I Can't Believe I Have to Do This (Novel)

By Jan Alford

Book Overview

When Dean Matthews gets a journal as a 12th birthday present from his mom, he's sure he'll never have anything exciting to write about. But that year in his life turns out to be a real roller-coaster ride--and he writes about having his ear pierced, getting stuffed into a locker on the first day of junior high, his dog's accident, and a run-in with the police.

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0698117859
• ISBN13: 9780698117853
• Release Date: August 1999
• Publisher: Paperstar Book
• Length: 180 Pages
• Weight: 0.70 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.5" x 5.0" x 7.8"
• Age Range: 8 years and up
• Grade Range: Grade 3 and higher

Customer Reviews

Interesting book

This book is about a boy named Dean Matthews. His mother gives him a journal for his 12th birthday and expects him to write in it at least once a week for the next year. He thinks it is the worst idea ever until he actually begins writing. He starts by writing about his family. He has a younger brother and sister who are always trying to get him in trouble. This is a bad thing for him because he has to write a disciplinary paragraph every time he breaks a rule. One journal entry is about his mother being pregnant and losing the baby. This is a difficult time for the whole family. Dean thinks he is pretty cool when he talks his parents into getting his ear pierced. Aaron is Dean's best friend. They hang out together all of the time but don't always make the best decisions. Aaron gets involved with alcohol, steals a car, and gets caught shoplifting. Dean is a part of this, and they both end up paying the consequences. During the year, he also gets his first date and runs for student council. When he got the journal, he never imagined he would have enough to write about. He ends up buying himself a new journal for his next birthday. The journal taught Dean self discipline and also how to express his feelings through writing. The book keeps the readers attention because there is always something happening. It is good for students around the same age as Dean to read it because they face some of the same decisions he faces. This book can be used to teach students about relationships, discipline, consequences, and writing.

I Can't Believe I Need a Title for This

What a good book! I don't know how the author got into the mind of a 12-year-old boy, but Jan Alford did it. The phrasing and thought processes reminded me strongly of my own 12-year-old boy, whom I gave a journal for Christmas. He, too, thought the idea was lame, and he doesn't write in it regularly. So I'm hoping this book (and my encouragement - not nagging!) will get him into the habit of looking at his life, instead of just blundering through it.Thanks for a great read, Jan Alford!

Awesome

This is the best nook I've read since The Man Who Loved Clowns!It was a good book for kids 10-17!Plus you won't want to put the book down until your finished!

This was a really good book. I really enjoyed it.

Hi, I'm a 12 year old girl living in Saudei Arabia. I'm going to a prvate Ameican school herre. I found this book in out school library and I thought it was great. Its my first time reading a book bu J. Alford. The book is a bout a 12 year old boy called Dean. His mother gives him a journal for his twelfth birthday and makes write an entry atleast once week. He hates writing in his journal at the beginning. He starts by writing one sentence every week, but then writes about a page every day. Once he even wrote a three page entree. He finds himself writing about things he did that he would never have thought about doing a year before. Getting his ear pierced, leaving the yard gate open causing his dog get run over by a car, getting a date, and being elected for the 7th grade student council. Also, he finds himself writing about his best friend Aaron and his 14 year old friend Stiche. Aaron and Stiche pressure him into shoplifting, drinking, and racing with them in Stiche's mom's car. He gets caught when he shoplifts, sick when he drinks, and has to go to court because he was riding with an underage driver who had been drinking and taking drugs. He stops hanging around with Aaron and Stiche and makes other friends. Dean is a boy that has to suffer alot because of the consequences of the pretty bad decisions he made. I really enjoyed this book and would like to read other books by this author.

I think anyone from the ages of 10-14 would like this book.

Even for an older reader, Jan Alford has filled this book with the consequences of life if you make the wrong decisions. I would think that this book would be great for a school reading list because it teaches kids that you can't just make bad choices and get away with it. There is always a price to pay. If you liked this book, I would think that you would like True Friends by Bill Wallace. It too focuses on problems of teenage life.