Miss Smith's Incredible Story Book - Hardcover

Garland, Michael

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 0525471332 ISBN 13: 9780525471332

Publisher: Dutton Books for Young Readers, 2003

Synopsis

In this latest picture book by Michael Garland, action-packed artwork showcases a tale of high adventure inspired by the magic of reading and one spectacular teacher.

Zack can't wait for Mrs. Smith to read out loud again from her incredible book. The first story fills the classroom with dueling pirates and the sound of their clashing swords. The second story transports Zack's class to the shady forest of the Big Bad Wolf. At the end of each spellbinding tale the characters slip quietly back into the book.

But one day Mrs. Smith is late for school, and the principal takes charge. When he runs away in terror from a fire-breathing dragon, Zack and his classmates set free the rest of the storybook characters and have a morning of high-spirited fun . . . until they notice that the pirates have hoisted their Jolly Roger on the roof of the school!

About this title

About the Author

I was born on 34th Street in Manhattan. My parents were from Queens. They married when my dad returned from World War II; he then joined the ranks of the NYPD. A sister and two brothers rounded out my family. When our Stuyvesant Town apartment grew too small, we moved to the relative wilds of Staten Island.

I spent my childhood roaming the woods, playing sports, crossing the street without looking both ways, and drawing. Drawing was the thing I did best. I wasn’t the smartest one in my class or the best athlete in any sport, but when they passed out the paper and crayons, it was my time to shine. My teachers would never hold up my math test as an example, but everything I drew would be shown to the class and given a place of honor on the bulletin board. I started to think I might become an artist.

After high school, I went to Pratt Institute to study art. I cleaned the floors in a nursing home and drove a cab nights and weekends. Soon after graduating, I sold my first illustration to True Confessions magazine. I was on my way—at the beginning of a thirty-year career of illustrating everything you could imagine. I now have twenty-three books in print, and several more in the pipeline.

Along the way, I married Peggy and we had three children: Katie, Alice and Kevin. Two are in college and one is about to start (please buy my books!). We live in Putnam County, New York.

Sixteen years ago I decided I wanted to be a writer as well as an artist. Sixteen published books later, I’m still at it.
I was born on 34th Street in Manhattan. My parents were from Queens. They married when my dad returned from World War II; he then joined the ranks of the NYPD. A sister and two brothers rounded out my family. When our Stuyvesant Town apartment grew too small, we moved to the relative wilds of Staten Island.

I spent my childhood roaming the woods, playing sports, crossing the street without looking both ways, and drawing. Drawing was the thing I did best. I wasn’t the smartest one in my class or the best athlete in any sport, but when they passed out the paper and crayons, it was my time to shine. My teachers would never hold up my math test as an example, but everything I drew would be shown to the class and given a place of honor on the bulletin board. I started to think I might become an artist.

After high school, I went to Pratt Institute to study art. I cleaned the floors in a nursing home and drove a cab nights and weekends. Soon after graduating, I sold my first illustration to True Confessions magazine. I was on my way—at the beginning of a thirty-year career of illustrating everything you could imagine. I now have twenty-three books in print, and several more in the pipeline.

Along the way, I married Peggy and we had three children: Katie, Alice and Kevin. Two are in college and one is about to start (please buy my books!). We live in Putnam County, New York.

Sixteen years ago I decided I wanted to be a writer as well as an artist. Sixteen published books later, I’m still at it.

From School Library Journal

Grade 1-4-Zack's exciting new teacher has a magic storybook. When she opens it up and reads aloud, the characters pop out and bring the tales to life right before the students' eyes. But Miss Smith's book isn't for everybody, and when stuffy Principal Rittenrotten has to fill in for her one morning, the dragon, princess, and knight that materialize from the pages send him from the room in a panic. The only way to make them disappear is to finish their respective stories, but Zack's classmates keep beginning new ones instead, until the school is overrun with Goldilocks, the Mad Hatter, and other such characters, seen vividly cavorting across the full-page spreads. Fortunately, Miss Smith shows up just in time and returns them to the safety of the book's pages, leaving the principal confused and her students forever in her debt. The lively, bright illustrations have a glossy, computer-generated quality that young readers will appreciate. Miss Smith wears a black leather jacket and a lapel button advertising "The Clash," and has a punk-rock hairdo. A satisfactory addition to most collections.
Catherine Threadgill, Charleston County Public Library, SC
Copyright 2003 Reed Business Information, Inc.

About this edition

• Publisher: Dutton Books for Young Readers
• Publication date: 2003
• ISBN 10: 0525471332
• ISBN 13: 9780525471332
• Binding: Hardcover
• Edition number: 1
• Number of pages: 32
• Illustrator: Garland Michael