reflect the playful, well-paced language, the engaging themes,
and the universal appeal to a wide range of ages.
They will honor the winners during the ABA Celebration of Bookselling Luncheon during BookExpo this May.
The author, Tom Angleberger, will be in attendance to accept his award.
http://news.bookweb.org/news/aba-announces-2011-indies-choice-and-eb-white-award-winners
* A veritable spate of articles lately about how e-readers appeal to kids. C. J. Lovelace reports on a Chambersburg, PA, middle school that features a boys Kindle reading club:
“They spent all of last year with Kindle clubs with the reluctant readers and they had phenomenal results,” [district head librarian Joanne] Hammond said. “They tracked the progress of the students and so many of them read so many books by the end of the year because they liked reading on the Kindle much better (than) the print book.”
Not sure if this trend has legs or not, but it’s worth tracking. From an article by Julie Bosman for The New York Times:
“The young adults and the teenagers are now the newest people who are beginning to experience e-readers,” said Matthew Shear, the publisher of St. Martin’s Press. “If they get hooked, it’s great stuff for the business.”
It is too soon to tell if younger people who have just picked up e-readers will stick to them in the long run, or grow bored and move on.
But Monica Vila, who runs the popular Web site The Online Mom and lectures frequently to parent groups about Internet safety, said that in recent months she had been bombarded with questions from parents about whether they should buy e-readers for their children.
In a speech last month at a parents’ association meeting in Westchester County, Ms. Vila asked for a show of hands to indicate how many parents had bought e-readers for their children as holiday gifts.
About half the hands in the room shot up, she recalled.
“Kids are drawn to the devices, and there’s a definite desire by parents to move books into this format,” Ms. Vila said. “Now you’re finding people who are saying: ‘Let’s use the platform. Let’s use it as a way for kids to learn.’ ”
Cats like ‘em, too! Photo: Joyce Dopkeen for the New York Times.
* Virginia’s Reading Teacher of the Year, Ashleigh Fisher, a reading specialist in Roanoke, is determined to hook ‘em all. She plans to use the $500 prize money to establish a book club for boys:
“It is pretty devastating. Boys score lower than girls; they don’t see reading as a masculine activity. Boys aren’t as engaged in reading as girls,” she said.
Fisher is setting out to change that by launching a lunchtime book club for third-, fourth- and fifth-grade boys. She said she would like to begin with The Strange Case of Origami Yoda by local author and former Roanoke Times columnist Tom Angleberger. The only thing keeping Fisher from beginning immediately is a lack of funding to buy several copies of the book.
* Many young boys are missing out on quality time with their fathers.
THE STRANGE CASE OF ORIGAMI YODA
With every galley given out Tom Angleberger author of
The Strange Case of Origami Yoda has made a Origami Yoda for each book. I forsee big things for this 'strange' book.
About the book
In this funny, uncannily wise portrait of the dynamics of a sixth-grade class and of the greatness that sometimes comes in unlikely packages, Dwight, a loser, talks to his classmates via an origami finger puppet of Yoda. If that weren’t strange enough, the puppet is uncannily wise and prescient. Origami Yoda predicts the date of a pop quiz, guesses who stole the classroom Shakespeare bust, and saves a classmate from popularity-crushing embarrassment with some well-timed advice. Dwight’s classmate Tommy wonders how Yoda can be so smart when Dwight himself is so clueless. With contributions from his puzzled classmates, he assembles the case file that forms this novel.
About the author
Applying for a job as a newspaper artist, Tom Angleberger was mistakenly assigned to cover local government meetings. Fifteen years and countless town council meetings later, he is still writing instead of drawing, currently as a columnist for the Roanoke Times in Roanoke, Virginia. He began work on his first book while in middle school. Tom is married to author-illustrator Cece Bell. They live in Christianburg, Virginia.
Authors: By Tom Angleberger
Imprint: Amulet Books
ISBN: 0-8109-8425-3
EAN: 9780810984257
Availability: Prepublication
Publishing Date: 4/1/2010
Trim Size: 5 1/2 x 8 1/4
Page Count: 160
Cover: Hardcover
Illustrations: Through out
I thought it would be interesting to post a photo of my bulletin board in my office once a month to see what I am working on. I usually post up covers that I am designing or art directing to 'live with them' for a while an see if they are working. Some title on my board are The Strange Case of Origami Yoda, Meanwhile, The Popularity Papers, Attack of the Fluffy Bunnies, Fizzy Whiz Kid, Sisters Grimm, Bear In the Air and Anxious Hearts. So the beginning of every month I will make a posting "Scenes from my Bulletin Board".
#87 The Strange Case of Origami Yoda by Tom Angleberger (2010)
Pleased as Death Lord losing yet another hand to see this here.
I’m just finishing a reading to my fifth graders of the Riddleburger masterpiece THE QUICKPICK ADVENTURE SOCIETY. Gag reflex aside, why wasn’t that book made into a series?
Angleberbeger/Riddleburger brings to the oh so popular mixed-media-comedic-novel an underlying dose of genuine compassion, which rises him above the level of wimpy laughs.
You had me at “wookie-related cootie catcher.”
So glad you loved Qwikpick too! Consider it the lost Angleberger classic. It will rise again! I swear it!
I will be happy to head the Qwikpick resurgence, although I will need to get the spelling right.
I wanted to read Quikpick to my son when it first came out, but our library didn’t have it back then. Still don’t – I bet they would if it had his real name on it.
I’m surprised but ridiculously happy to see this here.
I agree with you, DaNae. This book does have an underlying compassion that makes me like it better than Wimpy Kid.