Junie B. Jones and Her Big Fat Mouth

Review also includes:

Junie B. Jones and a Little Monkey Business, 978-1905294077

Junie B. Jones and Some Sneaky Peeky Spying, 978-1905294091

Junie B. Jones Is On Her Way!, 978-1905294060

First published in America in 1992, Junie B. Jones, like Beverly Cleary’s Ramona, Lauren Child’s Lola and King-Smith’s Sophie, is a small girl just starting school and none too pleased with the idea.

Junie B. is in good company with these ‘small but very determined’ heroines in presenting her feisty response to the idiotic world of adults, who don’t understand how important that ‘B’ is, or that it matters who gets the red chair, or your disappointment when you discover that your new baby brother is just an ordinary boy and not ‘the cutest little monkey ever’ as promised by Grandma.

I didn’t feel she added much to the genre, with her studiedly idiosyncratic Junie-speak, but my young testers enjoyed her, intrigued by aspects of school life Stateside – snack tickets, sneakers, zippers and all. I remember relishing the subtly different flavour given by a new vocabulary and am surprised that other words have been anglicised – Headteacher, Reception class etc., unnecessarily so given the very familiar context.

The illustrations are variable, sometimes capturing the mood of the confused, contrary youngster adequately, sometimes crudely cute.

Best for sevens to nines who remember their own bewilderment – and indignation – at the world and who will be amused at Junie B.’s reasoning: ‘Cos one time some policemen rested a man on my street. And so that means they made him take a nap I think.’