National Regular Average Ordinary Day

by Lisa Katzenberger, Barbara Bakos (Illustrations)

Now in paperback! Even the regular, average, ordinary days can be celebrated with this charming 8x8.

Peter does not like being bored, so he comes up with a way to have some festive fun--he'll celebrate a different holiday each day! He even rates them on a scale of 1 to 10. But when he wakes up one morning to discover there isn't any holiday, he realizes he'll have to take matters into his own hands and make up his own! That's easier said than done, though, and nothing seems to go right--until Peter realizes that even a regular, average, ordinary day can be something worth celebrating.

Genres: Picture Books, Childrens, Fiction, Humor, Holiday

32 pages, Paperback

Published February 16, 2021

Reviews

[Deb (Readerbuzz) Nance · Rating 4 out of 5]

Peter is bored. He plays the same things over and over with his friend, Devin. Time to do something different. Peter made a plan so that he could celebrate a new holiday every day. Until he arrived at a day with no holiday...

Fun. Peter ends up missing his friend, and that's pleasant, too. A novel take on the idea of being entertained.

[Skylaar Amann · Rating 5 out of 5]

Ha! What a great and unexpected concept! I love watching Peter, the main character, discover how to have fun and entertain himself through the story. The illustrations are an absolute joy and enrich the story, characters, and humor at every turn. I loved looking at all the little details in the art and finding how they enhanced the author's sweet, silly, and heartwarming tale. A fun read that reminded me of being a kid!

[Bonnie Clark · Rating 5 out of 5]

A clever story with a great message! I love the bright and lively illustrations that match the BIG personality of the main character. National Regular Average Ordinary Day is a fun reminder that sometimes the best moments in life are the seemingly small ones.

[Stephanie Tournas · Rating 4 out of 5]

Peter does not like being bored, and he’s tired of action figures, shooting hoops and playing with Legos. What’s a kid to do? Why, find a different holiday to celebrate every single day! Using real holidays, such as National Ice Cream Sandwich Day and National Underwear Day, he has fun getting into the groove of celebrating something different each day. But one day he wakes up and the day is dedicated to nothing. He tries to make up his own, such as National Squirrel Appreciation Day, and National Bubble Bath Day, but he soon grows tired of celebrating on his own. He finds his friend Devin and they start playing regular, average, ordinary games, and then all the kids on his block join in. And he names the day for what it was, National Average Ordinary Day. Appealing art in a cheerfully bright palette tells the story with antic expressions on the kids’ and animals’ faces and a diverse neighborhood. This could be a fun book to read in the middle of summer when families are running out of ideas on how to pass another day.

I would have appreciated a list at the end giving the actual dates for some of the real holidays – I think it would have added appeal for families to celebrate them together.

[Cindy Overcast · Rating 5 out of 5]

“National Regular Average Ordinary Day” written by Lisa Katzenberger and illustrated by Barbara Bakos (Copyright 2020, Penguin Workshop) is the story of a boy named Peter, who becomes bored with playing the same familiar games. Since he loves holidays, Peter thinks he will have more fun if he celebrates a new holiday each day. Things are going well, until the day comes when he has run out of holidays to celebrate. He solves this problem by using his imagination to make up some new ones. Eventually, Peter grows tired of holidays altogether and is bored once again. As he is sitting in a cardboard box, doing nothing, his imagination takes over, transforming the box and sending him on a variety of fun-filled adventures. Later, when a friend rides by on a bike, Peter decides to join him and the neighborhood kids for some “regular, average, ordinary games,” and soon finds that ordinary days can be worth celebrating too. This colorfully illustrated story highlights the value of imagination and creative play in the celebration of life’s ordinary days. This review was originally published as part of my "Picture Book Favorites That Encourage Creative Play" blog post at www.cindyovercast.com.

[Claire Noland · Rating 5 out of 5]

Peter is bored of being bored. Everyday is the same – action figures, shooting hoop, building blocks. Repeat.
So, he makes a plan to make each day exciting by celebrating interesting daily holidays. There’s National Ice-Cream Sandwich Day, National Waffle Day, and National Underwear Day each of which he rates with a star system. When he finds himself on a day with no holiday, Peter decides to make one up. He doesn’t have much success until he realizes that regular average ordinary days are also worth celebrating.
NATIONAL REGULAR AVERAGE ORDINARY DAY is a laugh-out-loud funny picture book with Peter’s holiday ideas becoming more and more outrageous. This book is a tribute to imagination and friendship that kids will love. Teachers and parents should add this book to their shelves as it will spark discussions and be perfect for those “I’m so bored” days. The bright and joyful illustrations build on the humor in just the right way.
As a person who loves to celebrate everything, NATIONAL REGULAR AVERAGE ORDINARY DAY is defiantly worth celebrating.

[Heather Kinser · Rating 5 out of 5]

NATIONAL REGULAR AVERAGE ORDINARY DAY is a super story about leaving space for unplanned fun. Actually, it makes planned fun look pretty good, too—like National Ride Your Bike With No Hands Day, National Walking Backward Day, or National Eat What You Want Day. Like the story’s main character, Peter, I wouldn’t mind making up a few random celebrations myself right now, to fill the shelter-in-place time. But as many of us our finding out during this global pandemic, some of the best times happen when you allow yourself to be bored, relax into it, and let creativity flow into the open spaces. What a great takeaway for kids! (Especially now, at this unprecedented time in the history of boredom.) And that takeaway comes all wrapped up in a fun, active picture-book package with plenty of laughs.

[Rachel Funez · Rating 4 out of 5]

I think kids will find Peter’s struggle relatable. (What mom hasn’t heard, “I’m bored!” … and cringed and wished for a little boredom herself.) But this book won’t leave you or your kids yawning. Instead, Peter’s misadventures are sure to get your kiddos giggling – especially with the delightfully funny and animated illustrations ramping up the fun. And you’ll love the takeaway – with a little imagination and creativity, “an ordinary day can be fun, too.”

(In fact, this may be just the message we need right now. While we can’t involve the whole block in our fun like Peter does in the story, there are still plenty of regular, average, ordinary games we can play with our kids as we celebrate the extra time together.)

*I was gifted a free PDF copy of this book in exchange for my honest review.

[Lisa · Rating 5 out of 5]

Peter usually hangs out with his neighbor Devin, they play action figures, shoot hoops and build things with blocks. But lately it seems that's all they ever do! So, Peter is bored. And he starts looking for holidays to celebrate (and rate on a scale of 1-10 stars). Some are better than others, like National Ice Cream Sandwich Day. But, when Peter can't find a holiday for every day, he's suddenly bored again. Maybe Devin can help Peter figure out the perfect holiday for every day.

The illustrations are priceless! Who knew "Walking Backwards Day" would cause so much trouble? Or, that math can help figure out the perfect formula for holiday success. I loved Peter's cat - it was fun to try to find it in each picture. A darling story about making your own fun, and bringing your friends along.

[Paulette Sharkey · Rating 5 out of 5]

No kid likes being bored and Peter is super-bored! He decides to liven up his life by finding a different holiday to celebrate each day, but he soon runs out. Then it’s time for Peter to make up his own holidays. He tries National Walking Backward Day and National Ignore Your Sister Day. They don’t end well. Combining holidays is every more disastrous—and funnier. Peter discovers that he doesn’t need “something special to do every single day to stay entertained.” When kids get together, they can always find a way to have fun. Little details in the bright, attractive illustrations expand on the humor of the text. A celebration of friendship and gratitude for simple, ordinary things. Highly recommended.

[Laurie Carmody · Rating 5 out of 5]

Who can't relate to this book?! Boredom crashes into this boy's world and he tries to make his life more exciting by coming up with special celebration days. This book shines in the way it shows the reader how he ranks these celebration days. Using a star system and vibrant illustrations, it is hilarious to read the words along with the pictures. The message is a sweet, powerful one about finding your own fun in every day events, but I keep coming back to the amount of joy I had reading the middle section with my children. This is a great book for kids, especially now, who might be struggling with boredom.

[Erin Buhr · Rating 5 out of 5]

If anyone feels like EVERY day feels ordinary (dare I say boring) right now, this book is for you. A little boy is bored so he decides to celebrate a different holiday every day. His realization at the end is wonderful and something every kid needs to be reminded right now. In between, the energetic words, cheerful pictures and the character's emotions are incredibly relatable to our current situation. Obviously it wasn't because books take years to be published and this book would be wonderful to share with kids anytime, but this feels like it could have been written specifically for our current situation.

[Shaye Miller · Rating 3 out of 5]

Ahhh, the long summer days where children's can so easily become bored. Peter and Devin have fallen into a rut where every day is pretty much the same thing: action figures, shooting hoops, and building blocks. Peter discovers that he is super bored, so he goes on a quest, of sorts, to find all of the unique holidays to rate on a scale of 1 to 10. Until one day when he discovers there's no holiday. NONE! What will Peter do? In the end, every day can be fun when you have friends with which to share it.

For more children's literature, middle grade literature, and YA literature reviews, feel free to visit my personal blog at The Miller Memo!

[Cara · Rating 4 out of 5]

Kids will appreciate the humor in Peter’s attempts to keep from being bored. Colorful digital illustrations contain hilarious moments on most pages. The straightforward text only says what it needs to, which really enhances the story in the combination of succinct text and funny illustrations. Readers will appreciate the star ratings for each holiday mentioned, many of which are silly, such as National Underwear Day. Underneath all the humor is the sweet message that sometimes ordinary things can be the most fun of all, with the right perspective. Kids ages 4-8 will give this tale 10 stars, especially when read aloud.

[Sharon Giltrow · Rating 5 out of 5]

In this delightful story the main character Peter is looking for excitement so, he decides to find out what is special about every day and which national holiday it is. The problem comes when he wakes up to a day that doesn't celebrate any special day. I love how Peter comes to realise that every day is special especially when you are surrounded by friends. I love the idea of a national holiday days everyday - it would make life so exciting. The illustrations add an extra layer of humour to the story in a very delightful way.

[Kirsten · Rating 5 out of 5]

Lisa Katzenberger's NATIONAL REGULAR AVERAGE ORDINARY DAY (illustrated by Barbara Bakos from Penguin Books) is a book for our time. I don't know about you, but we're still (mostly) under lockdown at my house and every day feels like "National Regular Average Ordinary Day." This adorable tale will have your family appreciating unique celebrations like National Bow-Tie Day and National Ice-Cream Sandwich Day, as well as celebrating the perfectly ordinary and inspiring your kiddos to create their own fun.

[Candace Spizzirri · Rating 5 out of 5]

Love this imaginative and timely picture book. To ease his boredom, Peter decides to celebrate each day with a national day such as National Underwear Day. But when he wakes one day to find no national day to celebrate, he uses his imagination to make up his own with hilarious results. Ultimately, Peter discovers that sometimes simply playing outside with friends on a regular, average, ordinary day is the BEST! Katzenberger’s playful text pairs perfectly with Bakos’ colorful, lively illustrations. A must read!

[Sarah · Rating 4 out of 5]

In this book, boredom comes out of doing the same things over and over again. I can totally relate. I like a change of pace and doing new and different things. Peter gets bored and in his attempts at finding new fun things to do he discovers there is some kind of holiday just about every day. But then a day comes along with no holiday and Peter has to figure out how to keep boredom away. Any kid clever enough to figure out that there are loads of unsung holidays, is surely clever enough to figure out how not to be bored, right? Read the book to find out.

[Shan Salter · Rating 4 out of 5]

Peter is an ordinary kid with a typical problem—boredom. Lucky for him, there are so many holidays to celebrate...until there isn't.

This is a fun read-aloud story about the zany holidays on the calendar and what to do when there's nothing scheduled. The text is pitched perfectly for young readers and the brightly colored illustrations are a wonderful (and at times hilarious) accompaniment to an already witty story.

This book is sure to be a read-again favorite in schools and homes alike. Enjoy!

[Carrie Finison · Rating 5 out of 5]

I find the premise of this book hilarious, and the execution is wonderful too. It's the story of Peter who becomes bored with regular old days and decides to make life interesting by celebrating (and rating) a holiday each day, like National Underwear Day. Then he moves on to making up his own zany holidays - but when that gets a little out of hand, he finally decides that ordinary days are not so bad after all. In a world where we sometimes get fixated on special days and celebrations, this is a fun and funny celebration of all-things-ordinary.

[S.K. Wenger · Rating 5 out of 5]

There isn't anything regular or ordinary about Lisa Katzenberger's picture book for kids. In fact, in a world where staying at home and finding new types of entertainment has become the norm, this story may be just what today's kid needs to inspire creativity. Especially with the illustrations by Barbara Bakos amping up the energy.

After sharing this delightful book with the little people in your life, be prepared to have pencils, papers, boxes, snacks, and all sorts of ordinary supplies ready when they decide to make their own kind of ordinary fun.

[Charlotte Offsay · Rating 5 out of 5]

This hilarious new picture book revolves around a child who combats boredom by celebrating a different holiday every day but when he wakes up one day and there is nothing to celebrate he takes matters into his own hands and attempts to create a brand new holiday. This book is hilarious and a fun read-aloud that had my 4 and 6-year-old giggling away. It reminds us to live in the moment and that even a regular average ordinary day is worth celebrating! I highly recommend this one!

[Sita Singh · Rating 5 out of 5]

Peter does not like getting bored! Who does? And when he does get bored of playing the same games, Peter creates a plan to celebrate a different holiday each day. But one day, when he wakes up with nothing to celebrate, Peter must take matters in his own hands and realize that even a regular, average, ordinary day can be worth celebrating. This sweet, hilarious story with delightful illustrations serves as a gentle reminder to live in the moment and celebrate each day.

[Eleanor Peterson · Rating 5 out of 5]

Peter is bored and fed up of playing the same old games with his friend Devin every day. He decides to invent a National holiday to celebrate each day on his own. But some Nat'l holidays don't work out, especially if you mash-up two National days together, like, Nat’l Squirrel Appreciation Day and Nat’l Bubble Bath Day. Peter soon realizes he doesn’t need to celebrate Nat’l days and that the best days are when his friends surround him.

[Katia Wish · Rating 5 out of 5]

What a fun, fast-paced story that pulls you right in! The main character Peter is so over-the-top, imaginative and creative. Out of boredom, he keeps inventing new holidays to celebrate each day. But at some point the holidays become too elaborate and not that fun anymore. Will Peter continue to invent bigger and crazier holidays or even combine them? Or will he take a look at what he already has?

[Viviane Elbee · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a really fun and unique premise - a little boy wants to make sure he is never bored by celebrating a different holiday each day. He celebrates National Ice-Cream Sandwich Day, and National Underwear Day and National Tell a Joke Day. But one day, he wakes up and notices that there is NO HOLIDAY! As he tries to come up with a new one, he discovers the joys of national regular average ordinary day.
The kids enjoyed it.

[Serena Gingold Allen · Rating 5 out of 5]

This story is funny and imaginative and has a sweet ending. I read it to my five-year-old and he loved the idea of celebrating a holiday every day. He was delighted by the silliness of the invented holidays. And he totally related to the main character’s imaginative use of a box. I loved the friendship angle and the illustrations. This is a fun book to share with kids and would be great in a school setting too.

[Julie · Rating 5 out of 5]

I get daily emails from the National Day Calendar and have planned some library programs around some of these holidays. So, I was really excited to read this book. The message of this book is wonderful. Yes, there is National Day for almost everything and it may be fun to celebrate some. However, what is really important is to remember is that everyday can be exciting--and you don't need a National Day Calendar to tell you that. Thank you for the reminder.

[Joan Marr · Rating 5 out of 5]

Kids are going to get a kick out of all the silly (and real!) national “celebration” days in this book, and of the main character’s attempts to come up with a brand new one. Very clever concept and heartwarming message, with colorful, energetic illustrations. Very timely, too—could be a great conversation starter about making your own fun, during these lockdown days!

[Kirsten Pendreigh · Rating 5 out of 5]

For kids who like squirrels, bubble baths, walking backwards, and making lists! To combat boredom, a young boy designs his own quirky holiday calendar (National Eat What You Want Day, National Ignore Your Sister Day etc.) Soon he discovers that days spent with friends are the best ones to celebrate.