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tami_provencher's review against another edition
3.0
The idea of a middle school novel in haiku grabbed by interest as soon as I saw it at the library. Brains For Lunch is, indeed, an interesting undertaking. I think there are moments of real wit and brilliance interspersed throughout the story.
As indicated by the title, the entire book is written in haiku. It revolves around Loeb, a Zombie middle-schooler who attends school with Lifers (humans), other Zombies and Chupacabras (blood-sucking creatures). He struggles with the typical geek/jock tension–from the “geek” perspective–although the characters of humans vs. nonhumans are anything but typical.
The wit is most evident in Loeb’s commentary on catching the eyeball of his friend after she rolls it or literally losing his jaw in an altercation with a brutish student. The underlying story is Loeb’s crush on a “Lifer.” This is a relationship that is unheard of at the school and he spends a lot of time denying this attraction to his friends when they point it out. In a refreshingly clever and non-preachy way the story encompasses racism and unkindness in a “Monster HIgh” type setting.
Loeb attempts to make a statement about his own abilities and individuality and about crossing what they call “the invisible line” between groups of people by writing his own haiku and performing it in a contest usually reserved for Lifers. His courage and passion resonate in his words–both those of his actual performance and those of his observations surrounding it.
The book is a fun combination of typical middle-school struggle with some zombie character and humor mixed in. The haikus, themselves, are not all particularly remarkable in and of themselves. There are, however, memorable and provoking selections:
The librarian gives Loeb a book of haiku saying
“Complicated words
don’t always make good stories.
Look at these haiku.”
I love the reference to the humor of the 80′s movie Back to the Future:
Knock knock on my head
“Hello, McFly.” She’s laughing.
Duck away and scowl
Loeb’s deft sarcasm is delightfully evident in:
No wait. Not the bell
We’re a mobile Thriller dance
Shuffling out the door
One of my favorites is Loeb’s amazed reaction to his own poetry performance:
Paper in my hand
Sitting alone on the floor
Haiku really works
I originally was hoping to use this as a read-aloud with 3rd and 4th graders. I will not be using it as a read-aloud due to some of the language (not necessarily offensive, but authentically middle-school). The book uses words like “suck” and a form of “what the hell” as well as referring to giving each other the finger. I don’t think any of these things are objectionable in the context of the book. However, these expressions sometimes take on a different color when they are read aloud by an authority figure or trusted older reader. This particular selection could be used at home, in a small group of older high school students or as an independent read.
As indicated by the title, the entire book is written in haiku. It revolves around Loeb, a Zombie middle-schooler who attends school with Lifers (humans), other Zombies and Chupacabras (blood-sucking creatures). He struggles with the typical geek/jock tension–from the “geek” perspective–although the characters of humans vs. nonhumans are anything but typical.
The wit is most evident in Loeb’s commentary on catching the eyeball of his friend after she rolls it or literally losing his jaw in an altercation with a brutish student. The underlying story is Loeb’s crush on a “Lifer.” This is a relationship that is unheard of at the school and he spends a lot of time denying this attraction to his friends when they point it out. In a refreshingly clever and non-preachy way the story encompasses racism and unkindness in a “Monster HIgh” type setting.
Loeb attempts to make a statement about his own abilities and individuality and about crossing what they call “the invisible line” between groups of people by writing his own haiku and performing it in a contest usually reserved for Lifers. His courage and passion resonate in his words–both those of his actual performance and those of his observations surrounding it.
The book is a fun combination of typical middle-school struggle with some zombie character and humor mixed in. The haikus, themselves, are not all particularly remarkable in and of themselves. There are, however, memorable and provoking selections:
The librarian gives Loeb a book of haiku saying
“Complicated words
don’t always make good stories.
Look at these haiku.”
I love the reference to the humor of the 80′s movie Back to the Future:
Knock knock on my head
“Hello, McFly.” She’s laughing.
Duck away and scowl
Loeb’s deft sarcasm is delightfully evident in:
No wait. Not the bell
We’re a mobile Thriller dance
Shuffling out the door
One of my favorites is Loeb’s amazed reaction to his own poetry performance:
Paper in my hand
Sitting alone on the floor
Haiku really works
I originally was hoping to use this as a read-aloud with 3rd and 4th graders. I will not be using it as a read-aloud due to some of the language (not necessarily offensive, but authentically middle-school). The book uses words like “suck” and a form of “what the hell” as well as referring to giving each other the finger. I don’t think any of these things are objectionable in the context of the book. However, these expressions sometimes take on a different color when they are read aloud by an authority figure or trusted older reader. This particular selection could be used at home, in a small group of older high school students or as an independent read.
rainbowbookworm's review against another edition
2.0
Was expecting more from this one, but the humor was very low brow.
thisfoxreads's review against another edition
2.0
A zombie novel in haiku! What could be wrong with that? Plenty. A haiku should be a succinct expression of an idea. Here, it was basically one "haiku" after another, and the parts of each may or may not have fit together. There are cultural references today's teens may not get (a "Back to the Future" reference, for one, in which a character is knocked on the head with a, "What's up, McFly?"). The story really could have played up the zombie factor, but didn't do that, either, other than to have assorted body parts fall off or get pulled off. The illustrations are humorous but not terrible zombie-like: definitely not scary.
So what is left is an attempt to merge poetry with a teen-interest topic, and it ends up just being lame. At least it's a short book.
So what is left is an attempt to merge poetry with a teen-interest topic, and it ends up just being lame. At least it's a short book.
greenbeanteenqueen's review against another edition
3.0
When Brains for Lunch came across my desk at the library in my new book stash, I knew I had to check it out. Brains for Lunch is a fun twist on zombies. The book is told entirely in haiku-you see, zombies talk in haiku.
The haiku format is creative and makes for a fun fast read. It's a short book-just under 100 pages-and the short poetry format makes the book go quickly. The haiku format does give the reader a good idea of zombie speak, but at times I wish there was room for just a bit more story. I wanted to know just a bit more about the characters and the school that couldn't really be written in such a short format. The ending also felt a little rushed and didn't have a ton of explanation, again because of the format.
But the haiku format is different and I really can imagine zombies walking around talking that way. Because the book is so short, I think Brains for Lunch would be a great read for students and teachers during a poetry unit. And I have to give props to the author for managing to write the entire story in three line poems-I'm sure that was no easy task! The dislike between the zombies and the humans can even open a discussion on race and differences and everyone being equal and getting along.
Brains for Lunch is an entertaining read perfect for readers looking for something humorous and sometimes gross-I mean, these are zombies we're talking about here! Hand this one to reluctant readers looking for a good read for Halloween.
Book Pairings: Nathan Abercrombie, Accidental Zombie by David Lubar (for another fun MG zombie read), Guyku: A Year of Haiku for Boys by Bob Raczka (for another look at a book all written in haiku)
The haiku format is creative and makes for a fun fast read. It's a short book-just under 100 pages-and the short poetry format makes the book go quickly. The haiku format does give the reader a good idea of zombie speak, but at times I wish there was room for just a bit more story. I wanted to know just a bit more about the characters and the school that couldn't really be written in such a short format. The ending also felt a little rushed and didn't have a ton of explanation, again because of the format.
But the haiku format is different and I really can imagine zombies walking around talking that way. Because the book is so short, I think Brains for Lunch would be a great read for students and teachers during a poetry unit. And I have to give props to the author for managing to write the entire story in three line poems-I'm sure that was no easy task! The dislike between the zombies and the humans can even open a discussion on race and differences and everyone being equal and getting along.
Brains for Lunch is an entertaining read perfect for readers looking for something humorous and sometimes gross-I mean, these are zombies we're talking about here! Hand this one to reluctant readers looking for a good read for Halloween.
Book Pairings: Nathan Abercrombie, Accidental Zombie by David Lubar (for another fun MG zombie read), Guyku: A Year of Haiku for Boys by Bob Raczka (for another look at a book all written in haiku)
hazel_kopp's review against another edition
3.0
One of the most unique and confusing middle grade books I've ever read.
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