Happiness According to Humphrey

According to Humphrey #13

by Betty G. Birney

Everyone's favorite classroom pet is unsqueakably thrilled to be in a NEW-NEW-NEW novel to celebrate the Humphrey series’ 20th anniversary!

Room 26 is going to the dogs!

Humphrey knows friends can come in all shapes, sizes, and species, but some big animals—like dogs—can make him NERVOUS-NERVOUS-NERVOUS (remember Clem?!). But then a very gentle dog comes to Longfellow School to help his classmates with reading and he meets another one who can do amazing tricks. There is also a mystery afoot about a lost dog.

Humphrey is hamster-iffic at finding clues and solving mysteries, and he’s eager to lend a paw to find the dog. After all, helping his classmates is his job!

With a fresh voice and an engaging hamster's-eye view of school, families, and treats to hide in a cheek pouch, Betty G. Birney's Humphrey will elicit laughter and a new appreciation for classroom hamsters everywhere.

Genres: Fiction

144 pages, Hardcover

Published May 14, 2024

About the author

From kindergarten through graduation, I attended school in Affton, Missouri, a suburb of St. Louis. Then I graduated from Webster College (now Webster University) in Webster Groves, Missouri. Of course, I majored in English and kept on writing.

After working in advertising in St. Louis, Missouri and in Chicago, Illinois, I eventually moved to Southern California. First, I worked for Disneyland (fun job!) in the advertising department. The monorail whizzed past my window all day long. Then I worked at the Disney Studio in Burbank, where I had another fun job, writing and producing television and radio commercials and theatrical trailers (previews of coming attractions) for everything from re-releases of "Cinderella" and "Fantasia" to "Tex."

When the Disney Channel was started, I became a writer and story editor for WELCOME TO POOH CORNER. Since then, I've written more than 200 episodes of animated and live-action television programs including MADELINE, DOUG, BOBBY'S WORLD, DUMBO'S CIRCUS, THE PUZZLE PLACE, CAMP CANDY, LITTLE MOUSE ON THE PRAIRIE, WHERE'S WALDO, FRAGGLE ROCK and ZOOBILEE ZOO. That's right, I write cartoons! I also wrote a number of award-winning afterschool specials and many interactive CD-ROM programs, including the award-winning "Berenstain Bears on their Own," "Richard Scarry's Busiest Neighborhood Ever," and "The Crayon Factory."

A made-for-television family movie I wrote, MARY CHRISTMAS, starring John Schneider, Cynthia Gibb and Tom Bosley, aired on the PAX network in 2002. It was the highest rated movie in PAX history and has aired each Christmas season since then.

I have been fortunate enough to win a Writer's Guild of America Award and three Humanitas Prizes (as well as two other nominations). In 2002, I won a Daytime Emmy Award for MADELINE, after two previous Emmy nominations. More recently, I received the Christopher Award for FRIENDSHIP ACCORDING TO HUMPHREY, many children's choice awards for THE WORLD ACCORDING TO HUMPHREY and was inducted into the Affton (MO) School District Hall of Fame.

Reviews

[Micah · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is one of the two or three best stories in the series, but I find it annoying that the author brought back the first class instead of the one from the most recent book.

[Mandy · Rating 4 out of 5]

Children's fiction, animal story. This book is interesting because there were several years between the publication of this book and the previous one in the series. I had assumed the series was over, but we were glad to revisit Humphrey and Og. Interestingly, this is not chronologically the next in the series as the classmates in this book had already moved on to the next grade, but it was certainly easy enough to remember these characters from the first part of the original series. This book features a dog that visits with his owner to help the students with reading, and another dog that goes missing from a student's grandmother's home. Humphrey does not have too many home visits in this book, as most of the action takes place at school. The Humphrey series is great for bedtime read alouds.

[Anne · Rating 4 out of 5]

The newest addition to the Humphrey series is just as great as the others!

[Mark Buxton · Rating 4 out of 5]

What worked:
Humphrey is a classroom hamster who makes observations about what happens with the students. The author describes a “normal” elementary classroom so young readers can connect with what’s happening. The classroom becomes a little community and Humphrey’s thoughts keep readers informed about any issues. A wonderful balance is found between the impossibility of students understanding the squeaks of a hamster and Humphrey’s central role among the students. The story is told through Humphrey’s eyes but he’s also able to write small, anonymous messages that he can leave for others to find. Of course, no one in the classroom knows that Humphrey has a journal hidden inside his cage.
The book addresses many different problems that may arise in school classrooms. Some students don’t like reading orally which is a common fear of many young readers. The kids study for spelling tests which Humphrey enjoys taking too. He is worried as the story moves along when the other class pet, a frog named Og, begins to act sick. A major conflict occurs when a student’s grandmother loses her pet dog and the class decides to help find it. All of the problems in the book will be relatable to young readers so they’ll be able to make easy connections to the book.
Throughout the book, the chapters end with Humphrey’s thoughts about happiness based on what he sees in the room. There are lessons about working together, persevering, and sharing feelings with others. Talking to friends can make people happier and make sad times easier to handle. The chapters themselves describe the hamster’s confusion about some things that make kids happy. He doesn’t understand why they get so excited about the new dog that’s helping them read out loud. It has a mouthful of sharp teeth that Humphrey finds frightening.
What didn’t work as well:
Proficient middle-grade readers may not appreciate a less challenging narrative. The text is easy to understand and the characters explain any uncommon vocabulary or concepts. There aren’t any dramatic twists and most of the student problems are fairly normal. However, kids like animals, and the hamster, frog, and dogs play large parts in the plot.
The final verdict:
This book is best suited for middle-elementary students. Humphrey is an adorable main character as the author artfully blends the worlds of reality and imagination. This book can be enjoyed by any young reader and I recommend you give it a shot.

[Mia · Rating 5 out of 5]

A fantastic book! Humphrey is a hamster that is smart and always ready to help. He comes out in the night to help, and get back to his cage when it’s morning, looking like he’d never been outside. Humphrey is my favorite animal character, he is smart, helpful and happy. He follows the students with the tests and read books. I love this series!

[Marie Angus · Rating 4 out of 5]

Haven't found a Humphrey book I don't like. They're so fun and teach so many good things.

I usually listen to the audiobooks. Although this reader was very good, it was hard to get used to because it's not the reader who read the others.

[Jennifer Kayes · Rating 5 out of 5]

Cute little story of a hamster named Humphrey who lives in the classroom. Had little adventures every day.

[Belle · Rating 2 out of 5]

It was ok I was expecting more.