Skinnybones

by Barbara Park

Book Overview

To celebrate the 15th anniversary of the first publication of Skinnybones, bestselling author Barbara Park has updated the text of this award-winning novel and made it even more hilarious. A whole new... This description may be from another edition of this product.

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0679878955
• ISBN13: 9780679878957
• Release Date: January 1982
• Publisher: Random House
• Weight: 0.20 lbs.

Customer Reviews

Funny Bones

Alex "Skinnybones" Frankovitch is a memerable character from one of my favorite books as a young adult. Barbra Park delivers a story about a young boy who feels out of place and uses humor as a defense. This book still makes me laugh out loud, and I think children of all ages can relate to Alex because he is the underdog that always see to get himself into some kind of trouble. I am studying to be an elementary teacher and I planning on reading this book to my class because I know I will enjoy it as much as they will!

a real page turner

I LIKED THIS BOOK BECAUSE IT IS HILARIOUS. I ALSO LIKED THIS BOOK BECAUSE IT TALKS ABOUT BASEBALL, I LOVE BOOKS THAT TALK ABOUTSPORTS, IT JUST MAKES THEM MORE INTERESTING.MY FAVORITE CHARACTERWAS THE LITTLE BOY THAT WAS SKINNY BECAUSE HE MAKES A BUNCH OF FUNNY JOKES. I ALSO LIKED THE BULLY BECAUSE HE HAS A FAMILY MEMBER THAT IS IN PROFESSIONAL BASEBALL AND HE'S GOOD AT SPORTS. MY FAVORITE PART OF THE BOOK WAS WHEN THE SKINNY BOY WON THE CONTEST ON CAT FOOD. I LIKED THIS PART BECAUSE IT FIT IN THE BOOK AT THE PERFECT TIME AND THERE WAS SOME GOOD JOKES AT THAT TIME IN THE BOOK. THE ENDING WAS GREAT BECAUSE EVERY BODY WAS HAPPY EXCEPT THE BULLY.

Wonderful book that raises spirits and kids love reading it!

When my grown son was in the third grade, I heard him laughing hysterically in his bedroom while I was cooking dinner. I had never heard him laugh and giggle so much! He told me a little bit about the story, and when he had gone to sleep, I picked it up and read it. It IS wonderful! I found myself laughing as much as my son had. The tale centers on Alex, a small kid who is the class clown and loves baseball. He is a very realistic character with whom children can identify, and he does some crazy things ( a lot with what he says ) that result in some hilarious situations. Kids really love this book! And so do many adults. It gives the reader a lot of pleasure as well as see the trials and errors of childhood in a fun, yet realistic manner. The author, Barbara Parks, has updated this little gem for today's readers, and it is just as wonderful.

Hilarious and poignant

The first time I read this book I literally fell out of bed from laughing so hard. As a teacher, I read this book to my class nearly every year, and they love it! Alex is an endearing underdog who tries so hard to be what he is not: a size Large, knowledgeable baseball player. When he hears that a player is going to bunt he hasn't a clue what bunting means. He guesses it might mean to throw up, and this leads into the funniest scene I've ever read in children's literature. Every time I have to read it aloud I hardly can get through; I'm laughing so hard all my mascara runs. My class always gets an incredibly healthy, side-splitting, laugh from Alex's antics. He's also a very real character, with an inferiority complex, and a quirky way of viewing the world. He does find his strength in the end: comedy writing. This leads him into the sequel, Almost Starring Skinnybones, where his inferiorty complex turns into boasting bravado. One of the great qualitities of these books is Alex's depth of character, a real study in what can make "class clowns". I think the kids gain some understanding into the possiblity of sadness beneath the hilarity and the attention-seeking.

I loved it!

This book was great! Everybody should read this book. My teacher read it to me in third grade. The whole class always laughed and always wanted the teacher to read more. The book is about a boy named Alex. He always lies, is a terrible baseball player, and always gets himself into terrible messes. Then, there is the jerk, T.J. who is a great baseball player. Everybody thinks he is all that and he is always picking on Alex about his size and what a bad baseball player he is. Read this book! I would reccomend it to anyone!