Pastis, Stephan. 2013. TIMMY FAILURE: MISTAKES WERE MADE. Ill. by Stephan Pastis. Somerville, MA: Candlewick. ISBN 0763660507 [Suggested Grade Levels 4 - 8]
REVIEW
When you have a 1500 pound polar bear side kick, you must have the best detective agency anywhere. At least that’s what Timmy Failure thinks and proclaims. Timmy is the least self-aware child around, which is very fitting for his name. As he “solves” mysteries for friends, Timmy’s imagination makes his life and this story very silly, but oh so much fun.
This story is written similarly to Diary of a Wimpy Kid. It’s not quite a graphic novel, but there are plenty of drawings throughout this story that are simple and silly, just like the story. The illustrations add to the humor of this book as Pastis intertwines story and pictures to make an engaging story for elementary and middle school aged children alike.
CONNECTIONS
Have students create their own illustrations for a part of the Timmy Failure story. They could enhance Pastis’s drawings, or come up with some of their own to help add their own interpretation to the Timmy Failure story.
RELATED BOOKS
Emerson, Marcus. DIARY OF A SIXTH GRADE NINJA. ISBN 1493527487
Kinney, Jeff. DIARY OF A WIMPY KID. ISBN 0810993139
Peirce, Lincoln. BIG NATE: IN A CLASS BY HIMSELF. ISBN 0061944343
By Lisa M. Zinkie
REVIEW
When you have a 1500 pound polar bear side kick, you must have the best detective agency anywhere. At least that’s what Timmy Failure thinks and proclaims. Timmy is the least self-aware child around, which is very fitting for his name. As he “solves” mysteries for friends, Timmy’s imagination makes his life and this story very silly, but oh so much fun.
This story is written similarly to Diary of a Wimpy Kid. It’s not quite a graphic novel, but there are plenty of drawings throughout this story that are simple and silly, just like the story. The illustrations add to the humor of this book as Pastis intertwines story and pictures to make an engaging story for elementary and middle school aged children alike.
CONNECTIONS
Have students create their own illustrations for a part of the Timmy Failure story. They could enhance Pastis’s drawings, or come up with some of their own to help add their own interpretation to the Timmy Failure story.
RELATED BOOKS
Emerson, Marcus. DIARY OF A SIXTH GRADE NINJA. ISBN 1493527487
Kinney, Jeff. DIARY OF A WIMPY KID. ISBN 0810993139
Peirce, Lincoln. BIG NATE: IN A CLASS BY HIMSELF. ISBN 0061944343
By Lisa M. Zinkie
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