Independent Reading Level: Grades 2-3

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This non-fictional picture book focuses on the new lunch lady at school. Students hear rumors about this lunch lady, mostly bad things like how she cooks really bad and will feed you real rats. The students are all afraid of her because of these rumors. When lunch finally arrives, the students think they're in line for death, but learn that the lunch lady is not bad at all. The illustrations are very colorful and complex. It looks like a lot of time has been dedicated for the illustrations. The text is printed in small font and has a little amount on each page. The book itself is very creative and imaginative because of all the rumors that were spreading. The book shows that rumors are not true, and that people should not believe or be afraid of rumors that are spreading without knowing the real story. Teachers can use this book as just a fun book, it does not have to be taught during a lesson because it has many themes and enhances many imagination experiences. ( )

After reading two other books by Mike Thaler, I found the fun of the books starting to dissipate. Before I even read the first pages, I already knew what would happen: The little boy would imagine a certain person being a monster and then in the end it winds up being a nice person. With that, the story was still good but predictable. The pictures is what makes all of Thaler's books great. I enjoyed staring at some of the pictures with the nasty foods and imagining the taste of such a grotesque meal. I would recommend this book to anyone who has or hasn't read a book by Thaler. ( )