It's the First Day of School...Forever!

Gr 3—5—Artie Howard experiences the worst first day of school ever as a new fifth grader at Ardmore Middle School. He hits his head when he falls out of bed in the morning, gets electrocuted, has syrup splashed all over his shirt and hair, his dog bites the pocket of his principal's blazer, he kills his class's pet scorpion, he makes enemies with the most popular guy at school, and he discovers weird happenings in the basement book room. And that's only half of it! To make matters worse, when Artie wakes up the next morning, he is doomed to repeat his first day of school all over again, and each iteration is more bizarre than the last. As usual, Stine delivers the hilarity and horror that readers love, and his mastery of sustaining mood will not disappoint. The humor and descriptive first, first day of school allow for faster pacing in the subsequent days, and kids will love the twist at the end.—Adrienne L. Strock, Maricopa County Library District, AZ