A funny and insightful book that captures the challenges of childhood with humor and empathy.

used copy at Powells Cedar Hill - think I can request it brought to Burnside online

A super hilarious book, we follow Alexander and this awful day as it unfolds Infront of him. On this particular day, nothing can seem to go right and it's really making Alexander mad. This book teaches kids that everyone has bad days eventually and it teaches them to help face them. I would say that this book is perfect for kids around the ages of 5-8

A black and white illustrated book that everyone can relate to! Alexander could tell it was going to be a bad day after he woke up with gum in his hair, since he went to bed with gum in his hair. As he is getting out of bed he trips on his skateboard. He visits his dad at work and things go wrong there too. When he returns home there is kissing on t.v. and that is not good either. It doesn't matter where Alexander goes something bad happens. In the end he thinks about going/moving to Australia. This book is a great reminder that even though bad things happen, there are good things that happen in our day too. ( )

Independent Reading Level: Grades 1-3 Awards/Honors: None

This book had a lot of potential to teach the concept that bad days happen, but it failed to teach any ways to cope with it. ( )

Blech. I'm sorry but I hate this book. I really don't think it belongs on a child's bookshelf. I find this book about terrible, horrible, no good, very bad days one where NO ONE GROWS OR MOVES ON. Alexander just whines and complains. I'm over it.

I really am bummed this was the October book for My First Books. ( )

A grumpy little boy has a bad day -- some of it of his own making, some of it just bad luck, some of it a matter of poor attitude. Somehow the references to Australia keep it from being a whiny diatribe that grates. And, hey, bad days are totally relatable, right?

This is a classic picture book I have never read before, and I am only reading it today as preparation for reading a Mad magazine parody entitled, Superman and the Miserable, Rotten, No Fun, Really Bad Day. ( )

Independent Reading Level: 1st-2nd
Awards: George G. Stone Center recognition of Merit, Georgia Children's Book Award ( )

I love the humor and relatability of this book. It is about Alexander and how he is convinced everything that can go bad will. My only concern is his over the top ungratefulness that never really gets resolved but still an entertaining read for young children.

A creative and yet universal depiction of what an incredibly awful day for a child can feel like. The illustrations are very detailed and set the mood very well.

Alexander wakes up with gum in his hair and his day just goes downhill from there. His breakfast is no fun, his best friend has new besties and the shoes that he wants are out of stock leaving him with the plain ones, not to mention, he has a visit to the dentist looming in his future. His parents aren’t exactly sympathetic and it still isn’t over because before his day is done he is going to have to watch kissing on television and eat lima beans for dinner. (Actually, I think I got off easy. I HATE lima beans!!) The pencil and ink sketches by Ray Cruz are the perfect medium for conveying Alexander’s day.

Alexander is an ‘every kid’ as the success of the entire series proves and this book is just a classic. Which is why it is still in classrooms and libraries all over the world after nearly fifty years because it perfectly captures the fact that bad days just happen sometimes, even in Australia. ( )

Alexander has a day where literally nothing goes right. From the moment he wakes up until the moment he goes to bed, everything bad that could happen, does. This is a relatable story for anyone, because regardless of how bad it ACTUALLY was, we've all had a day where it seemed like nothing went our way. We all need a reminded sometimes that there are days like these, but they all will pass, even in Australia. ( )

A boy named Alexander wakes up with gum in his hair and his day progressively gets worse. This book is a reminder that we all have those "Terrible, horrible, no good, very bad days!" The illustrations are made up of mostly primary colors and pencil. This book is adorable! ( )

Reading Level: 2nd-3rd grades
Awards: ALA Notable Children's Book (1972)

This book shows students it is ok to have a bad day, but the way you react is what will define you. ( )

Alexander knew it was going to be a terrible day when he woke up with gum in this hair. And it got worse...

"Schooldays", Jan/Feb 2002
"Teacher's Helper", Gr 1, Dec/Jan 2008-2009

"Schooldays", Jan/Feb 2002
"Teacher's Helper", Gr 1, Dec/Jan 2008-2009

Pretty much covers all the things that can go bad in a pre-teen boy's life (happens to girls too, of course, and they have additional troubles).
The conclusion - some days are like that, even in Australia - is not particularly comforting, but the author clearly has been there, done that either as or with kids.

CAVEAT because a friend's 12-year-old grandson killed himself because of his own No Good Very Bad Days, although thaey were somewhat worse than in the book: don't ignore children who feel they have more bad days than good days, and more bad things on their days than other kids have.

(dates for most recent reading) ( )

This book follows the story of Alexander, a boy who knew it was going to be a bad day when he woke up with gum in his hair. His day only got worse when his firend deserts him, theres no dessert in his lunch bag, and there were lima beans for dinner, and more! This story teaches students how to deal with a bad day and can be used to teach the order of words. The repetition in the sentences helps with this. ( )

This book is geared towards 2nd to 5th graders.

This book follows a young boy, Alexander, as he experiences what he thinks to be the worst day in the world. This book highlights the emotion of frustration and how everybody has bad days.

I would use this silly book as a way to talk about how we all can have bad days but the importance of making the most of the day that we have or trying again the next day to be better. ( )

I think this book would be good for any level of elementary. This book takes you through different emotions and feeling that someone can have during a terrible, horrible, and bad day. I think this book would be a fun one to look at to talk about different emotions. ( )

This book is a staple for children across the US. This book is great for young students. An early elementary school classroom would benefit greatly from this book because of how descriptive it is. Adjectives and descriptions are a common theme for children's books. ( )

Alexander first gets gum stuck in his hair which is only the start of his terrible day. One thing seems to come right after the other for him and when he looks for sympathy from his family, he gets very little. He wonders if he is the only one that has bad things happen to him. Soon, he realizes that his family has their own struggles that they go through every day. ( )