Gooney Bird Is So Absurd - (Gooney Bird Greene) by Lois Lowry (Paperback)

About the Book

In the fourth book in Lowry's Gooney Bird Greene series, second grader Gooney Bird is learning how to write poems in school. When the class gets some sad news about their teacher, Gooney Bird organizes a class poem to show Mrs. Pigeon they are thinking of her. Illustrations.

Book Synopsis

The fourth hilarious title in Lowis Lowry's popular Gooney Bird series!

It's a cold January at the Watertower Elementary School--the perfect weather for Gooney Bird Greene to break out her special brain-warming hat! It's a good thing she has one. Gooney Bird's brain will need to be as warm as possible this month, because Mrs. Pidgeon is teaching her class about poetry. Who knew there could be so many different ways to write a poem? Haikus, couplets, limericks--Mrs. Pidgeon's students soon find that writing good poetry takes a lot of hard work and creative thinking. Gooney Bird and her classmates are up to the challenge. But just when things are going well, the kids get some terrible news. Gooney Bird will need all the inspiration her brain can muster to organize the most important poem the class has ever written.

Review Quotes

"The story unfolds with fresh humor that keeps readers interested. Thomas's pencil drawings bring life to the characters. A fine selection for beginning chapter-book readers and as a read-aloud."--School Library Journal "Thomas's illustrations help the new reader see the final "poem" and imagine Mrs. Pidgeon's reaction to their heartfelt offering of sadness for their teacher. Few books for early readers address such a difficult issue, but Lowry's capable storytelling does it with grace--much like Mrs. Pidgeon herself."--Horn Book "Few beginning chapter books have the range of this one, from hilarity to sadness, from outrage to compassion, and few writers could manage it with such finesse. Often amusing and sometimes subtly instructive, the fourth book in the Gooney Bird Greene series is well suited to reading aloud."--Booklist

About the Author

Lois Lowry is a two-time Newbery Medal winner for Number the Stars and The Giver, the first of a quartet. She now divides her time between Cambridge, Massachusetts, and an 1840s farmhouse in Maine. Visit her website at www.loislowry.com and visit www.hmhbooks.com/gooneybirdgreene.

The illustrator Middy Thomas is a native Mainer and art teacher. She lives in Brunswick, Maine.