The Worst Things in Life Are Also Free (Dear Dumb Diary Series #10)

by Jim Benton

Overview

Bestselling author Jamie Kelly is back with an all-new, all-funny diary! But she has no idea that anybody is reading it. So please, please, please don't tell her.

School's out for the summer, and that means no more Meat Loaf Thursdays, Sunday homework-cramming, or teachers (way way unsuccessfully) trying to act cool. It also means that certain Mackerel Middle Schoolers have a lot of time on their hands . . . and seriously empty pockets.

Isabella is going to change all that. And Jamie and Angeline are going to help --- whether they like it or not. It's the best kind of teamwork: When a whole bunch of people work together to do something wrong, instead of doing it wrong one at a time.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780545116145
Publisher:	Scholastic, Inc.
Publication date:	06/01/2010
Series:	Dear Dumb Diary Series
Pages:	160
Sales rank:	134,261
Product dimensions:	5.20(w) x 7.50(h) x 0.50(d)
Lexile:	950L (what's this?)
Age Range:	9 - 12 Years

About the Author

Jim Benton is a New York Times bestselling author and the creator of many licensed properties, including the hugely successful It's Happy Bunny. He's created a kids' TV series, designed clothing, and written books, such as the Franny K. Stein series and the bestselling Dear Dumb Diary series. Jim lives in Bloomfield, Michigan with his spectacular wife and kids. Visit him online at www.jimbenton.com and on Twitter at @JimBenton.

Editorial Reviews

This issue of Jamie Kelly's diary, complete with drawings, is the middle-schooler's funny narrative of the end of the school year and the first few weeks of summer vacation. She and her friends Angeline and Isabella have been offered an overnight trip to Screamotopia Amusement Park with Jamie's Aunt Carol and Uncle Dan. The catch is that they have to earn the money for the park itself, and they have only three weeks to do it. Angeline is beautiful, sweet-tempered, and smart. And she has gorgeous long blond hair. Naturally, she is not Jamie's favorite person. Isabella, on the other hand, is sneaky, rude, selfish, and downright dangerous. Jamie considers her a best friend. The three girls try a number of money-making projects: a lemonade stand, a car wash, a babysitting service, and sales of unwanted belongings on eBay. Jamie and Angeline work at all these projects, but Isabella creates disaster everywhere. Jamie either ignores or forgives all Isabella's transgressions, though Angeline is not taken in by her tricks. When it's almost time for their amusement park outing, the girls have a total of Angeline secretly plans to sell her hair to earn the money, but when the beautician tells her about an organization that makes wigs for children undergoing medical treatments, she donates it instead. Some days earlier, though, another girl has joined them as Isabella's assistant. When the girls think of starting a dog-walking business, Isabella tells Emmily to do the work. Emmily ends up walking small children instead of dogs, earning a hundred dollars for her efforts. By the end of the diary, the problems are worked out and the girls are going to Screamotopia. The book is part of the "Dear, Dumb Diary" Series. Reviewer: Judy DaPolito

Children's Literature - Judy DaPolito