I’m a Poet and I Know It!

My Weird School Special #12

by Dan Gutman, Jim Paillot (illustrator)

With more than 35 million books sold, the My Weird School series really gets kids reading! A.J. must figure out how to write the best poem to win a contest in this My Weird School Special from New York Times bestselling author Dan Gutman and veteran illustrator Jim Paillot.

To celebrate National Poetry Month, Ella Mentry School will have a schoolwide poem-writing contest, and all the students have to enter. There’s just one A.J. has no time for rhymes!

But when an amazing secret prize is revealed, will A.J. be inspired to write a winning poem? And can he beat Little Miss Know-It-All Andrea—the best poet in school?

Dan Gutman’s signature kid-friendly sense of humor and Jim Paillot’s fun illustrations are perfectly blended in this weird poetry special you won’t want to miss—featuring bonus poetry writing tips from A.J. and Andrea, games, puzzles, and more!

Genres: Childrens

144 pages, Paperback

Published March 4, 2025

About the author

The author of over 80 books in a little over a decade of writing, Dan Gutman has written on topics from computers to baseball. Beginning his freelance career as a nonfiction author dealing mostly with sports for adults and young readers, Gutman has concentrated on juvenile fiction since 1995. His most popular titles include the time-travel sports book Honus and Me and its sequels, and a clutch of baseball books, including The Green Monster from Left Field. From hopeful and very youthful presidential candidates to stunt men, nothing is off limits in Gutman's fertile imagination. As he noted on his author Web site, since writing his first novel, They Came from Centerfield, in 1994, he has been hooked on fiction. "It was fun to write, kids loved it, and I discovered how incredibly rewarding it is to take a blank page and turn it into a WORLD."

Gutman was born in New York City in 1955, but moved to Newark, New Jersey the following year and spent his youth there.

Reviews

[Kay · Rating 5 out of 5]

It's a fun and humorous book where A.J. has his heart set on a poetry competition prize at his school, but his heart and interest are not in poetry. He must compete with a clever, enthusiastic, and studious classmate who excels at everything—and knows it. An entertaining poetry rap battle ensues. There's even a chapter where the characters show readers how to write their own poems.

[Endrit Nikqi · Rating 5 out of 5]

Note: I received a DRC from Edelweiss in exchange for a review.

“With more than 35 million books sold, the My Weird School series really gets kids reading! A.J. must figure out how to write the best poem to win a contest in this My Weird School Special from New York Times bestselling author Dan Gutman and veteran illustrator Jim Paillot.

To celebrate National Poetry Month, Ella Mentry School will have a schoolwide poem-writing contest, and all the students have to enter. There’s just one A.J. has no time for rhymes!

But when an amazing secret prize is revealed, will A.J. be inspired to write a winning poem? And can he beat Little Miss Know-It-All Andrea—the best poet in school?

Dan Gutman’s signature kid-friendly sense of humor and Jim Paillot’s fun illustrations are perfectly blended in this weird poetry special you won’t want to miss—featuring bonus poetry writing tips from A.J. and Andrea, games, puzzles, and more!”

I’ve always had a soft spot in my heart for the “My Weird School” series, because it led me to read more and more as a child. Reading these books as a kid was so much fun, and after checking out the latest installment, I’m very glad that the series is just as good as it was back then.

The story was very fun and charming, just like the rest of the “My Weird School” series. The jokes are charming and funny, and the illustrations by Jim Paillot are fantastic, like always. This book was a nice and quick fun read. The newest installment of the “My Weird School Special” series is very entertaining and fun for elementary school children.
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

[Elisabeth Lovelace · Rating 3 out of 5]

It was funny and had lots of rhymes.