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Larger-Than-Life Lara
by
Dandi Daley Mackall (Goodreads Author)
When Lara Phelps walks into Laney Grafton's fourth-grade class, Laney feels the air change. Lara is fat. Really fat. Finally, there will be someone else for the boys to pick on, Laney thinks. But as the class prepares for the school play, Lara doesn't act the way a fat kid should. She's confident. She's happy. And nothing, it seems, can change her positive attitude. Until...more
Hardcover, 160 pages
Published
August 17th 2006
by Dutton Juvenile
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This is another book I read with my 3rd grade class. The book was well written and engaged my students, it also gave us a great opportunity to talk about how to treat others and bullying. My kids were very upset at how Laura was treated just because she was big. They also found the ending to be very sad. They still want all their books to have happy endings. I think the book was a good one to read with the class however, I did have to edit a few pages because I felt my students to young to read...more
I was a bit surprised that I enjoyed this book, because when I read the "About the Author" blurb, I couldn't believe that anything of quality could come from a writer who has supposedly written 400 books. I was pleasantly surprised. Larger-than-Life Lara tells the story of fourth-grader Laney Grafton, who is relieved when Lara Phelps joins her class. Grossly obese, yet relentlessly kind, with her quirk of speaking in poetic rhyme, Lara distracts the schoolyard bullies from teasing Laney. Lara's...more
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Fourth-grader, Laney Grafton, tells her story using the writing techniques taught to her by her teacher, Mrs. Smith. Her story is full of characters, events, and lessons which serve to teach and ponder over. Laney, rather small for her age, and her family, are a rag-tag bunch of wild and free members ever since her mother left. Her brothers are mean and her father is practically non-existent and frequently drunk when around. She is teased by her classmates...that is until someone new comes to cl...more
I cringed all the way through this book, at the thoughtless cruelty of kids and the ability of adults to overlook all the mean stuff that goes on in elementary school classes...but I loved the characters and the resolution. Brava! I think it'd be a great read-aloud in any class where the kids are experiencing an empathy deficit.
Good book for 3-5th graders with a nice moral. The book doesn't end happily, but I can definitely see this being a great teaching tool in classrooms b/c there are so many topics to discuss -- bullying, weight, being the new kid in school, alcoholism, single parent families, sibling relationships, and, heck, even story structure.
There wasn't necessarily a religious undertone to the book, but I wondered if maybe there was a subtle one. Lara is almost Jesus-like figure in the book -- branded as di...more
There wasn't necessarily a religious undertone to the book, but I wondered if maybe there was a subtle one. Lara is almost Jesus-like figure in the book -- branded as di...more
The story is told from the perspective of a fourth grade student in a class that has a serious lack of empathy for a new student that is quite large. Though Lara is bullied repeatedly she maintains a positive attitude and continues to reach out in friendship. The book does not have a Disney ending, but a more realistic and logical ending. This might be tough for young kids, but it is a tough subject. I thought the author did a fabulous job of giving us the tough stuff with a gentle hand. She cre...more
This story is told in a unique way-- from the perspective of fourth grade Laney with a very, very self-conscious story-writing mindset. This gives it a very childlike voice which would probably annoy some people (and which my husband didn't like when I read part of it to him), but it worked okay for me. I love how the plot is fairly simple, but it's endowed with all the impact that it would actually have on these kids. The profound simplicity of the plot, combined with the characters that fit ju...more
Getting a new kid in your class is always a big deal, but when Laney Grafton's 4th grade class is joined by Lara Phelps, it's a much bigger deal than anyone expected--in more ways than one. Laney estimates Lara's weight at about 300 pounds. No kidding. But the thing that's even bigger than Lara's body is Lara's smile; no matter what kinds of horrible, hateful, teasing her classmates throw at her--and 4th graders can be awfully cruel--Lara remains positive, upbeating, kind, and encouraging to tho...more
This book really should have been 2.5 stars. It was a twist on the "you shouldn't make fun of the fat girl" story, but instead of showing her as a victim (like Judy Blume's Blubber or Barthe DeClements Nothing's Fair in Fifth Grade", the fat girl is portrayed as an artistic interesting person who helps others see the good in themselves or realize the bad they have done. It reminded me a lot of "Stargirl" but for younger readers.
When I started reading this book aloud to my class I was embarrassed to read something so cruel, and the kids were noticably bothered, but we stuck it out. It had come recommended by a friend because of the use of plot elements for chapters. The message was amazing and in the end we all agreed we were glad we followed through and didn't abandon the book early on.
This was such a clever way to teach children about compassion and the art of writing. Great characters, believable dialogue and wonderful story line. It was so refreshing to read a story that I where I was unable to predict the ending. Loved this. My 12 year old daughter is reading it now.
This book is basically Blubber (by Judy Blume) meets Carrie (Stephen King) with a parallel to Jesus "dying" for our sins. This book is okay to a point and then the ending sucked. It's all wrapped up neatly and you can almost hear the afterschool special music. I give this book a C.
Lara moves to a new school and is very cruelly treated, even though she helps all of her fourth grade classmates and keeps a positive attitude. Mackall writes a story within a story with her "How to Write a Story" as her template.
This book is about a girl named Lara who is over weight but the book was kind of about her class. On the front cover of the book there is a green polka dot dress. I really like the book because Lara really stood up to her classmates. I would recommend this book to people who have been bullied because of their child hood obesity. I really like this book
Loved the format of this book. The narrator is telling us how to write a story while telling the story. This would make a great class read aloud for 4th or 5th grade.
I go back and forth between liking this book and thinking it's a bit cheesy. My 5th grade class loved it. There were places where it was hard to read aloud if I slipped out of the role of the narrator, but it was fine when I read silently. I liked the book for what it reminded me about how we /children treat each other.
we read this book at school and it made me realize it dose not madder how big you are
Awesome book! A great read and I can't wait to share with my students.
It was a good book it had a good plot and it taught you to treat every one like you want to be treated no matter what they look like.
This is a great book it shows you that you need to be kind no matter what!!!
Pretty intense. Didn't have time to read, just skimmed it.
great book about bullying and learning to write...
Great book to use for conventions of writing. Read aloud.
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This book is focused around Lanet Gafton and her telling a story how a new girl in her class changed the whole atmosphere of her fifth grade class. However no one really realizes just how much Lara has effected their lives until their ugliness causes her parents to take her out of their school.Good book that deals with bullies. obesity,family problems, and prejudices.
Aug 02, 2009
Amie
rated it
5 of 5 stars
Recommends it for:
parents who enjoy reading to their children (6 and up)
i absolutely loved this book. of course, i love anything that has a lesson to it. i can't wait to read it to my girls!
OMG, this was one of the most horrible books i have ever read in my entire life. It was so boring and stuiped and didn't make any sense. i hated this book very much and reccomend it to someone who wants to be bored out of their wits and spend and hour trying to figure it out. I give this book a 1 star rating.
Laney, a 4th grader tells the story about what happens when Lara, becomes a new member of her class. "She's larger than life and she's the kind of person you never forget." This was a powerful story within a story about prejudice, cruelty, and forgiveness. Masterfully crafted and creatively written!
Lara is almost too good to be believable, but it was so nice to read about a girl who displays self-confidence and kindness despite her weight problem. Language arts teachers will find this easy-to-read novel a jewel for teaching literary elements.
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A professional writer for over 20 years, Dandi Daley Mackall has written dozens of articles for popular magazines and published around 400 books for children and adults alike, with sales of over 4 million.
A frequent guest on radio and television talk shows, she lives in rural Ohio with her husband, three children, horses, dogs, & cats.
More about Dandi Daley Mackall...
A frequent guest on radio and television talk shows, she lives in rural Ohio with her husband, three children, horses, dogs, & cats.
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