Wayside School Beneath the Cloud of Doom (Signed Book) (Wayside School Series #4)

by Louis Sachar, Tim Heitz (Illustrator)

Overview

For the first time in twenty-five years, Wayside School is back in session in this brand-new, fourth installment in the perennially beloved and bestselling series by Newbery Medal-winning author Louis Sachar.

Welcome back to Wayside School!

Your favorite students and teachers are all here. That includes Sharie, who loves her striped-and-spotted umbrella more than anything; Kathy, who has a bad case of oppositosis; Jason, who has to read the longest book in the world; and the rest of Mrs. Jewls’s class on the thirtieth floor, who are busily collecting toenail clippings.

Everyone is scrambling to prepare for the all-important Ultimate Test, but meanwhile, there is a mysterious Cloud of Doom looming above them…

More than fifteen million readers in the U.S. have laughed at the clever and hilarious stories of Wayside School. So what are you waiting for? Come visit Wayside School!

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780062995230
Publisher:	HarperCollins
Publication date:	03/03/2020
Series:	Wayside School Series , #4
Edition description:	Signed Edition
Pages:	192
Sales rank:	126,670
Product dimensions:	8.30(w) x 5.60(h) x 0.80(d)
Lexile:	550L (what's this?)
Age Range:	8 - 12 Years

About the Author

When Louis Sachar was going to school, his teachers always pronounced his name wrong. Now that he has become a popular author of children’s books, teachers all over the country are pronouncing his name wrong. It should be pronounced “Sacker,” like someone who tackles quarterbacks or someone who stuffs potatoes into sacks.

Mr. Sachar's first book, Sideways Stories from Wayside School, was accepted for publication during his first year of law school. After receiving his law degree, he spent six years asking himself whether he wanted to be an author or a lawyer before deciding to write for children full-time. His books include Sideways Stories from Wayside School, Wayside School Is Falling Down, Wayside School Gets a Little Stranger, and Holes, winner of a Newbery Medal and National Book Award.

Editorial Reviews

Longtime fans, of which there are many…should not fear…that the surreal exploits of Mrs. Jewls's class have strayed too far from their wacky roots. Even with more of a traditional through-line, this book maintains the chaotic sense of randomness that was so appealing in earlier volumes. And there are still plenty of puns…pileups…and jabs at educators…with that touch of Dada-esque lunacy that Wayside veterans have come to expect.

The New York Times Book Review - Christopher Healy

★ 2019-09-29
Rejoice! 25 years later, Wayside School is still in session, and the children in Mrs. Jewls' 30th-floor classroom haven't changed a bit.

The surreal yet oddly educational nature of their misadventures hasn't either. There are out-and-out rib ticklers, such as a spelling lesson featuring made-up words and a determined class effort to collect 1 million nail clippings. Additionally, mean queen Kathy steps through a mirror that turns her weirdly nice and she discovers that she likes it, a four-way friendship survives a dumpster dive after lost homework, and Mrs. Jewls makes sure that a long-threatened "Ultimate Test" allows every student to show off a special talent. Episodic though the 30 new chapters are, there are continuing elements that bind them—even to previous outings, such as the note to an elusive teacher Calvin has been carrying since Sideways Stories From Wayside School (1978) and finally delivers. Add to that plenty of deadpan dialogue ("Arithmetic makes my brain numb," complains Dameon. "That's why they're called ‘numb-ers,' " explains D.J.) and a wild storm from the titular cloud that shuffles the school's contents "like a deck of cards," and Sachar once again dishes up a confection as scrambled and delicious as lunch lady Miss Mush's improvised "Rainbow Stew." Diversity is primarily conveyed in the illustrations.

Ordinary kids in an extraordinary setting: still a recipe for bright achievements and belly laughs. (Fiction. 9-11)

Kirkus Reviews