Ages: 7-12 years (approximately grades 1-5)
Henry Zipzer, known to his friends as Hank, is your average,
everyday fourth-grader. Well, sort of. Hank has a self-dubbed reptile freak for
a sister, two best friends who happen to live in the same apartment building as
him in New York City’s West side, and he dreads his first fourth-grade
assignment. In fact, Hank is dreading writing a five-paragraph essay so much
that he hatches a plan to do the assignment without writing a word- he’s always
found that getting thoughts from his brain to paper really difficult. Well,
he’s always found getting any subject from his brain to paper really difficult.
When his creative plan goes completely awry, Hank finds himself in detention
where he meets a teacher who might have the insight to change Hank’s entire
outlook on school, and even about himself.
The first of the Hank Zipzer series, Niagara Falls, Or Does It? splashes
readers into Hank’s life with a laugh, a hoot, and a holler. Inspired by Henry
Winkler’s own childhood days and his struggle with dyslexia, the Hank Zipzer
series will appeal to any child ages 7 - 12 years (roughly grades 2 - 5) who struggle with school for any
reason, or children who just want to laugh along with Hank and his friends on
their adventures. While Hank’s hijinxes don’t always involve keeping parents
and adults in-the-know, and while most of the adult characters fall a little
flat (save for Hank’s grandfather, Papa Pete, and his new favorite and
appropriately-named music teacher, Mr. Rock), the overall dynamic sends a sound
message: creativity is great as long as you don’t break the rules.
I listened to the first half of this book on audiobook,
narrated by Henry Winkler himself, and read the second half in a hardcover
edition. Both versions capture the zany yet thoughtful nature of Winkler and
Lin’s story, and I highly recommend the book on audio either by itself or as a
reading supplement.
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