book data
408 ratings,
4.03
average rating, 118 reviews
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published
April 24th 2007
by Aladdin
(first published 2005)
details
Paperback, 208 pages
characters
isbn
0689839588
(isbn13: 9780689839580)
description
As a school assignment, a thirteen-year-old boy writes an alphabiography--life from A to Z--and explores issues of friendship, family, school, and the…more
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| topics | posts | views | last activity | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Do you think that this was a really good project to assign? | 3 | 24 | Jun 28, 2009 08:30AM | |
| The Next Best Boo...: OFFICIAL SPRING CHALLENGE - 2009 | 6462 | 7718 | Jun 14, 2009 02:57PM |
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other reviews (showing 1-20 of 594)
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3 stars (88)
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1 star (4)
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avg 4.03
editions: all | this edition
editions: all | this edition
Read in March, 2007
I work with middle schoolers, and every now and then I dabble a bit in adolescent literature. I have to say, I'm frequently disturbed by what I find in the genre. There are a lot of mass marketed young adult books filled with pain and angst. There are a lot of books about drug use, alcohol, abuse, pregnancy, STDs, and all of that crap that supposedly comes along with being a teenager.
I sort of understand why young adult lit can be so yucky and diactic much of the time. After all, you can't...more
I sort of understand why young adult lit can be so yucky and diactic much of the time. After all, you can't...more
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Read in September, 2008
Written in the clever format of each chapter representing something in Joe's life from A-Z (an assignment for his English class), this book is the sequel to Howe's "The Misfits." The story picks up shortly after the end of "The Misfits" with Joe coming to terms with how to tell his family he is gay, and his budding relationships with two different boys in his grade. I was very impressed with the way Howe handled the issue of teenage homosexuality. By not really sexualizing ...more
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Joe is a quirky, very gay preteen boy at a small high school in upstate New York. He's been given an assignment from his English teacher to write an "alpha-biography" detailing his life from A-Z. Each chapter, written over the course of school year follows Joe in his process of coming out to his family, falling in love, breaking up, and standing up for himself. I really identified with him, though at times it reminded me of my own uncomfortable life growing up in small town Ohio and...more
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Read in January, 2009
This book is awesome! And I found it entirely by accident. I picked up a bunch of new books in my library, and recognizing the author as the "Bunnicula" author, grabbed this one. This book is VERY different, and deals with a much-needed, though sensitive, topic. Joe is in 7th grade and his teacher has assigned a year-long writing project -- an alphabiography. For each letter of the alpabet, Joe has to write about himself. Early in the alphabet, we learn that when Joe was little, ...more
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Totally Joe is about a gay guy in middle school. Basically the book is written in an alphapetigraphy (meaning an auto biography and every letter is a different subject. so when you get to the letter c, for Colin he talks about how Colin, one of the most popular guy in school are going out. But, column doesn't want anyone to know that he is gay, since he thinks everyone will make fun of him. The story is basically about the importance of being your self.
Like I said before, the book is about...more
Like I said before, the book is about...more
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Read in October, 2009
I have become a big fan of Joe Bunch, the main character of this delightfully insightful, introspective, and funny book. The book is written as a middle school autobiography assignment, which allows you to not only read about Joe's life, but gives you some real insight into how he thinks about things. Joe is one of those rare characters who seems to have never agonized over who he was or how he could fit in at school. He acknowledges that, like almost everyone, he would like to be liked, but ...more
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Jan 02, 2010
Sharaesof2014
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This book is about a gay boy named joe who is always being teased and called names in school so one day his teacher assigns him a project to write a alphabiography so he already has a thought in his head to write a different letter name for each person in school and so for A he writes about his bestfriend Abbie B for his others bestfriend Bobby and C for collin the popular kid and he just has his whole story together.
The connection i would use for this book is Text-to-w...more
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Read in November, 2009
The plot in this book is that Joe is a outcast but he has his own clique of friends. But when he met Colin he looked for him and when he found Colin. They became really good friends but Colin was in another clique(the Jocks). So the Jocks they to stop there friendship by teasing them and making fun of them.
I can connect to this book becuase when Joe was explain his friendship with his long time friends. And how there always there for him and hes always there for her. And I can ...more
I can connect to this book becuase when Joe was explain his friendship with his long time friends. And how there always there for him and hes always there for her. And I can ...more
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this book is about a gay kid joe and he is a weird child. he plays with dolls a.k.a barbies and he enjoys it and he has a big crush on some high school popular boy named colin and he likes joe to but joe doesnt know that. after a party they both hook up and begin to date but everyone makes fun of them because they feel weird that a no body is going out with colin the joc. after some time a rumor goes around that them 2 were kissing but it was not true. they were bugging out and getting really an...more
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Read in November, 2009
Joe Bunch's 8th grade English teacher has given his students an assignment to write an "alphabiography" over the course of the school year. With each letter of the alphabet representing a different chapter, Totally Joe tells the story of a year in the life of a gay adolescent boy. Joe falls in love, has his heart broken, comes out to his family, and finds love and support among his friends and family. Howe does such a wonderful job of writing in the voice of a 13-year old boy that the ...more
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This book is about a boy named Joe. He likes guys and is afraid to admit it at first. He has a huge crush on the popular Colin and is extremely happy when he finds out that Colin likes him too. Joe wants to be like the other boys, tough and rough but he realizes that it is just not him. Rumors go around about him and Colin and Joe tries not to worry about them.
I can connect Joe to many people in the world who like the same gender. He seems to be embarrased about being gay when he ...more
I can connect Joe to many people in the world who like the same gender. He seems to be embarrased about being gay when he ...more
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Read in August, 2008
Joe Bunch is 12-year-old boy who is totally comfortable in his not-so-boyish skin. Joe’s teacher has assigned the seventh grade the task of writing an "alpha-biography"; a personal biography in which the students need to write about themselves starting with the letter “A” and ending with “Z.” As Joe writes of his life, his friends and his family we see a young man who faces obstacles with an uncanny resiliency.
The tale of Joe seems somewhat contrived, but it is still fu...more
The tale of Joe seems somewhat contrived, but it is still fu...more
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Joe is assigned to write a biography in alphabetical order. As he does, he reveals what life is like for an openly gay twelve year old boy. Joe gets his first boyfriend, but is crushed when he breaks up with him. Joe discovers his family and friends are important, and that there is no equal to being yourselves.
Peter
Peter
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Read in September, 2009
recommends it for:
people who liked "The Misfits" and want to read more about Joe
You know, there aren't that many books about gay teenagers that I would wholeheartedly recommend to junior high school students. Too many of them are written for high school students, and tend to contiain 'mature content'- lots of cursing and explicit, ah, romance. "Totally Joe" is a book about a gay 12-year-old, and, in my opinion, entirely appropriate for readers of that age. It's the sequel to "The Misfits," and readers of that book will remember Joe, who spent much of ...more
This book is about a kid named Joe. Joe is gay. He found out he was gay when he was little. He plays with barbies and he talks about how other guys are cute. In the misfits the first book that sorta continues on to this book Joe finds his lover. This book is just about Joe's life.
A text-to-world connection that I would have would be the fact that boys/guys out there are gay too. Some guys find out they are gay when they are older and some find out at a young age. People shouldn't dis...more
A text-to-world connection that I would have would be the fact that boys/guys out there are gay too. Some guys find out they are gay when they are older and some find out at a young age. People shouldn't dis...more
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Read in May, 2009
this book is about a boy nmed Jodan Bunch! everyoone else calls him Joe! Joe is a gay 13 year old boy! this book is his alphabiography os A-Z! he has to do this progject for school.in the book Joe gets a Football player boyfriend named Colin! its his and his friends secret noone else knows. he deals with a lot peer pressure with his family and at school! he ends with a few problem with being gay! will Joe be able to deal with these problems?well read the book and u can find out!
i can...more
i can...more
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Read in January, 2010
Joe is 12. His teacher has assigned his class an "alphabiography" - each kid has to write about their lives using the 26 letters of the alphabet to inspire each entry.
Joe is gay. His friends and family know it before he does and in the course of his alphabiography he offically realizes this, comes out, and starts to make positive change in his school.
I enjoyed this as a portrayal of a relatively normal gay kid who has a relatively easy experience coming out. In some wa...more
Joe is gay. His friends and family know it before he does and in the course of his alphabiography he offically realizes this, comes out, and starts to make positive change in his school.
I enjoyed this as a portrayal of a relatively normal gay kid who has a relatively easy experience coming out. In some wa...more
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Read in May, 2009
recommends it for:
5th grades and up.
A coming-of-age story about a gay 12 year old. But it's not as deep as it sounds. Totally Joe is written as an 'alpha-biography' class assignment. Joe has to write something about himself for every letter of the alphabet, so each chapter is a letter. A is for Addie, his best friend, etc. It's clear by letter B that although Joe is only 12, he's very sure he's gay. It was a good book on the topic, although Joe is sooooooo stereotypical. But I guess one boy can never be expected to represent all t...more
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This book is about a boy named Joe who is gay. He is feminine and he gets teased by kids in his school. He begins to started dating a boy named Colin who is cute and popular. Colin doesn't want anybody to find out that they are dating. Basically, Joe is trying to figure himself out and who he is.
A text-to-self connection would be is that my old best friend was like Joe. He wasn't like most boys and would get teased. He also would play with my dolls with me. He just reminded me...more
A text-to-self connection would be is that my old best friend was like Joe. He wasn't like most boys and would get teased. He also would play with my dolls with me. He just reminded me...more
Read in November, 2008
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"I never thought I could write this much and now that it's coming to an end, I feel sad that I have to stop, sort of the way you feel at the end of a really good book and you know you're going to miss the main character. But in this case, the main character is me! Myself. Joe (formerly JoDan) Bunch. —Joe Bunch" —
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"There's no such thing as a wasted wish." —Joe Bunch" —
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