Sideways Stories from Wayside School

Sideways Stories from Wayside School
Louis Sachar
Follett, 1978 139 pages
Grades 3-6
Humor
Wayside School series #1

Absurdity abounds at Wayside School, which was accidentally built up instead of out. After Mrs. Gorf, the meanest teacher in the school, turns herself into an apple that is eaten by the playground monitor, the class on the thirtieth floor needs a new teacher. Enter Mrs. Jewls, who is terribly nice, yet sometimes gets it hilariously wrong. Each chapter is headed by a different student in the class and a ridiculous tale about them is told. Silly situations involving dashing up and down the thirty stories for one reason or another, misunderstandings concerning student's names, friendships and intentions, wacky troubles and solutions with spelling and reading, showing up to an empty school on Saturday, and, my favorite, a stinky new kid who turns out to be a dead rat. The sainest soul among the inhabitants of Wayside School is Louis, the playground monitor, who is based on Sachar himself, who drew from his own experiences as a "yard teacher" while in college.

Before there was Holes, Sachar made a name for himself writing humorous school stories for kids that continue to be classics. Followed by two sequels, the Wayside School books remain one of the most popular series for younger chapter book readers who enjoy a good laugh. The best part about this series is that they really are written purely for the enjoyment of children, who will be pleased to get the jokes. There are some cheap laughs, but also some truly clever bits that even make this grizzled old librarian laugh out loud. I recently re-read this book for the first time in many years to get ready for my lower elementary book group. It has stood the test of time and continues to be absurdly funny. I have already received feedback from the kids, who have not particularly liked my first few "serious" selections. They claimed to have read this book quickly and loved it. Over the top? Maybe, but the Sideways School series continues to turn children into readers. Despite the crazy situations, Sachar manages to slip in some thematic content and character building. My favorite line from the story is delivered by always smiling D.J.who when asked why he was so happy replied, "You need a reason to be sad. You don't need a reason to be happy." We need more happiness in the world and Wayside School is a positive step in this direction.