Reviews

Ivy and Bean by Sophie Blackall, Annie Barrows

katy_irene's review against another edition

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4.0

This book is an almost perfect novel for early readers. I love that Ivy & Bean are two completely different girls with individual personalities. I love the adventure that happens in the comfort of their own neighborhood.

Bean is a little mean hearted with her language and actions... at one point she throws worms in her sister's face and laughs about it. Sometimes she is reprimanded for her behavior but not always. I want to see if Bean's attitude changes in the other books.

nicolec417's review against another edition

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3.0

Bean is kind of awful, but I thought the story was fun.

mariahroze's review against another edition

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3.0

"The moment they saw each other, Bean and Ivy knew they wouldn't be friends. But when Bean plays a joke on her sister, Nancy, and has to hide quickly, Ivy comes to the rescue, proving that sometimes the best of friends are people never meant to like each other. Vibrant characters and lots of humor make this a charming and addictive introduction to Ivy and Bean."

This was a cute story and I excited to read it with my students.

nonime's review

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adventurous lighthearted fast-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Character
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? No
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.25

dawnoftheread's review against another edition

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4.0

Cute and fun book about girls, but not at all "girly". Great stuff.

missprint_'s review against another edition

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3.0

Seven-year-old Bean does not want to be friends with Ivy. Her mother keeps telling her that Ivy seems like a very nice girl, but Bean knows what that means. Nice means prim and proper and sitting quietly reading big books. Nice means boring.

At least, Bean thought Ivy was boring. When she plays a trick on her big sister and Ivy offers a quick hiding place, Bean isn't so sure. Nice is supposed to be boring. And Ivy does seem nice. But she's also training to be a witch. Besides, how nice can anyone be who has a vast supply of face paint, her own wand, and a spell that involves lots of worms?

Bean and Ivy didn't plan to be friends, but they might be a perfect match in Ivy and Bean (2006) by Annie Barrows and Sophie Blackall (illustrator).

Ivy and Bean is the first book in the series which is very popular with younger readers. The text is not as advanced as the Clementine or Ramona books but the characters all have similar qualities that will appeal to readers looking for girls with spunk. This story was not as compelling, for me, as the Clementine series but it was a fun fast read that will work for young readers and reluctant readers. Blackall's illustrations add a lot of appeal with her delightfully horrifying pictures of Bean's horrible older sister and Ivy's wonderfully scary witch attire.

There are some surprisingly vocal negative reviews (seen on Amazon) accusing the book of promoting everything from bad behavior to witchcraft. To such concerns all I can say is books don't make ill-behaved children anymore than guns kill people all on their own. At its core Ivy and Bean is nothing more and nothing less than a sharp book about two singularly creative girls who are ready and willing to make their own fun be it with pranks or a new friendship.

Possible Pairings: Clementine by Sarah Pennypacker and Marla Frazee, Dessert First by Hallie Durand and Christine Davenier, Ramona Quimby, Age 8 by Beverly Cleary

bbckprpl's review against another edition

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3.0

I'm waiting to read this with LilGirl - I think she'll like it more than I did, but the story was cute enough, just not amazing. I did really like the mix of pictures and story, the comic book(ish) style that it had going for it, which there aren't as many of with specifically female stories, I think.

antoniasophie03's review against another edition

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4.0

Ich habe dieses Buch schon seit langer Zeit in meinem englischen Bücherregal stehen und jetzt habe ich mir endlich vorgenommen, es zu lesen.
Es ist zwar ein Kinderbuch, doch ich finde, wenn man einen Buchtipp für englische und einfache Bücher braucht, eignet sich diese Reihe sehr gut, da sie einfach und dennoch lustig geschrieben ist.

littlebitofe's review against another edition

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3.0

What a cute little book. Great illustrations and a fun, silly story.