Alvin Ho: Allergic to Camping, Hiking, and Other Natural Disasters
Grade 2-4–This second story about Alvin Ho, the boy who is afraid of almost everything, is another delightful look into the life of the timid youngster. In this installment, his fears center around a big upcoming event: camping with his dad. Once again, Look's dialogue is spot on: she captures the silly, impetuous, jump-from-one-idea-to-the-next quality of a second-grade boy. Alvin's adventures (like getting trapped in a dishwasher box while pretending to be Houdini, and learning secret camping tricks from his uncle) are charmingly genuine and fun to read. Look's pitch-perfect descriptions and phrasing add to the overall humor and heart of the story (about his sister, Alvin says, She's like a stoplight in the middle of my life and there's just no avoiding her.) and her sensitivity to what it means to be a not-quite-normal little boy is right on target. Whimsical illustrations pop up mid-page; Pham's expressive characters capture the essence of the story. A Very Scary Glossary of Alvin's fears and favorite things is included at the end. There are certain stories kids read and just feel good for having read: this is one of them.–Nicole Waskie, Chenango Forks Elementary, Binghamton, NYCopyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.