I don’t know what made me do it. I’d never done anything like that before. I wish like anything I could take it back. But I can’t. And I don’t like to be reminded of it either. <br>
So, later on, when Miss Rogers asked me to write a story about it I felt terrible all over again. But I did like she said. <br><br>
I’m Tina Henning and this is my story . . . . mine and Miss Rogers’. It also tells about my mom and my sister Katie, my best friends, Connie and Margo, and my worst friend, Nancy. Oh yeah, and a creepy hobo. <br><br>
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~<br><br>
MISS ROGERS STINKS is a novel for kids 8 – 12: historical, multicultural, intergenerational, somewhat bilingual (English/Spanish). <br><br>
It’s spring of 1946 in Fresno, California. World War II has ended and the world is returning to normal. This book is an open window into the war and post-war era. The author was a child at that time and tells what it was like when there were no computers, no televisions, no smart phones, no dishwashers, and every schoolchild was terrified of being sent to the cloakroom. <br><br>
Tina Henning is in Miss Rogers’ 5th grade class. She’s the smallest kid in class, and that’s the only thing she can think of that she’s best at. She thinks she’s a big nothing. She wishes she could do something to make the other kids notice her and think she’s special. But when she actually accomplishes that, she’s sorry her wish came true. She gets in big trouble the she has to get herself out of; by doing so she changes her life. <br><br>
Tina and Conchita Vasquez welcome Margo Akita back from the Japanese internment camp where she spent the war years, and they become “The Three Musketeers”. <br><br>
On her way from ZERO to HERO, Tina learns about compassion, consequences, friendship. <br><br>
Tina and her friends, Girl Scouts all, go on outings and have adventures. <br>
She and her sister Katie, who share a bedroom, exhibit hilarious sibling rivalry. <br>
Their widowed mom demonstrates excellent parenting. <br>
And Tina, who believes she has no talent, delivers a well-deserved come-uppance to her nemesis, Nancy, through her riveting storytelling. <br>
A hobo teaches Tina a valuable lesson about not judging others. <br>
And despite Tina’s bad deed, Miss Rogers and she become dear, if unconventional, friends. <br><br>
Included is a section titled “Definitions, Descriptions & Explanations,” and another, “Things to Think About”. MISS ROGERS STINKS is excellent for a classroom history lesson or individual pleasure reading.
