Judy Moody Declares Independence (urspr publ 2005; utgåvan 2018)

Judy is all about getting to do what she wants, but when things don't go her way after a trip to good old Boston Harbor, well let's just say that she throws a tea party of her own. Does it result in extra rights, freedoms, or personal liberties? Not exactly...but it does help her see that working for those rights she feels entitled to is GOOD thing...and anything worth having is worth the effort.


**copy received for review ( )

Judy Moody Declares Independence actually taught me something! From my recollection, I've never heard of Sybil Ludington. I enjoyed Mood's trip to Boston and how she reenacted the Paul Revere Ride after an emergency situation needed her to. I thought it was brilliant that to show she was independent she started doing things around the house without being asked to. I could learn a thing or two from her. I didn't understand why she received an allowance though... ( )

Judy Moody Declares Independence is a wonderful book for children. Children will learn so much about the Boston Tea Party in just the first few chapters as Judy's parents take her and her brother sightseeing throughout Boston. They'll love Judy's silly antics as she writes her own Declaration of Independence back home demanding a raise in allowance, her own bathroom, and freedom to not wash her hair. Of course her parents say no to these demands but Judy does not give up. Instead she steps up and tries to prove she's responsible. When that didn't work she put together her own Boston Tea Party I'm the bathroom. That only got her in trouble but she still didn't give up. Judy swore to get an A on her book report and wrote about her heroes Paul Revere and Sybil Ludington and the courageous acts of riding through the town to warn folk about the British. She didn't think she would be doing the same thing after school, chasing the bus to save her brother. To reward her for her bravary her parents raised her allowance. Kid swill be inspired by her perseverance and love for learning about history. McDonald even brings up a good point of not enough woman in history books. ( )

I liked this book. The language was very age appropriate and fun for a child to read. After Judy tries to convince her parents to give her more independence she asks child like questions: "So I can have more freedom now? Like not brushing my hair all the time? And staying up later than Stink?" The book is very child friendly and probably reminds many children about a time where they felt like they deserved more freedom in their house hold. I also enjoyed the characters in this book. Judy's little brother, Stink, is in Judy's business at all times! children can relate Judy and Stink's relationship and sibling feuds with their brothers and sisters! The overall message of this story is to take a stand for what you think you deserve; which in this case is independence. Even if children don't get what they wanted, at least they can say they tried! ( )

I liked this book. The main idea is to give children information about the Declaration of Independence, as well as them learning to become responsible. One reason I liked the book was because Judy speaks as though a real child would. For example, she tells her brother that learning about American history is "way NOT boring" and when her brother started singing, it said she covered her ears and told her parents to "make it stop!" which is just what a child would do if a sibling was bothering them. The other reason I liked this book was because of how the author made it look like Judy Moody wrote directly into the book. There are parts where she and a friend made up their own sayings, so in a child's handwriting it says "don't cry over spilled milk". I think this is a great way to give a children a break from reading the printed text that is on all the pages, and read something that actually looks like a character from the book wrote it. ( )