Attack of the Mutant Underwear
Grade 4-6-Cody Lee Carson is resolved to become a "changed man." Starting fifth grade at a new school in a new town means that nobody knows about his Old Cody "doofus, bozo-brained" mess-up tendencies, including the infamous Tweety Bird-underwear-in-the-spotlight episode. The New Me Journal of the boy's bumpy transformation from hapless fourth grader to confident fifth-grade graduate comes complete with stories of sibling strife, classmate clashes, student council elections, and his first big crush. This lively and believable record of Cody's attempt to put his best foot forward and figure out where he fits in has great appeal for middle graders who are themselves experiencing the awful awkwardnesses of preadolescence, reinventions of self, science fairs, and fallings-out with friends. With its ever-so-catchy title and its many practical jokes (appropriate for a protagonist with an April 1st birthday), it's a sort of male companion for Phyllis Reynolds Naylor's early "Alice" (Atheneum) and "Boys"/"Girls" battle books (Delacorte). A well-paced, positive, and pleasant read.Kathy Krasniewicz, Perrot Library, Old Greenwich, CTCopyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.