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Title details for The Spoon in the Bathroom Wall by Tony Johnston - Available

The Spoon in the Bathroom Wall

by Tony Johnston
ebook
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1 of 1 copy available

Living in the Bloggins School boiler room isn't glamorous, but that's life for Martha Snapdragon, daughter of the beleaguered janitor. Life only gets weirder when Martha realizes bizarre events are afoot at the school. There's the dastardly dealings of evil principal Dr. Klunk and school bully Rufus. There's the dozen dancing eggs and the misbehaving dragons, property of the mysterious science teacher. And then there's the strangest thing of all: a giant golden spoon that simply appears one day, stuck in the wall of the school bathroom. Although everyone tries, only Martha is able to extract the spoon from the wall—an act that leads her to a destiny far beyond her meager life in the boiler room.
Tony Johnston's funny, magical story spoofs the legend of The Sword in the Stone—and conveys some poignant truths about teaching, leadership, and the responsibilities we have to one another.

  • Creators

  • Publisher

  • Release date

    July 2, 2013

  • Formats

    • Kindle Book

    • OverDrive Read

      • ISBN: 9780544265202

    • EPUB ebook

      • ISBN: 9780544265202
      • File size: 230 KB

  • Languages

    • English

  • Levels

    • ATOS Level: 3.5
    • Lexile® Measure: 580
    • Interest Level: 4-8(MG)
    • Text Difficulty: 2

  • Reviews

    • Publisher's Weekly

      May 23, 2005
      The sword is a bejeweled spoon and the stone is the bathroom wall in Johnston's (The Worm Family
      ) lighthearted Arthurian spoof centering on a 10-year-old heroine. Martha Snapdragon lives with her janitor father in the boiler room of the Horace E. Bloggins School. Her patient father has for years toiled under the ruthless principal, Dr. Klunk, who is "pudgy and pasty and bald as a bottle, with beastly little eyes like mean raisins." Martha is constantly being teased by Rufus Turk "(rhymes with jerk
      )," the school bully who had "a pinchy face like a boll weevil, ratty little teeth, and hair the color of an orangutan." Shortly after Rufus tauntingly gives Martha the new nickname of "Marthur," she spies chiseled into the school wall the words, "The king is coming.
      " Though some readers may realize immediately the literary reference with which the girl's nickname rhymes, science teacher Mrs. Ferlin "(rhymes with Merlin
      )," soon brings it to the girl's attention and agrees to give her lessons in how to be a teacher. Some madcap scenes transpire (including several involving Mrs. Ferlin's dancing eggs, which turn into dragons when Rufus maliciously boils them) before the spoon suddenly appears in the school bathroom wall and, well, someone must remove it. With duly preposterous pomp, this comically written caper builds to a crowning scene of glory. Ages 8-12.

Formats

  • Kindle Book
  • OverDrive Read
  • EPUB ebook

subjects

Languages

  • English

Levels

  • ATOS Level:3.5
  • Lexile® Measure:580
  • Interest Level:4-8(MG)
  • Text Difficulty:2

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