Peanut Butter Lover Boy

Sixth Grade Alien #4

by Bruce Coville

IT'S A STICKY SITUATION!

Pleskit's quest to sample all things earthling -- especially earthling foods -- inevitably leads him to...peanut butter. He adores it. There's only one problem: He has an allergic reaction to the stuff that ends up making him feel incredibly romantic.

Before long, the purple alien is chasing girls around the playground, trying to kiss them. He gets a slap in the face, which snaps him back to reality. But the damage has been done. The school is in an uproar, and unless Tim and Pleskit can find a way to convince Principal Grand that it's not really Pleskit's fault, the world's first alien student may be looking for a new classroom -- on a new planet!

Genres: Science Fiction, Childrens

160 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 2000

About the author

Bruce Coville was born in Syracuse, New York, in 1950. His family lived in farm territory, about twenty miles north of Syracuse. Bruce grew up around the corner from his grandparents' dairy farm, where he spent a great deal of time as a child, dodging cows and chores to the best of his ability. As a young reader he loved Mary Poppins and Dr. Dolittle, and still has fond memories of rising ahead of the rest of his family so he could huddle in a chair and read THE VOYAGES OF DR. DOLITTLE. He also read lots of things that people consider junk (Nancy Drew, the Hardy Boys, Tom Swift, and zillions of comic books). His only real regret is the time he spent watching television, when he could have been reading instead. (A mind is a terrible thing to waste!)

His first book, THE FOOLISH GIANT, was published in 1978. It was illustrated by his wife, Katherine, whom he had married in 1969. This was followed in 1979 by SARAH'S UNICORN, also illustrated by Katherine. After a long period of working separately, the Covilles began collaborating again with SPACE BRAT and GOBLINS IN THE CASTLE, both published in 1992.

Before getting published Bruce earned his living as a toymaker, a gravedigger, a cookware salesman, an assembly line worker, and finally as an elementary school teacher (second and fourth grades). He left teaching in 1981 to devote himself to becoming a full time writer - though it took another five years to achieve that goal!)

Bruce has published over 100 books, which have appeared in over a dozen countries around the world and sold more than sixteen million copies. Among his most popular titles are MY TEACHER IS AN ALIEN, INTO THE LAND OF THE UNICORNS, and THE MONSTER'S RING. In 2001 he founded Full Cast Audio, an audiobook company dedicated to creating unabridged, full cast recordings of the best in children's and young adult literature.

Reviews

[Dan · Rating 3 out of 5]

Pleskit tries peanut butter and discovers he gets an allergic reaction that results in him being girl crazy. This makes headlines all over the world, and as a result, Pleskit and Tim have to prevent the principal from kicking Pleskit out of school.

Solid as the rest of the series so far. Very impressed with Coville’s explanation of mental illness, which was accessible for kids without being pandering. Coville does a great job of delving into real-world issues without being preachy, which is nice to see.

[H. Givens · Rating 4 out of 5]

Really nice to see an open discussion of mental illness in a book for kids of this age. The main theme of the book is understanding mental illness and how you can't just will away a chemical imbalance. Also a fair amount of plot development for the series as a whole, the pressures of the other alien groups etc. Very good.

[Daian Diaz Narvaez · Rating 4 out of 5]

The book is very detailed and it is very easy to imagine it. It is also very fun and you might enjoy reading it. The author is Bruce Coville, it was published January 1st, 2000, and its title is "Peanut Butter Lover Boy." It is a science fiction book, and the main character is Pleskit Meenom. The antagonist is peanut butter sandwiches, or just plain peanut butter.

It all starts in school, Pleskit goes to lunch and he decides to trade food with his friend. He asks what his friend is eating, and it is a peanut butter sandwich. He eats the sandwich and goes to the school's playground. He meets up with his friends, and suddenly he falls in love with one of his friends. He gets all weird, but he doesn't know that. It is like he is being hypnotized.

I thought this book was very funny and detailed. I liked it because I love to read books that are science fiction. I would recommend this book to people who like to read about aliens and weird science. The book was very good after all.If you like to read books that are very funny and detailed, you might like the book.

[Jamie Jonas · Rating 4 out of 5]

My wild ride with this wacky, yet somehow thought-provoking series continues. Coville manages to trot out a number of hypothetical alien problems I hadn't considered before. In this installment, alien food allergies are addressed! As is a particularly cheesy take on juvenile romance. All in all, the story certainly hits its mark--and Coville keeps up such a pace that I envision him breathless, racing to keep up with himself.

[Susan · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is the fourth books in the "I Was A Sixth Grade Alien" series. It's a cute series about an alien, Pleskit, who is attending 6th grade, and his best friend, Tim. In this book, Pleskit has a very strange reaction to peanut butter--he falls in love with the first girl he sees. The principal is ready to kick him out of school, and Pleskit and Tim must convince the principal it's the peanut butter that is causing Pleskit's strange behavior.