Big Nate : In a Class By Himself
Children's Literature
Trouble starts when Big Nate gets a fortune cookie that tells him, "Today you will surpass all others." He takes it to heart and for the rest of the book tries to discover exactly in what way he will do that. As the day wears on, and as Nate gets detention slips for bad behavior in one class after another, he decides to take matters into his own hands. He tries to break the world record for eating green beans, with disastrous results. He thinks that he has finally done it when he finishes a math pop quiz before anyone else, only to find out later that he forgot to answer the questions on the back of the page. As the day ends with Nate sitting in detention, and the fortune seemingly unfulfilled, Mrs. Czerwicki, the detention monitor, asks him how many detention slips he actually has. The answer is seven, and Mrs. Czerwicki confirms that no one has ever gotten seven detention slips before. Nate is the new record holder. He has, indeed, surpassed all others. This is a funny book with a witty plot, but there are some drawbacks. The book contains many stand-alone vignettes throughout; these are comical, but many do not contribute anything to the plot. In fact, the plot does not really get going until the first third of the book is over. While some children will be entertained by all the diversions, others may find the technique distracting. In any event, this would probably be a good book for boys who may think that reading is not fun, or who are having trouble getting motivated to read. This book is derived from the "Big Nate" comic strip presents his adventures in a graphic novel. Reviewer: Leona Illig