Reading Metrics
Description
In this journal of eight-year-old Charlie Small, he explains how he fights off a ravenous river crocodile and how to speak some useful words in Gorilla. Notebook #1
Quick Summary
If your kid loves adventure books with a funny, in-your-face narrator, Charlie Small is about to become their new best friend. This first notebook follows eight-year-old Charlie as he finds himself in some pretty wild situations including battling a hungry crocodile and honestly, his commentary on everything from dangerous animals to learning actual gorilla words is what makes this book stand out. Kids who enjoy Diary of a Wimpy Kid or the Captain Underpants series will probably gravitate toward the journal format and Charlie's cheeky attitude, though this one has a bit more adventure danger mixed in. Parents should know there's definitely some scary moments (that croc scene is intense), but it's all handled with enough humor that it never gets too dark. At around 18,000 words, it's a solid middle-grade read that moves fast, and the gorilla language lessons scattered throughout give it an educational twist that feels more like a bonus than a lesson. If your reader finishes this and wants more, there's a whole series of Charlie Small notebooks waiting.