Andrea Buckless

I had mixed feelings about this book after reading it. I liked the book because the point of view is in first person, which helps connect the reader to the character and feel what they are feeling. When she said "I put my picture in the trash" you feel sad and embarrassed the way that she does. But I did not like the plot of the story. The conflict is clear that she does not like the way she looks in the class picture and she is trying to get rid of it. I thought the main idea of the story would be not to care about what you look like or what people think of you as long as you are yourself. She ends up keeping the picture but draws on everyone else's face to make them look the same as her. I do not like how she was only satisfied once she changed everyone to look like her. The idea should not have been to make everyone like you, but to be happy being different.… (mer)

In my opinion, “Class Picture Day” is a great children’s book for three reasons. First, the point of view is written in narrative voice. The main character, a young girl, is the only one in her class to stick her tongue out on picture day! Writing from this perspective helps the reader to feel like they are a part of her story and relatable to the reader’s own school life. Second, the illustrations are bright and warm, which helps to enhance the mood of the story. The reader wants to continue because they are simple and easy to understand! They provide many context clues for young readers. Finally, the author has chosen easy to read language for beginning readers. For example, “The pictures came back. Amy is smiling. Richard is smiling. My whole class is smiling!” The plot is interesting and fun! Children would really love to read this book. The big idea of the story is to not always believe what others say! But if you do, there is always a way to fix things, while having a bit of fun!… (mer)

I did not care for this book very much. In my opinion, I thought the plot of the story was too negative. For example, the main character was encouraged to stick her tongue out during her school photo, and she followed along with what her peers told her to do. When the picture was printed, she realized that she had been tricked into being the only person to make a silly face, and she was embarrassed. “Amy put her picture in her folder. Richard put his picture in his bookbag. I put my picture in the trash.” I dislike the way the story is written because I think it is cruel. Additionally, I don’t like the way the main character solved her problem. For example, in the end, she decided to draw silly faces on her classmates in the photo. I felt that this action was a bit vindictive, and I don’t feel that this story offers a very wise solution to the bullying problem, and I also feel that this book doesn’t provide a constructive lesson. The big idea of Class Picture Day is that it is not always smart to do what others tell you to do.… (mer)