Pea, Bee and Jay

You know it's a good book when a bunch of kids stay glued to the meet for nearly an hour on a beautiful June day the last week of school. I could think of a "buzz-zillion" other things they could have been doing and yet there they were.  Yes, I was giving away some "PB and J" treat for one lucky winner but really? I'm pretty sure that's not the reason they stayed on.  They stayed on because it is...

"So cute! I loved it!" declared Cooper, kindergarten.  

Or because...

"I thought the book was really good.  Plus, it's a graphic novel and I like graphic novels," shared fifth grader, Noah.

Or because, as we all agreed, it was funny.

Despite warning from Momma about weather and not to hang out with any "bad apples", Pea takes a challenge from Strawberry to roll off the farm to the BIG RED TREE. Not an easy feat for a pea. He meets up with the intellectual, Bee, who seems to be running away and hiding something. Only moments after Bee warns Pea "if you see a bird just RUN", Jay shows up with Bee's missing satchel. Yes, Bee carries a satchel.  There is some upper level vocabulary that adds "merit" to Bee's personality. Together the three new friends have an adventure.  One of the funniest parts is when they meet up with some trickster raspberries along the way.

Since this book is going to be a series (one I'm sure I won't be able to keep on my shelves), I asked the kids to predict Pea, Bee and Jay's next adventure.  "They'll get lost again," someone shared. "They'll meet another character," said another but didn't let on who. Noah thinks something will happen to Gramps and they will have to find him and/or they find Jay's family and he finally learns to fly.  All good ideas.  You jotting these down, Mr. Smith?

Check out these kids who brought their PB and J to the review party:

And the comments straight from the chat (Don't be confused by that single five rating.  That's 5/5 😀)

This is another September 1 birthday book.  Add it to your list today and it will be FLYING off your shelves when we return to school this fall. (Thanks, Edelweiss and HarperAlley for the review copy.)