My New Teacher and Me!: A Weird Al Rhyming Picture Book with Back-to-School Wordplay

by Al Yankovic, Wes Hargis (Illustrator)

"Weird Al" Yankovic's new tale of Billy, the irrepressible star of the  New York Times  bestselling  When I Grow Up , is an uproarious back-to-school delight. Dazzling wordplay and sparkling rhyme combine in a unique appreciation of the rewards of unabashed originality and the special joy of viewing the world gently askew.

Genres: Picture Books, School, Childrens, Humor, Teachers, Fiction, Storytime

40 pages, Hardcover

First published July 1, 2012

About the author

Alfred Matthew "Weird Al" Yankovic is an American singer-songwriter, music producer, accordionist, actor, comedian, writer, satirist, and parodist.

Reviews

[DeeAnn · Rating 5 out of 5]

Such a fun story and great illustrations!

[Karen · Rating 5 out of 5]

I was so excited to have won this book from LibraryThing through a giveaway from the publisher. "Weird Al" Yankovic is a blast from my 80's past and when I found out I won this book, I was more excited than my kids! Plus, I'm a sucker rhyming books! They are the best kind for children and can draw them in easily with the lyrical rhymes. This book is exactly that way! My girls, ages 2, 6 & 8 all loved it! The book is a fun story with beautiful illustrations that make the story come alive. The message of the story: "I'll bet every great thinker and leader we've got Could see all kinds of things other people could not!(page 27)". This is a wonderful message for kids to use creativity and imagination to "look at the world differently." This is nice addition for our library at home and I look forward to reading more of Yankovic's books with my children.

[Glenna · Rating 5 out of 5]

School must be starting. I'm reading picture books again. Fun book that I think is probably something Weird Al experienced---I know I wonder what he was like in school.

[Miss Ryoko · Rating 4 out of 5]

I'd expect nothing less from the amazing Weird Al Yankovic! This book has such a wonderful story with an amazing lesson. The illustrations were perfect for the story as well!

[Ben Truong · Rating 5 out of 5]

My New Teacher and Me! is a children's picture book written by Al Yankovic and illustrated by Wes Hargis. This book depicts an imaginative boy named Billy and his relationship with his new teacher Mr Booth, who is quite the unimaginative type.

Yankovic's text is rather simple, straightforward, charming, and rather lyrical. It is the first day of school and it is about the relationship between an imaginative boy and his unimaginative teacher. It is wonderfully written in rhyme with a beat and style that did not seem forced. Hargis' illustrations are fun and colorful and extenuate the text rather well.

The premise of the book is rather straightforward. It a charming story about a boy named Billy and his fantastic stories that seems more or less true and his relationship with his new teacher Mr Booth, who doesn't like the shenanigans and wild stories that little Billy seemingly seems rather improbable if not impossible. In the end, Billy figures that they could both teach other new things and grow as a result.

All in all, My New Teacher and Me! is a wonderfully charming children's book depicting an unusual teacher-student relationship.

[Sunah Chung · Rating 4 out of 5]

Billy was excited to go to school and see a new teacher. His teacher, Mr. Booth, was a guy who is strict to rules and facts. So when Billy shared his adventurous stories in class, the teacher did not believe them. But the picture of Billy with a cow having two heads convinced the teacher to believe Billy's stories.

Billy’s stories are not completely based on facts and the truth, but he has a belief that thinking differently and seeing the world in different perspectives would let him explore the world and achieve his dreams. His statement was impressive that “[…] just because you don’t believe does not mean it’s not so! Just because you can’t imagine it, that doesn’t mean that it simply can’t be, or won’t ever be seen” (unpaged). The story conveys this statement with colorful illustrations. However, I was confused about the style of the text. The first letter of each sentence was in uppercase which did not make sense to me because texts are not poetic. I could not figure out the function of using uppercase.

[Ryan · Rating 4 out of 5]

Once again, this man hits it out of the park. I wish he would write more children’s books. He has such a creative mind and such a way with words. In this book, our character gets a new teacher. The new teacher is kind of gruff and our main character goes into some pretty crazy stories. But how much is true how much is not? Weird Al can tell a story, whether he’s rhyming them to polka music or putting them in a book, this man makes words that adult and children want to listen to. And when you read his books, they sound like him. I love that about his writing about this book and his other one. Please Weird Al write more books.

[Melanie Hetrick · Rating 3 out of 5]

It's the first day of school and like his classmates, Billy is curious to see who his teacher will be this year. But when he meets Mr. Booth and has to explain why there is dirt all over his shirt (digging to China and finding a dinosaur head is dirty work) Billy knows that he's gonna have to tell his best stories. Like how his grandfather vacations on the moon and his cousin has two-headed cows!

Hopefully Billy will be able to win over grumpy Mr. Booth! A fun read-aloud for the back-to-school crowd.

[Scarlet Robbins · Rating 5 out of 5]

Mr. Yankovic returns with his second children's book featuring little Billy and his new teacher Mr. Booth. Again, the story is wonderfully written and beautifully illustrated. Mr. Yankovic has a knack for telling the story with rhyming and colorful humor. Again, this book, along with the first one, are refreshing distractions from the responsibilities of the real world. For me personally, they take me to a safe world, without fear, where a child can play and imagine and be just that - a child. I lost two babies through miscarriage. I wish that I could have read both of these books to them.

[Nicola · Rating 4 out of 5]

Wonderfully imaginative! The actual story is full of fun but there's also a great moral about the value in being a visionary or in seeing the world as it could be.

Miss 4 and I like to explore different books and authors at the library, sometimes around particular topics or themes. We try to get different ones out every week or so; it's fun for both of us to have the variety and to look at a mix of new & favourite authors.

[Jana · Rating 3 out of 5]

This would be fun to share during the first days of school. With rollicking, rhyming text and hilarious illustrations, Billy's wild stories have his teacher, Mr. Booth, shaking his head in disbelief. It might be a good way to talk about the concept of tall tales. It could serve as a good mentor text to help kids create their own tall tales.

[Cathy Burroughs · Rating 4 out of 5]

The audiobook, just like his first book, is read by Weird Al, which maximizes the enjoyment factor. Billy's new teacher does not care for nonsense but, unfortunately for Billy, so many things about Billy's life sound stranger than fiction. The no-nonsense teacher has no patience for Billy's stories but Billy manages to make him change his tune.

[Lara Lleverino · Rating 4 out of 5]

With Al Yankovic’s obvious talent for rhyming who would make a better chikdren’s book? Billy returns in this second tale with new teacher interactions that perfectly reflect an imaginative child’s possibility thinking. Maybe not the best book to use to teach truth telling but wonderful for the imagination.

[Vickie Woodard · Rating 5 out of 5]

A teacher with no imagination meets a student with plenty to spare.
One changes the other.
Weird Al is an expert in rhyme. He knows how to tell a story. And he knows how to use comedy to get his point across.
I had the audiobook, so I can’t review illustrations, but I would love to see that photo!!

[Cecilia · Rating 5 out of 5]

As a person who was a gullible child with an overactive imagination, I really appreciate the author's take on childhood whopper-stories. I'm kind of glad the protagonist's stories ended up being mostly true. I had to sit through quite a few re-education lectures.

[Dave · Rating 5 out of 5]

There’s always that one kid who thinks a little differently, and he’s the star of this story. He helps his teacher see that inventing stories isn’t wrong. It’s just different. Play with your imagination.

[Heidi · Rating 3 out of 5]

Might be a little hard to read out loud...the cadence is a little stilted, but still fun for probably 2nd and 3rd graders. It's about imagination and how if someone dreams it, it may sound "outrageous" at first, but that is how inventors come up with new things and scientists invent cures, etc.

[Gabby · Rating 4 out of 5]

A wonderful tale that shows there is some truth to all stories. Just because you have never heard of it doesn’t mean it may not be true. Another amazing and beautifully wacky story from the wonderfully twisted mind of Weird Al!

[Anthony · Rating 4 out of 5]

It's the first day of school, and Billy is asked by his new teacher, Mr. Booth, why he came to class with dirt on his shirt. Billy's explanation is more than what Mr. Booth expected to hear in this fun, rhyming tale.

[Emily · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was such a cute book that I shared with my kids! It is a great reminder that even if we don't believe something, doesn't mean it can't be true. And that sometimes, stories that are told by others might be tweaked. But sometimes we just need to let it be.

[Kristin · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great - I will read again and again with my children.

[Elizabeth Thigpen · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book is fun and uplifting and would kick off the year in a fun-filled way.

[Melissa · Rating 5 out of 5]

LOVE THIS!! Perfect for this first week of school!

[wildct2003 · Rating 4 out of 5]

Good story and pictures.

[Hilary · Rating 5 out of 5]

How fun! (You can see the touch of Weird Al.)

[Whitney Pittsenbarger · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was a REALLY cute book. Celebrating the creative thinkers. I was skeptical when my daughter picked out a book by Weird Al. But he's a great author!

[Neyebur · Rating 5 out of 5]

Otra preciosa aventura de Billy que recomendaría leer a más de un profesor. Una buena lectura para desarrollar la imaginación.

[Allison · Rating 5 out of 5]

I absolutely loved this. Al Yankovic you have a rare set of talents, and writing fantastic picture books is one of them!

[Ellie King · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is a really cute story about a boy who dreams big, despite what his teacher thinks. He may exaggerate some things, but his mind is creative and wild!

[StephenPaul ChaseJr · Rating 5 out of 5]

I love reading your material!!!!!!!!!!!!