Alexander and the Terrible, Horrible, No Good, Very Bad Day

by Judith Viorst, Ray Cruz (Illustrator)

Overview

Notes From Your Bookseller

An infinitely amusing picture book that touches on the important subject of how to handle bad days. They’re going to happen, you can’t avoid them, so why not try to understand them early? A great read-aloud that never gets old!

A Latino-centric movie adaptation is coming soon to Disney+!

From children’s book legend Judith Viorst comes the perennially popular tale of Alexander’s worst day. Alexander and the Terrible, Horrible, No Good, Very Bad Day is a story that belongs on every child’s bookshelf.

Alexander could tell it was going to be a terrible, horrible, no good, very bad day. He went to sleep with gum in his mouth and woke up with gum in his hair. When he got out of bed, he tripped over his skateboard and by mistake dropped his sweater in the sink while the water was running. He could tell it was going to be a terrible, horrible, no good, very bad day.

It was a terrible, horrible, no good, very bad day. Nothing at all was right. Everything went wrong, right down to lima beans for supper and kissing on TV.

What do you do on a day like that? Well, you may think about going to Australia. You may also be glad to find that some days are like that for other people too.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780689711732
Publisher:	Atheneum Books for Young Readers
Publication date:	07/15/1987
Series:	Alexander Series
Edition description:	Reprint
Pages:	32
Sales rank:	7,631
Product dimensions:	9.50(w) x 7.30(h) x 0.20(d)
Lexile:	AD840L (what's this?)
Age Range:	5 - 8 Years

About the Author

Judith Viorst is the author of the beloved Alexander and the Terrible, Horrible, No Good, Very Bad Day, which has sold some four million copies; the Lulu books, including Lulu and the Brontosaurus; the New York Times bestseller Necessary Losses; four musicals; and poetry for children and adults. Her most recent books of poetry include What Are You Glad About? What Are You Mad About? and Nearing Ninety. She lives in Washington, DC.

Ray Cruz is the illustrator of the modern classics Alexander and the Terrible, Horrible, No Good, Very Bad Day and Alexander, Who Used To Be Rich Last Sunday.

Editorial Reviews

From the moment Alexander wakes up and finds gum in his hair, everthing goes wrong! His brothers both get prizes in their cereal boxes, his best friend demotes him to third-best friend, there are lima beans for dinner, and there is kissing on TV. All kids experience this type of day, and will be glad to find they are not alone!

Barnes & Noble Staff

Objecting loudly to his family's plans to relocate, the hero of Alexander and the Terrible, Horrible, No Good, Very Bad Day "makes a gratifying return," said PW. Ages 5-8. (Aug.)

Publishers Weekly - Publisher's Weekly

[Editor’s Note: The following is a combined review with ALEXANDER, WHO’S NOT (DO YOU HEAR ME? I MEAN IT!) GOING TO MOVE and ALEXANDER, WHO USED TO BE RICH LAST SUNDAY.] -- Everyone loves the cranky, downtrodden, belligerent, and lovable Alexander. We've read and re-read Viorst's three picture books about him over the years. But no reader has experienced Alexander quite like this! Johnny Heller's whiny, often-wise grammar school hero is sufficiently self-righteous to elicit sympathy from kids and knowing smiles from adults. He never gets a seat by the window, he complains. And he only punches his brothers when they deserve it, he explains. His mother never puts interesting desserts in his lunch, he moans. And his money never lasts because saving money is too hard, he groans. He won't move, he threatens. He won't pack, he wails. He won't have any friends if he goes, he sobs. Sniffling and fussing, Heller's Alexander holds up a mirror for us all--and we laugh at our own reflections. T.B.

DEC/JAN 01 - AudioFile