Horrible Harry and the Green Slime

Horrible Harry #2

by Suzy Kline, Frank Remkiewicz

Follows the school activities of second-graders, Harry and Doug, as they participate in a secret mission to celebrate "Charlotte's Web," learn how to make green slime, and put on a skit warning about the dangers of smoking.

Genres: Childrens, Chapter Books, Fiction, Realistic Fiction, Contemporary, Middle Grade, Juvenile

64 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 1989

About the author

Suzy Kline, nee Weaver, was an elementary school teacher for 25 years and most of her books are based on the experiences she had while teaching. Suzy and Rufus got married and had two daughters named Jennifer and Emily. Now, more than 24 years after writing her first book, Suzy has traveled all over the United States helping children learn how to enjoy reading and writing.

Reviews

[Mya · Rating 2 out of 5]

This book was all over the place and I am not sure how to feel about it.

[Sarah Sammis · Rating 3 out of 5]

Although my brother would have been young enough to read the Horrible Harry series when they were new, I don't remember him reading them. I was too old for them at the time and was going through my "no kids books!" phase.

That being said, I know nothing about the Horrible Harry series except for having heard the titles rattled off by parents who are torn between being glad their kids are reading and worried about what they are reading. Horrible Harry and the Green Slime is a chapter book that covers a number of Harry's "horrible" ideas that end up making for an interesting day at school.

The green slime ends up being a typical kitchen science experiment combing water, corn starch and green food coloring. It's really not that horrible.

There is a Charlotte's Web inspired decoration of the school. Harry decides his class should design spider webs to hang every where. Again at first the idea is frowned upon but when it's tied to a book everyone gets behind the project, even the grumpy principal.

The book reminds me most of the more recent Junie B. Jones, First Grader except that Harry is a grade or two ahead of Junie B. They share a similar odd ball approach to school, although Harry seems more mature for his age than Junie B. does at her worst. I think I have another Horrible Harry book somewhere in my collection, although how I got them, I'm not sure. I think I'll give it a read when I find it.

[Kaotic · Rating 3 out of 5]

I was going through some old kids books I had burried in a box in my room and decided to read through them again.

Horrible Harry was one of the series I collected when I was young, a fun series about a young boy with an overactive imagination.

There are several short stories in each book. They're very basic stories and it's not hard to follow. Although it is nice to see a character whose just come to the United States and is still trying to speak English, especially in such a young reading level.

[Partridge Public]

Kline, Suzy

[Sharon · Rating 1 out of 5]

Nice story for young readers.

[Andrew J · Rating 2 out of 5]

I'm guessing that each book is named after one of the stories in the book. "...and the Green Slime," for example, comes from the fourth and final story in this book. The first story ("Secret Pals") is about an idea Miss Mackle has. She wants everyone to have a secret pal. They draw small pieces of paper from a glass apple. It's to teach them the importance of friendship and getting to know people. The second story ("The Deadly Skit") has the Principal, Mr. Cardini, coming into the room with a cigarette that he found somewhere in the school. He lets them know that cigarettes are bad for your health and make your life shorter (although completely leaves out the part where you can undo the damage and risks to your health by quitting, but obviously you don't want to get kids thinking they can start as long as they quit). They all are to do little skits to show how cigarettes are bad for you. In the third story ("Invasion of the Cobwebs"), they finish reading "Charlotte's Web" (or rather, Miss Mackle reads it to them) and Harry has the idea to put replicas of Charlotte's webs around the school. Finally, we come to the fourth story ("Demonstrations"), in which Mrs. Mackle assigns them a demonstration where they will show the class how they do something. Somehow, Doug ends up getting the Principal to be his volunteer for spiking hair. Harry's is showing them how he makes 'Green Slime."

The only negative thing I can really say about book 2 is that I wasn't particularly thrilled with how 2 stories in this book involved death. 2 stars.

[Frances · Rating 3 out of 5]

Horrible Harry and the Green Slime has four chapters about Harry’s class at school. In Secret Pals, the Deadly Skit, Invasion of the Cobwebs, and Demonstrations, the main characters Harry, Doug, Song Lee, and the principal Mr. Cardini have fun in Miss Mackle’s classroom. Here’s what the fourth grade Reading Club had to say.
Guillermo: I give it 2 and a half stars because I thought they would put more information in each chapter. It was funny.
Fernanda: I also give it 2 and a half stars because it would be better if all the chapters had the same story. I liked how the characters interacted.
Natalia: I also give it 2 and a half stars. I would give it more chapters. I liked that it was cool.
Andres: I give it one and a half stars. I think that it sound have more action. I liked that it was funny.
The teacher's perspective: I give it three stars, because my students had fun reading it and acting out the scenes.
We recommend this book for students in first or second grade. We think they will like the slime and spiders, and it will be on their level. For fourth graders, we think you should read Diary of a Wimpy Kid, Amulet, or Babysitter’s Club instead.

[John · Rating 4 out of 5]

These stories worked great as an audiobook for my almost four year-old. Nice, short stories, but with some good comedy and interesting plots. Perfect for a road trip. You have to be careful with the kid audiobooks - you don't want something that has no plot and is over in five minutes, and you don't want something that is super long and complicated. This is a nice happy medium. We actually got several Horrible Harry collections for a four hour car ride, and Freddy was perfectly content with them.

[Pooja Banga · Rating 4 out of 5]

It was an awesome read atleast for me.
Writing was extremely easy and can be easily completed in just 10-20minutes.
I loved when teacher began reading Charlotte's Web story .I have read that story before so I was happy that something good came in .
It is recommended for all.
If you are in a bad mood you should definitely read this ..
Some spoilers-Harry leads a mission to place cobwebs all over school, shows the class how to make green slime, and stages a ?deadly skit? that has everyone on the edge of their seats.

[Jennifer (JenIsNotaBookSnob) · Rating 2 out of 5]

Finished this one a long time ago, but, it got lost in my shelf and I forgot to mark it.

I was so relieved that my daughter didn't really enjoy it. Horrible Harry is a bit too horrible for both of our tastes and we usually like horrible.

This reminded me of the 80's movie bullies, the sort that would likely be kicked out of school immediately now. I'm sort of surprised that people still check these out from the library. Horrible Harry is just a bit too much over the top, just a bit too unpleasant to be enjoyed.

[Villain E · Rating 3 out of 5]

Hairy doesn't seem to horrible in this one. In the first chapter, the kids have secret pals in class. Doug won't tell Harry who his is and Harry gets petty. In the second chapter, the kids put on a play where they pretend to die. In the third chapter, the kids do a class project based on Charlotte's Web. (It helps if the reader is familiar with the book.) In the final chapter, Doug does a demonstration of how to spike your hair and Harry does a presentation on how to create green slime. It is not gross or dramatic.

[Danielle · Rating 3 out of 5]

I just read Melissa by Alex Gino, which also used Charlotte’s Web as a part of the story - I love that Horrible Harry and Melissa are from two different generations of readers, but that Charlotte's Web's impact lives on.

[Anthony · Rating 3 out of 5]

The further adventures of Horrible Harry as told by his friend Doug. He shares the activities at South School as they occur in room 2B. A skit about the dangers of smoking, a secret pal exercise, a celebration of a favorite book character, and how to make green slime. Life is never boring when Horrible Harry is around.

[Lisa Brown · Rating 3 out of 5]

Another adventure with Doug and his best friend, Harry, who is always doing "horrible" things. In this installment, it finds the boys doing special projects to present to their class, including making green slime. Super cute and fun, and perfect to read to my six year old son.

[Madison · Rating 5 out of 5]

Harry is a second grader and he keeps the class laughing but not the teachers. In this book there are four different pranks that Harry pulls on his teachers and the school. From green slime, a "deadly skit", cobwebs, and other class clown things that keeps everyone laughing and intertained.

[Mary · Rating 4 out of 5]

I loved the Horrible Harry series. I read all the ones my teacher had in 7th grade. The audio on CloudLibrary wasn’t great but I love the spontaneity of their teacher. Reminded me of a few lessons with my students and so great to hear a supportive principal. It’s so rare.

[Joy Keil · Rating 5 out of 5]

Part of a large series of fun stories following the antics of Doug, Harry and their friends in Room 2B. Excellent to listen to (available on Hoopla), and usually around 30-45 min, these are enjoyable for kids and adults alike. I highly recommend for your next car ride!

[Megan · Rating 4 out of 5]

Not bad for the age range. The chapter on the anti-cigarettes campaign skits was really cute. Read before donating to a little outdoor library.

[Sarah · Rating 3 out of 5]

My son gave it two thumbs up even if he found the title to not fit with the book. A good read for a young elementary student. Though not something I would choose to read again.

[Kiera · Rating 2 out of 5]

It was Ok...But there is a lot of celebrations.

[Brett W · Rating 4 out of 5]

Eva liked it, especially when Harry made slime in front of the class and that they read Charlotte’s Web.

[Kacie · Rating 1 out of 5]

All over the place! From cigarettes to making slime! What was the point?

[Ace Kirk · Rating 5 out of 5]

I’ve always found Horrible Harry funny. He sometimes gets in trouble. He always makes me laugh no matter what he does and he’s always a daredevil. Ace 7 years old

[Jeannie · Rating 5 out of 5]

My grandchildren love these books as much as my children did. They beg me to read the next chapter!

[Sammy Hassan · Rating 1 out of 5]

What a joke, most racist thing I’ve read in years.

[Tattu · Rating 4 out of 5]

Es muy divertido, me hizo reír bastante. La historia de las telarañas fue mi favorita.

[Stacie Ellis · Rating 4 out of 5]

Do you need a Smile? Horrible Harry will put one on your face. I enjoyed reading the adventures of Horrible Harry and his classmates. If you need to smile this is a great option.

[Christine Ricci · Rating 3 out of 5]

Horrible Harry and the Green Slime is one of many books Suzy Kline wrote about Harry and his best friend, Doug. Kline entwines relatability with fun plots to both entertain and educate children through bite-sized chunks. Conceptually, this short story is perfect for the intended age group. The topics Kline brings up, friendship and working as a team for example, are concepts familiar to children and thus relatable. How Harry and Doug react to these situations is typical of boys in their age group. Harry’s excitement over green slime is not out of the ordinary for boys his age. The story’s topics are fun. Making slime, spiking the principal’s hair, and Harry’s idea for a deadly skit all go over well with the class, as they probably would with the child reader. They are fun, youthful, and vibrant events. These events are cleanly dispersed throughout the short story in chapters. This chunking makes it easy for children to parse the story and work their way up to longer chapter books. Additionally, Kline interweaves allusions and science references (to Charlotte’s Web and visualizing blood under a microscope) slowly integrates a broader knowledge base into children. Through relatable concepts, fun plots, and manageable size makes Horrible Harry and the Green Slime a good read for the intended second grade and older audience.

[Marika Gillis · Rating 2 out of 5]

I took along a couple of books on CD in the hopes of entertaining the kiddos during a long road trip recently. I started with Horrible Harry and the Green Slime by Suzy Kline which is read by Johnny Heller. I chose this one because it is a short chapter book with lots of pictures and I had a copy for my son to follow along with. Since it is a series, I also hoped that he might take a liking to it and want to try reading more Horrible Harry books after the trip. I know Horrible Harry books are written to have short, simple sentences that are easy to read but I was still disappointed with the way this book was read out loud on the CD. While my son listened dutifully (and even laughed occasionally as he listened), Heller read the book with such a staccato, abrupt voice that I found the story to be slightly jarring and uncomfortable to listen to. The best thing about this book on CD was that it was over in less than an hour. When I asked him about it later, my son did say that he liked the book though so that’s something (and is why I gave the book two stars instead of just one). This review was originally posted on my blog: Get Your Book On

[Dolly · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is another interesting story in the Horrible Harry series by Suzy Kline and Frank Remkiewicz. We've already read a couple of these stories out of order and found them to be funny, short, and entertaining. So we decided to start reading the series from the beginning.

This book features four distinct stories about Harry and his classmates. Each story is short and entertaining and depicts a wide variety of activities in the classroom. I really liked the story featuring Charlotte's Web and the imaginative way that the class pays homage to the classic book.

The books in this series are fun to read aloud and we really enjoyed reading this story together. It was humorous, but also showed realistic scenes of friendship, conflicts, and resolution. We will certainly look for more of the books in this series at our local library.