The Weighty Word Book

by Paul M. Levitt, Douglas A. Burger, Elissa S. Guralnick, Janet Stevens (Illustrator)

Overview

"[The Weighty Word Book] will appeal to kids who want to sound as smart as they are. It offers a clever, funny way to introduce new words into the vocabulary. . . . There's one word for every letter of the alphabet—wait until you see what they do with dogmatic, juxtapose and zealot."—The Gazette (Colorado Springs, Colorado)

"Each of these twenty-six short stories takes an elaborate, circuitous path that leads to a 'weighty' one-word punch line. . . . It's a creative and humorous approach to vocabulary building, and a natural lead in to having students create their own tall tales with multisyllabic conclusions."—School Library Journal

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780826345554
Publisher:	University of New Mexico Press
Publication date:	04/15/2009
Edition description:	Illustrated
Pages:	96
Sales rank:	1,007,489
Product dimensions:	9.32(w) x 9.30(h) x 0.56(d)
Lexile:	890L (what's this?)
Age Range:	9 - 12 Years

About the Author

Paul M. Levitt teaches in the department of English at the University of Colorado, Boulder. He is also the author of Chin Music: A Novel of the Jazz Age and numerous books for younger readers and scholars.


Douglas A. Burger is associate professor of English at the University of Colorado, Boulder.


Elissa S. Guralnick is professor of English, College of Music, at the University of Colorado, Boulder.


Janet Stevens has written, adapted, or illustrated numerous award-winning books for children, including And the Dish Ran Away with the Spoon (Child Magazine Best Children's Book List, 2001), Tops & Bottoms (Disney NAPPA Book from LA Parent), and The Three Billy Goats Gruff (Parents Choice Award).

Editorial Reviews

Paul M. Levitt, Douglas A. Burger, and Elissa S. Guralnick are three professors of English who have effectively collaborated to create a vocabulary for children that is illustrated throughout by the artistry of Caldecott winner Janet Stevens. The big words in The Weighty Word Book (one for each letter of the alphabet) were selected for both their frequency in the written language and their sound. The sound of each multi-syllable word lends itself to a pun, which forms the basis for the story that follows. Although the stories are fanciful, they each lead to the correct meaning of the word that inspired them. The stories and the puns become memory hooks and encourage young readers to increase their vocabularies by forming mnemonics for any new words they encounter. The Weighty Word Book is a welcome and high priority acquisition choice for both school and community libraries, and would prove invaluable for home schooling curriculum supplementation as well.