Tem Um Fantasma Na Minha Calça

Dear Dumb Diary #2

by Jim Benton

A vida de Jamie Kelly não é moleza. E, para piorar, tudo começa a dar ainda mais errado de uma hora para outra! Isabella, é claro, tem uma teoria: a culpa é da superfantástica e glamorosa calça jeans que Jamie ganhou da mãe. Mas Jamie não sabe se vai sacrificar seu estilo por causa de um ou outro probleminha... mesmo que ela tenha que dividir a mesa com (argh!) Mário Pinsetti!

Genres: Childrens, Middle Grade, Fiction, Humor, Realistic Fiction, Comedy, Contemporary

144 pages, Paperback

First published October 1, 2004

About the author

Benton began his career in a custom design t-shirt shop where he started designing his own characters. At the same time, Jim did illustrations and artwork for magazines and newspapers. People magazine named him "the most visible cartoonist in America" .

Benton also created greeting cards and worked in the magazine and publishing industry. In 1998, his SpyDogs characters became an animated series, The Secret Files of the Spy Dogs, that aired on Fox Kids. Licensing his own creations brought them widespread attention on products, such as It's Happy Bunny, The Misters, Just Jimmy and more.

Benton currently lives in Michigan, where he operates out of his own studio.

Reviews

[Darla · Rating 4 out of 5]

Much of the drama in this second Dear Dumb Diary centers around Jamie's jeans. She is certain the holes that appear are from her vindictive beagle Stinker. And she keeps getting new partners in Chemistry. All the familiar kids are back in the mix: best friend Isabella, perfect Angeline, cutie-pie Chip, handsome Hudson, smarty Sally, and Margaret the Gerd (see Isabella's Terms for Girls). Jamie's drawings are hilarious and her pants predicament has an unexpected resolution. I am definitely up for reading #3: "Am I the Princess or the Frog."

[Traci · Rating 5 out of 5]

I'm going to review the series as a whole because there are too many books to do each one. At a mere 100+ pages or so, that would be a lot of writing. But I didn't want to omit telling you about these fabulous books...

They came in to my branch about 2 weeks ago on a Friday afternoon. I had never heard of the "dear dumb diary" series, and I didn't know who Jim Benton was, either (or so I thought). The first thing I noticed were the covers - bright, flaming fluorescent colors: hot pink, neon green, fire engine red, etc. Extremely eye-catching, enough that I really started to look at them. Then the titles caught me: "Never Do Anything, EVER", "My Pants are Haunted!", "It's Not My Fault I Know Everything", etc. Very cute, a bit snarky, and highly intriguing. Then I read the author's bio - and lo and behold, this is the Happy Bunny Guy!!!


Well, that cinched it. I checked out every single title (all except #9, which is somehow not assigned to my branch) and took them home. I devoured the first three on Saturday, read another 3 or so Sunday, two on Monday, and finished the last one Tuesday morning. Yes, they are that good!

The reading level is appropriate for third thru fifth grade, I think. (remember, I'm not a professional here, just giving my humble opinion). There are plenty of illustrations to keep those not overly ready for "text only" books, and those of us that enjoy a good, humorous picture, too. The books are short, but not super-short, which makes them perfect for kids looking for "chapter books".

The best thing though is the writing. Finally, smart, well-developed books for kids! Don't look for the repetition of "Lemony Snicket" here, nor the outright meanness of the "Wimpy Kid". These are smart, funny works by Benton, and god love him, there's actual character development here! None of the kids is purely good, nor purely evil, and the relationships between the main characters changes a bit in each book. Childhood fears are explored, doing the "right" thing, etc, so that each title has a small morality tale to it; Benton wisely does not hit the reader over the head with each "lesson".

Jamie is smart and witty; her best friend Isabella reminds me of a pit bull drawn like Marcie from the Peanuts cartoon; Angeline is soooooooo pretty and "good" (but not really); the boys are - well - boys. The adults aren't stupid and clueless, and neither are the teachers. It was such a pleasure to read books for the grade school reader that I would actually recommend, and I can't wait for Benton to put out the twelfth in the series, "Me! (Just Like You, Only Better)"

[Becca · Rating 2 out of 5]

Favorite line: "You are just one rampaging elephant away from marrying the handsomest boy in school."

And if it wasn't for the fact that the rampaging elephant had to make said boy ugly by squishing his face so that he could be low enough on the popularity scale to date Jamie, it would have been laugh-out-loud-worthy. I know I shouldn't be all worried about the book's "message" (because I really do get that it's a goofy, make-fun-of-yourself type read), but I really can't stand Jamie's obsession with being beautiful, popular, and normal.

Because those things tend to be overrated anyway.

[Rummana · Rating 5 out of 5]

Jamie is a girl that is just like any other teenager. Her friend is Isabella and she is a strong person. Their enemy is Angeline, who is the most popular girl in their school. They envy her because she acts like she is perfect: her clothes are pretty, her hair flows just perfectly, and she looks beautiful.
Recently Jamie hasn't been giving her dog table scraps. So in return her dog ate through her pants. She didn't have many jeans left and she hasn't been that good the next few days so her other pants are also ripped. While Jamie is having a pant problem, Isabella is collecting those paper perfumes to create an ultra perfume scent.
But one day in science class, the place where she keeps her perfume collection, she couldn't find the perfume jar. Also Jamie and Isabella decided to help out a really lame girl named Margret. They went to the mall and bought Margret clothes and jewelery. Jamie's mom also bought Jamie a really popular pant that was the perfect shade of blue. But what it turned out to be was that when Isabella and her helped out Margret, the next day, Margret became popular. That threw off the balance of the popular list. Many bad things happened and Isabella assumes that all this happened because of the pants that her mom bought! this is just the beginning of the book and if you believe that the book sounds interesting, then read the book.

Just as the book is interesting, so is the author. Jim Benton created a book that is just like Diary Of A Wimpy Kid. It has a similar structure and a similar topic, school. But this book is really interesting and fun. It shows these small adventures that three girls have and it can get crazy at some times when Isabella gets into a fight. He made each character have their own personality that is maintained through each book.

I gave this book five stars because I really enjoyed this book and had a fun time reading it. It focused on one theme and really used that theme to tell an amazing story. It also had the envious and happy feelings that a regular girl has. This book was wel put together and it connects together. Also it has many surprises and twists at the end and always has a happy ending.

[Lauren Tappenden · Rating 4 out of 5]

Jamie Kelly is an average middle school student who lets us all have a look into her "dumb diary" however not before warning us that we may get get caught by her "surveillance sting". She prides herself on hers and best friend Isabella's mid popularity, although beware Jamie's sharp tongue if you happen to be a pretty popular girl named Angelina.

In the second book of the series we see Jamie's life turned upside down as Isabella claims Jamie's new jeans are haunted. It seems the jeans have caused Margaret ( a Gerd or better known as a girl nerd) to become extremely popular, Sally (the cleverest girl in school) to become the object of affection of Hudson Rivers (only the 8th cutest boy in school and Jamie's crush)and Jamie and Isabella's popularity to disparate even more so. However is it possible that the jeans caused all of these mishaps or was it someone else working away?

Dear dumb diary is a wonderful insight into the lives and minds of school girls today. Through Jamie's diary we discover an overall entertaining story where her descriptions and stories are sometimes wicked or funny but mostly just wickedly funny.

Jamie has a real quirky take on things which is shown through her descriptions on anything that doesn't go her way but also the terrific illustrations. The diary is complete with Jamie's own drawings of how she perceives the situation at hand which really allows the readers to see into her imagination as well as explore her weird concepts (Angeline bathing in money with hot and cold jewels) their selves.

By having the story wrote in diary form allows the reader to follow Jamie's life from day to day. It also shows just how quickly life can change for the youth of today.

This book would appeal to children aged 8 and over. It explores a different way for children to write their own stories by using a diary format, as well as keep them entertained by Jamie's witty stories and allow them to identify with a book they may not have been able to before.

[scarlett victoria]

idc this is still funny!!!

[Cheyenne Lopez · Rating 5 out of 5]

Jammie is our main character in the book Dear Dumb Diary My pants are Haunted. Jamie “Hates” her dog stinker. Her best friend is isabella and her worst enemy is this girl named Angeline. She is very jealous of Angeline. Jaminnes crush is Hudson Rivers he is the 8 th cutest boy in her grade. In this series of books her best friend isabella thinks her pants are haunted and that it's not her who made her less popular it was the pants and it's not her that accidentally farted in front of hudson rivers it was the pants is Issabella right? Are the pants hunted? Who is the one putting holes in her jeans? You will have to read to find out.

I recommend this book to people who like the diary kind of books like Diary of a Wimpy Kid and Dork Diaries(one of my all time favorite series).I also recommend this to younger kids starting at the age of 8 I totally think should read this book or this series. Its an excellent book and I loved it. My favorite part was the reveal of who made the holes in the jeans, who the bad guy was, and learning that the pants may may not have been hunted.

[Amy · Rating 1 out of 5]

The first book in this series was full of kid-humor. I understood why some parents objected, but I thought it was funny.

This second book, however, was everything I want my daughter to avoid: mean-spirited nature and focus on weight and appearances. What was funny in the first book seemed cruel in the second.

[Книжни Криле · Rating 3 out of 5]

Понякога децата имат нужда от четиво, което слиза на тяхното ниво, говори за темите, които ги вълнуват и по начин, който ги забавлява и ги кара да откриват хумора в собствените си неволи. А какъв по-лесен начин за това от четенето за нечии чужди неволи? А ако те са разказани направо от потърпевшия, описани в личен дневник, то разказите добиват едва ли не достоверността на исторически документ за нечий горчив опит от началното училище! Гарнирайте всичко това с малко комикси и несериозни, смешни картинки, сякаш взети от полето на нечия тетрадка, и имате печеливша комбинация! Прочетете реювота но "Книжни Криле":

https://knijnikrile.wordpress.com/201...

[max theodore]

Isabella's sinus problem is still bothering her. She can't smell anything. She says her sinuses are bad enough that she could park in handicapped spaces if she were old enough to drive. Since she isn't, she says that the law allows her to just stand in them.

the unfortunate thing about dear dumb diary is that its appearance-based humor is extremely meanspirited and fatphobic. the other unfortunate thing about dear dumb diary is that the rest of the humor is genuinely the funniest material ever written about middle school. jamie gay tracker: when jamie gets paired for a project with an unpopular girl, the local annoying kid makes kissy noises, which jamie then says is sometimes "enough to legally marry two people together." which wouldn't be so significant if jamie didn't steal her rival's hair out of a trash can in book one just to smell it

[Matthew · Rating 3 out of 5]

I read this to keep up with my niece who has recently begun devouring these books. It's definitely a nice parallel to Wimpy Kid. The humor is about the same. This is more heavily illustrated, but the flawed, slightly immoral main character is sort of a female version of Greg Heffley. This certainly isn't out to win awards, but it is a highly approachable series that even a reluctant reader could get caught up in.

[Della Tingle · Rating 3 out of 5]

I read the first book in this series and was really disappointed. As a teacher and librarian, I like to read a lot of children’s lit. I decided to give this series another chance with this book, but meh…not for me. If you are looking for a diary-type book, I suggest the Dork Diaries and the Diary of a Wimpy Kid series. They are both so much better than this Dear Dumb Diary series. I won’t bother reading any more of these.

[Isabella · Rating 3 out of 5]

it was ok

[Ava · Rating 5 out of 5]

I really liked the part where Jamie Kelly thought her pants were haunted. That part was really funny.

[Monika · Rating 5 out of 5]

Na tejto knihe milujem ten sarkastický humor. Musím sa priznať, že vyjadrovanie Jamie mi je veľmi podobné. Asi preto ma tieto knihy tak bavia..

[Katarina · Rating 5 out of 5]

this book is so funny and epic i love it

[Sabina · Rating 4 out of 5]

Lot less fat shaming jokes so that’s much appreciated!
I love how silly the book is. I also appreciate how the reader can see that Angeline is not the bad person Jamie makes out her to be, but simply her jealousy is clouding her judgement. She hasn’t come to that realization of course, but it’s definitely something many middle school girls go through.
I also love the love-hate relationship Jamie has with her beagle, Stinker. Every time she brings him up I die laughing.

[Emily · Rating 4 out of 5]

Am I reading these because I’m 12 books behind on my reading challenge? Yes. But that doesn’t make it any less of a fun read.

[Laura Maxwell · Rating 5 out of 5]

Love this series. So cute and helping me reach my yearly goal quicker. Also, it's like being in grade school/jr.high all over again.

[Emily Adams]

This book was VERY funny.

[Amanda · Rating 4 out of 5]

Take that, Sisterhood of the Travelling Pants. My kids didn’t get the reference, but I did, and we all laughed all the way through the book.

[Karen · Rating 3 out of 5]

Being an adult and all, books like this are not written for me. So it’s a bit unfair for me to review them. Oh well, reviewing anyway! This book was mildly amusing. As a tween girl I probably would have found it very amusing. But, being an adult, I was a little put off by the emphasis on stereotypical girly things. Just didn’t really relate to that (but I am female, unlike the author, which I was surprised to see.) Anyway, this is sort of a girl version of the Diary of a Wimpy Kid series. Although I would have to say that this series is a step above. This book actually has a real storyline, something rare (nonexistent?) in the DOAWK series. And there were a couple of things that actually made me laugh. Not planning to read more of these, but it was an okay way to spend a couple of hours.

[Maura DeJaynes · Rating 1 out of 5]

A lot of negativity towards others. The main character dislikes a girl because she is pretty. I see these were written most likely in the vein of Diary of a Wimpy Kid, though it falls much much shorter than that series. In the Wimpy Kid books, Roderick is trying to figure out how he relates to the world and deals with things. In this series, she is assuming everything about the other kids and most all of it is negative. I read this book because my niece reads them and I wanted to know why. Not sure I found the answer to that. Now to get her to read Trumpet of the Swan!!

[Katt Hansen · Rating 3 out of 5]

Three stars just for the title!

Seriously, this was a fun book, quick to read, with a lot of humor. The belief that jeans are haunted was silly and yet sincere. The diary format is fun to read, and makes this book not too threatening for someone who's struggling with reading to pick up. The series is worth pursuing if you have a child with reading issues that you just want to see crack open a book.

[Manila · Rating 3 out of 5]

Could be better, but still better :-)

Overall, had fun to read but somehow I couldn't get all the characters, and end of the day, I found them kind of same.Still, It made my tired eyes :v

p.s 1: some moments made me nostalgic, I need to sleep now -_-
p.s 2: I didn't hate Angeline that much though -_- still, Jammie rocks.
p.s 3: Of course I am just one rampaging elephant away from marrying the most handsome boy in school.:v :v :v

[Mariana · Rating 5 out of 5]

If you have little girls, this is a GREAT book. My daughter was reading this book and was laughing so much I wanted to read as well. This is so funny and endearing. Lili and I formed our own "book club" and this series was our first for discussion. So many fun things in this series to enjoy; highly recommended for girls (and their moms).

[Sarah · Rating 4 out of 5]

I found this series very funny. This is a read alike for the Diary of a Wimpy Kid, but more for girls (I also liked it more, and thought the girl Jamie Kelly came off as funny instead of a jerk Greg Huffley leans towards in the Wimpy Kid series). It's realistic of the way kids at that age think, and is shown through laugh out loud diary entries. Good for 3rd or 4th grade.

[Suzi · Rating 3 out of 5]

I read this book just to get a taste for the series. The author uses some good humor. The pictures are amusing. The exaggeration of everything in the story could quite easily hold the attention of 4th-9th graders. It's definitely most enjoyable for a kid who can laugh at the humor but is still young enough that popularity and crushes are the order of the day...every day.

[Mariana · Rating 4 out of 5]

I used to LOVE these books when I was in 8th grade. Recently found one at a thrift shop and got it ... Still makes me laugh out loud. I love this series. It kind of reminds me of the Diary of a Wimpy Kid series, which I also love. Both are short, funny, and made for middle schoolers, but I still love them.

[Mykenzy Davis · Rating 5 out of 5]

I love ratting books before I read them because all of my books are AWE-SOME!!!!!!!!!!!! I've never ratted a book before I've read it and it's been a bad one. I always rate all my books 5 star and believe it or not, they've always deserved it! I have a crazy relationship with books... In a good way!:)