Sign in with Facebook
Loading...
19th out of 2,283 books
—
3,585 voters
Alexander and the Terrible, Horrible, No Good, Very Bad Day
Alexander knew it was going to be a terrible day when he woke up with gum in this hair. And it got worse...
His best friend deserted him. There was no dessert in his lunch bag. And, on top of all that, there were lima beans for dinner and kissing on TV!
This handsome new edition of Judith Viorst's classic picture book is sure to charm readers of all ages.
His best friend deserted him. There was no dessert in his lunch bag. And, on top of all that, there were lima beans for dinner and kissing on TV!
This handsome new edition of Judith Viorst's classic picture book is sure to charm readers of all ages.
Paperback, 32 pages
Published
July 15th 1987
by Atheneum Books for Young Readers
(first published 1972)
Friend Reviews
To see what your friends thought of this book,
please sign up.
Community Reviews
(showing
1-30
of
3,000)
I bought this book in 1989. Well, my parents bought it for me. There's a half-peeled-off sticker that says, MY BOOK in red bubble/block lettering with "Philip" scrawled on the name line. I was in first grade.
I loved this book as a kid.
I read it tonight to my daughters for the first time. I'm pretty sure they didn't understand the message that everybody has bad days, no matter where you are, but it was fun reading to them - all tucked in and what not.
It was a nice piece of nostalgia for me, as we...more
I loved this book as a kid.
I read it tonight to my daughters for the first time. I'm pretty sure they didn't understand the message that everybody has bad days, no matter where you are, but it was fun reading to them - all tucked in and what not.
It was a nice piece of nostalgia for me, as we...more
11 likes · like · see review
view all 4 comments
“Alexander and the Terrible, Horrible, No Good, Very Bad Day” (whew what a title) is a children’s book by Judith Viorst along with illustrations by Ray Cruz and it is about how a young boy named Alexander who ends up having a terrible day. “Alexander and the Terrible, Horrible, No Good, Very Bad Day” is truly one of the most memorable books ever created!
I have clearly enjoyed this book as Judith Viorst has done a great job at writing this book and Ray Cruz’s illustrations also contribute greatl...more
5 likes · like · see review
I thought that "Alexander and the Terrible, Horrible, No Good, Very Bad Day" by Judith Viorst was a very good book. It is about a young boy that is having a bad day. Nothing goes his way, and it seems like he is starting to feel sorry for himself. Even though Alexander has such a bad day he ends up getting through it, and just hopes the next day isn’t the same. I would recommend this to ages of 8 and under, because it has a very small vocabulary and it just seems like it would be mainly for chi...more
1 like · like · see review
"Some days are like that... Even in Australia."
This is one of those books that has so many levels (like a parfait, or an onion). It begs for multiple readings. On one level it is the story of Alexander, an ordinary kid whose day doesn't go as he wants it to. Yet it is also a treatise on the human condition - our selfishness and self-centeredness, the travails and hardships that assail each person's life, and the resolute courage needed to stand our ground and live our lives where we find ourselv...more
This is one of those books that has so many levels (like a parfait, or an onion). It begs for multiple readings. On one level it is the story of Alexander, an ordinary kid whose day doesn't go as he wants it to. Yet it is also a treatise on the human condition - our selfishness and self-centeredness, the travails and hardships that assail each person's life, and the resolute courage needed to stand our ground and live our lives where we find ourselv...more
Feb 15, 2013
Linsay Piersawl
rated it
5 of 5 stars
·
review of another edition
Shelves:
picture-story-books
Judith Viorst decides on not taking the usual happy ending approach with her tale of Alexander and The Terrible, Horrible, No Good, Very Bad Day. She allows the reader to follow the grumpy little boy whom just can’t seem to get past having a bad day. From waking up late with gum in his hair to being forced to wear pajamas that he hates. The story from start to finish is indeed a horrible day from a child’s perspective. Everyone can relate to Alexander and his sometimes overly dramatic explanatio...more
"Alexander and the Terrible, Horrible, No Good, Very Bad Day," by Judith Viorst, is an extremely relatable story for many children. Alexander is just having a terrible, horrible, no good, very bad day, and awful things have happened to him! He woke up with no toy in his cereal, yet his brothers found some in theirs. His teacher admired his classmate's drawing, but certainly not his invisible castle on HIS paper. He wasn't able to get tennis shoes with stripes on them, but his brothers were. It w...more
1 like · like · see review
Have you ever gotten up on the "wrong side of the bed," and the day just got worse from there? Alexander's day starts out badly and quickly goes downhill. He's slept with gum in his mouth and wakes up with it in his hair. He drops his sweater in the sink when the water is running. His brothers both get prizes out of their cereal boxes, but all Alexander finds in his cereal box is...cereal. The reader follows Alexander around for the entire day, listening to his laments about how unfair life is t...more
My mom always read this book to me when I was little and I really enjoyed it. It was fun to learn each time about the different troubles Alexander encountered during his day and it always made me grateful that my day was never that bad. Later on, in fifth grade, my teacher had us create our own "Alexander and the Terrible, Horrible, No Good, Very Bad Day" book. It was fun to incorporate our own ideas into our own book and I still have the book I created! After Alexander wakes up, things don't go...more
Grade/interest level: Primary to Upper Elementary
Reading level: Lexile, AD970L
Genre: Picture Book, Realistic Fiction
Main Characters: Alexander
Setting: Various settings
POV: First person, from Alexander
This book features a young boy, named Alexander, who experiences a series of unlucky, negative events. Alexander is not a particularly optimistic character. After every description of the unfortunate events, Alexander insists that it will be a “terrible, horrible, no good, very bad day.” Sometimes A...more
Reading level: Lexile, AD970L
Genre: Picture Book, Realistic Fiction
Main Characters: Alexander
Setting: Various settings
POV: First person, from Alexander
This book features a young boy, named Alexander, who experiences a series of unlucky, negative events. Alexander is not a particularly optimistic character. After every description of the unfortunate events, Alexander insists that it will be a “terrible, horrible, no good, very bad day.” Sometimes A...more
Oct 19, 2012
Jennifer Weiss
added it
I have always loved this book since I was a child. My teachers would read this book to my class then we had to write our own story of a no good day. This book follows the day of poor little boy name Alexander and his bad day. Everything goes wrong on this day and he is getting fed up with it, he just wants to move to Australia. This book utilizes repetition throughout the book, after every page, the long title is repeated "this is a Terrible, horrible, no good, very bad day." The illustrations a...more
This book by Judith Viorst is a great story to read to children. The book is very easy to relate to because everyone has bad days. In the story, Alexander is having an awful day because everything is going wrong and he is not happy. At the end of the story his mom tells him "some days are like that." This would be a good way to teach students about having a bad day but trying to not let it affect them and to let them know that everyone has days like that and it will all be okay. This is also a g...more
I have always enjoyed this book. "Alexander and the Terrible, Horrible, No Good, Very Bad Day" is a book about what the title says, a boy who has just a horrible day. It all starts when he wakes up with gum in his hair, then later his best friend says he's not his best friend anymore, his mom forgot to pack dessert, he ruins things at his dad's office, and he had lima beans for dinner(he hates limas). Throughout the book, he says he wants to move to Australia, but in the end, when in bed his mom...more
Everyone of us had woken up on the wrong side of the bed, and it feels like the whole day it just awful. This a story about Alexander who wakes up to find gum in his hair! As the story progresses his brothers find the toys in the cereal box, and Alexander contemplaits movine to Austrailia. When he gets to school he has an even harder time, his teacher doesn't compliment his drawing, he gets introuble for singing too loud and he forgets his numbers! After come more mishaps at home it all comes to...more
This is an adorable little book. Before I read it, I had actually saw the play at a young adult theater. My cousin, who's name happens to be Alex, starred as Alexander. It was so well done and very cute, and all the children in the audience enjoyed it. Not only that, but it is an incredibly cute book! Alexander is the epitome of a grumpy little kid who doesn't want to get up. He woke up with gum in his hair, only breakfast cereal in his bowl and no prize and not a good seat in carpool. He grumpi...more
Even in Australia. I absolutely adore this book! I hadn't even heard of this book until I was a senior in high school. My best friend and I were sitting side-by-side doing a reading project for our education class and we read the title and decided it was worth looking into. As we read the book we busted up laughing because it reminded us of ourselves. One of the many reasons that we are best friends is because we can bitch and complain to each other all day long and not get tired of each other....more
Alexander and the Terrible, Horrible, No Good, Very Bad Day by Judith Viorst is one of my favorite childhood books. Recently, when my dad was cleaning out the bookshelves downstairs, I discovered I still had a copy of it hidden amongst all my older children/young adult books.
What's so amazing about this book? Well, I can't think of anyone I know who has not read this or had someone read it to them. Anyone, whether young or old can connect with this book because face it, we've all had bad days th...more
What's so amazing about this book? Well, I can't think of anyone I know who has not read this or had someone read it to them. Anyone, whether young or old can connect with this book because face it, we've all had bad days th...more
This is a book that can relate to a child that gets angry often. The context is mainly just full of a boy's complaining and what seems to be a stroke of bad luck. I would have enjoyed it better if there was a lesson to be learned or some kind of words of encouragement at the end.
Extension Activity: After reading this book to the class I would discuss and define with them some other emotions they could possibly experience along with anger, such as frustration and impatience. I would ask them to t...more
Extension Activity: After reading this book to the class I would discuss and define with them some other emotions they could possibly experience along with anger, such as frustration and impatience. I would ask them to t...more
Apr 19, 2012
Lexi.vernaglia
added it
This book was very funny. I know on some days I feel exactly like the boy in the book. Like nothing is going your way and everything is horrible. It was cute because you saw what an awful day was like in the point of view of a child. This is about a young boy, Alexander, who wakes up and instantly starts having a bad day. He doesn’t get a toy in his cereal box when both of his brothers do, he doesn’t get a seat by the window in the carpool on the way to school. At school the teacher likes someon...more
I read the contemporary realistic fiction book Alexander and the Terrible, Horrible, No Good, Very Bad Day. This story begins with a boy, Alexander, waking up with gum in his hair, he tripped over his skateboard, etc. He determines that he is going to have a bad day because bad things are already happening to him. He says that he wants to move to Australia. His bad day continues in the carpool to school and at school. His teacher criticizes him about his singing, his friends treat him like an ou...more
Alexander and the Terrible, Horrible, No Good, Very Bad Day is about a little boy named Alexander who is having an awful day. His awful day starts in the morning because he fell asleep with gum in his mouth and it ended up in his hair. As soon as he got out of his bed, he tripped on his skateboard and dropped his sweater in a sink full of water. For breakfast, both of his brothers found special treats in their cereal boxes but Alexander only found cereal. On his way to school, he was forced to s...more
Dec 15, 2011
Katelynn Callahan
added it
This book is about Alexander who instantly knows he is going to have a no good very bad day when he wakes up with gum in his hair. From the moment he wakes up everything seems to go wrong. He steps on his skateboard as he gets out of bed, he doesn't get a cool toy in his cereal and his brothers do. He doesn't get a window seat on the bus and it makes him feel sick. His teacher is upset with him, he gets bad news from the dentist and fights with his brother and gets punished. His day just keeps g...more
1. This book would fall under the category of a picture book, contemporary.
2. Alexander was having a horrible day – and it just seemed to keep getting worse! He found gum in his hair first thing this morning; then his mother forgot to give him dessert for lunch! Poor Alexander. What else can go wrong?
3. critique
a. The strongest part of this book is the author’s choice of narrator.
b. The author chose to have the narrator be the main character of the story. Using the first person, the reader i...more
2. Alexander was having a horrible day – and it just seemed to keep getting worse! He found gum in his hair first thing this morning; then his mother forgot to give him dessert for lunch! Poor Alexander. What else can go wrong?
3. critique
a. The strongest part of this book is the author’s choice of narrator.
b. The author chose to have the narrator be the main character of the story. Using the first person, the reader i...more
This book follows the day of Alexander and how everything goes "wrong". He wakes up with gum in his hair and steps on his skateboard as he gets out of bed. He doesn't get a cool toy in his cereal and his brothers do. He doesn't get a window seat and feels sick. His teacher is upset with him for a multitude of reasons. He gets bad news from the dentist and fights with his brother and gets punished. His father gets angry at him and tells him to leave. These unlucky events continue to happen all th...more
This picture book is intended for primary and intermediate. It is a story about a little boy named Alexander , who wakes up one morning to have one of those days where nothing goes right. It is his account of everything bad that happened to him in htat one day. I love this book! This is one of my favorites I read as a kid. I bought it back when Elora was little because I couldn't wait to share it with her someday. The pictures are simple and the color is very bland but it leaves more up to your...more
Sep 26, 2011
Maria
rated it
5 of 5 stars
Recommends it for:
yes
Recommended to Maria by:
Teachers in my first elementary school.
This picturebook is famous among teachers. The story is about a naughty boy who describes how his day went from morning to night time. Alexander, the youngest boy in the story, and the narrator as well, had to endure bad incidents in school, at the dentist office, with his brothers and mom while shopping for shoes, at his Dad’s office, and back at home. I have to admit there is humor in all these bad things happening to this boy throughout the day. I connect to the story because I have two boys...more
Alexander and the Terrible, Horrible, No Good, Very Bad Day, Judith Viorst, Ray Cruz (illustrator), (Aladdin Paperbacks, 1972), 32p. Picture Book
Genre- Contemporary
Summary - This story is an account of a day in the life of a young boy named Alexander. We chuckle sympathetically as Alexander experiences a day in which nothing goes his way from sun-up to sundown.
Critique:
(a) The strength and humor of this story comes through the voice of Alexander.
(b) The use of run-on sentences, irrational respo...more
Genre- Contemporary
Summary - This story is an account of a day in the life of a young boy named Alexander. We chuckle sympathetically as Alexander experiences a day in which nothing goes his way from sun-up to sundown.
Critique:
(a) The strength and humor of this story comes through the voice of Alexander.
(b) The use of run-on sentences, irrational respo...more
Narrated by our protagonist, Alexander and the Terrible, Horrible, No Good, Very Bad Day by Judith Viorst (illustrated by Ray Cruz), demonstrates the many perils of childhood, like tripping, getting gum in your hair, and not getting the prize out of the cereal box. Fortunately, Alexander has a plan--a remedy--that pops up as an amusing refrain throughout the story: he's going to move to Australia. Before the story—and the day—comes to a close, Alexander’s best friend demotes him, he fails to imp...more
We read this one last night. It is one of our favorite books. It SO reminds me of my youngest daughter. She is so melodramatic and has those days when she feels like EVERYONE is picking on her and her sisters are getting EVERYTHING! :) Especially the cereal. As a parent of three you have to make hard choices- 1) Buy the cereal with no toys that tastes like cardboard flakes or 2) Hide the cereal until you have time to get the toy out, re-seal the box, and then pretend the company left the toy out...more
Alexander and the Terrible, Horrible, No Good, Very Bad Day By: Judith Viorst ISBN: 978-0689711732, 1987. Alexander’s day starts out bad from the moment he wakes up! He wakes up to find gum in his hair, he tripped on his skateboard and then dropped his sweater in the sink! His brothers don’t make life any easier for him either!...School is no better and then the dentist is horrible, he gets the elevator door shut on him and he doesn’t get the good shoes at the shoe store! And it’s not over yet!....more
The many disappointments and unfortunate events that Alexander encounters in this story are realistic and authentic to young readers who encounter this book. The book uses repetitive phrases such as “It was a terrible, horrible, no good, very bad day,” that allow listeners to become active in the reading when hearing this story read aloud. This repetition used in the story also contributes to reading ease and ties together the many terrible, horrible events that occur in the story. Additionally,...more
| topics | posts | views | last activity | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Reading log #7 | 6 | 40 | Jan 09, 2013 11:05pm | |
| MCC Children's Li...: Picture Book #2 | 1 | 1 | Feb 15, 2012 06:56pm | |
| MCC Children's Li...: Challice - Picture book #2 | 1 | 1 | Feb 10, 2012 01:07pm |
Judith Viorst is the author of several works of fiction and non-fiction for children as well as adults. Alexander and the Terrible, Horrible, No Good, Very Bad Day, her most famous children's book, was first published in 1972 and has since sold over two million copies. Ms. Viorst received a B.A. in History from Rutgers University, and she is also a graduate of the Washington Psychoanalytic Institu...more
More about Judith Viorst...
Share This Book
6 trivia questions
More quizzes & trivia...
“I think I'll move to Australia.”
—
45 people liked it
“I went to sleep with gum in my mouth and now there's gum in my hair and when I got out of bed this morning I tripped on the skateboard and by mistake I dropped my sweater in the sink while the water was running and I could tell it was going to be a terrible, horrible, no good, very bad day.”
—
25 people liked it
More quotes…
