Andy Shane and the Very Bossy Dolores Starbuckle

by Jennifer Richard Jacobson, Abby Carter (Illustrator)

Overview

With insight and humor, Jennifer Richard Jacobson explores a common childhood anxiety and finds a quiet way to boost self-esteem, aided by Abby Carter’s expressive illustrations.

Andy Shane did not want to be in school. He did not want to be at morning meeting. He did not want to sit up straight on the rug.
Andy Shane would much rather be home catching bugs with Granny Webb than sitting in class with the likes of know-it-all Dolores Starbuckle. Any minute, Dolores is likely to shout out, 'Ms. Janice, someone's not sitting properly!" or "Ms. Janice, someone's misusing the math materials!" (meaning him, of course). At rhyme time, the words bug and rug get stuck in Andy's throat while Dolores yells out of turn, "Hullabaloo and Kalamazoo!"
"I hate school," he blurts out at the end of the day to Granny Webb, who is sympathetic but firm. But when Granny makes a surprise visit to school with a monarch caterpillar, everyone is mesmerized and Andy remembers how much he knows about insects himself. Even Dolores Starbuckle can’t help but be impressed!

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780763688691
Publisher:	Candlewick Press
Publication date:	02/09/2016
Series:	Andy Shane , #1
Sold by:	Barnes & Noble
Format:	eBook
Lexile:	610L (what's this?)
File size:	8 MB
Age Range:	5 - 8 Years

About the Author

Jennifer Richard Jacobson is the author of several books for children and young adults, including the middle-grade novels Small as an Elephant and Paper Things and the Andy Shane early chapter books, illustrated by Abby Carter. She lives in Cumberland, Maine.

Abby Carter is the illustrator of all the books in the Andy Shane series as well as My Hippie Grandmother by Reeve Lindbergh. She lives in Hadlyme, Connecticut.

Jennifer Richard Jacobson grew up in a family of storytellers. “My brothers,” she says, “had the ability to make us laugh until our bellies hurt. I wasn’t as hilarious, but I learned how to take the mishaps in life (especially the embarrassments) and turn them into a dramatic story.”

Author of the Andy Shane series, Jennifer says that she can sympathize with both Andy and his counterpart, Dolores. Like Andy she can be a dreamer, a planner—someone who likes to take time to think things over. But like the boisterous Dolores, she’s also persistent. Once she’s decided on a goal, she doesn’t give up.

When writing stories, Jennifer often begins with a specific memory, a kernel of a story that she wants to expand and explore. But the idea for her middle-grade novel Small as an Elephant came to her in an unexpected way: “Ten years ago I was at a writer’s conference and the instructor (Virginia Euwer Wolff of Make Lemonade fame) suggested, as an exercise, that we try writing an irresistible beginning. I had a rush of an idea: What if a boy on a camping trip crawled out of his pup tent and discovered that his family (I didn’t yet know who he was camping with) and the camping equipment were gone? I shared this beginning with the other writers, received an enthusiastic response, and then let the idea go. Or tried to let it go. But it wouldn’t let go of me. Who was the boy? Why was he abandoned? I had to write the book.”

Jennifer is also the author of another middle-grade novel for Candlewick Press titled Paper Things. She lives in Maine with her husband and Jack Russell terrier.

Three Things You Might Not Know About Jennifer:

1. She sings her favorite childhood songs when she runs.

2. She was called “Jeffie” until she was eight years old.

3. She cries at the end of every good story.

Table of Contents

Chapter 1	I Hate School	1
Chapter 2	Being Stubborn	15
Chapter 3	Granny's Surprise	25
Chapter 4	Beware the Stare	41

Editorial Reviews

K-Gr 2-Andy Shane does not want to go to school and it's easy to understand why. Every time he tries to participate in a classroom activity, Dolores Starbuckle raises her hand to tattle on him, correct him, or otherwise steal his thunder. Luckily, Andy's Granny Webb (a wise lady who knows the scientific names for bugs) puts an end to the bullying with a surprise visit to school. This story offers a refreshing perspective on a common childhood issue. Rather than fighting Andy's battle for him, Granny simply models assertive behavior as she interacts with Dolores. The perceptive boy mimics her actions, finally standing up to his nemesis with strength and dignity. The characters are complex and realistic for the most part, though their silliness is a bit exaggerated at times. The narrative voice is fresh and whimsical as when an impatient Dolores waves "her arms like a willow in a windstorm." The pen-and-ink illustrations effectively depict Andy's frustration, Dolores's temper, and Granny's zany self-assuredness. Andy Shane is a welcome addition to the pantheon of compelling chapter-book protagonists. Children who feel upstaged by the Junie B.s of the world will be grateful to make his acquaintance.-Rachael Vilmar, Atlanta Fulton Public Library, GA Copyright 2005 Reed Business Information.

School Library Journal

Andy Shane doesn't want to be at school. He doesn't want to sit straight at the rug or share at morning meeting. How much more fun would it be to be home with Granny Webb where they could catch and name various bugs-using Latin, no less. It's bad enough that Andy Shane has to be in school, but spending his day with a show-off tattletale like Dolores Starbuckle makes his day seem endless. As the self-appointed assistant teacher, she is a little spy among kindergartners, pointing out the slouchy sitter, math materials messer-upper and anyone who visits a learning center on the wrong day. But Granny Webb is not having any of Andy's school ennui; her patented Granny Webb Stare moves him right onto the bus and into school. However, Granny Webb would never abandon her little boy. A surprise school visit teaches Andy something about sticking up for himself and using every resource-even the Stare-to solve a problem. Open, humorous sketches are just the right touch for this hilarious, pitch-perfect school story. Readers will want to follow Andy all the way through school. (Fiction. 5-8)

Kirkus Reviews

Andy Shane is a welcome addition to the pantheon of compelling chapter-book protagonists.
—School Library Journal (starred review)

Open, humorous sketches are just the right touch for this hilarious, pitch-perfect school story. Readers will want to follow Andy all the way through school.
—Kirkus Reviews (starred review)

From the Publisher