Who Is Melvin Bubble?

by Nick Bruel

Who is this kid with the funny name? Well, that depends on who you ask. Everybody who knows Melvin--his mom, his dad, his best friend Jimmy, his dog--even Santa Claus, the Tooth Fairy, and the big ugly monster with three eyes who lives in his closet have a different opinion.  This original and riotous picture book has a lot to say--not only about Melvin, but also about perspective, point of view, and a six-and-a-half-year-old's place in the world.

Genres: Picture Books, Childrens, Humor, Biography, Family

32 pages, Hardcover

First published August 8, 2006

About the author

Nick Bruel is the New York Times bestselling author and illustrator of children's books including Bad Kitty, Bad Kitty Gets a Bath, Bad Kitty Meets the Baby, and Boing!, among others. Nick is a freelance illustrator and cartoonist, and during his down time, he collects PEZ dispensers and grows tomatoes in the backyard. He lives in Tarrytown, NY with his wife Carina and their lovely cat Esmerelda.

http://us.macmillan.com/author/nickbruel

Reviews

[Emilye · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a book in which the narrator asks questions of many people and things to find out what "Melvin Bubble" is like. It is a good book to see how a variety of people view the same person in a different light. No two people described Melvin in the same way. This would be useful for working with students when talking about perspectives. This would be a great way to give examples of how the same topic is viewed in a variety of ways because people are not the same. Everyone has their own views and opinions and children need to realize this at a young age. I believe this book will be helpful in teaching children that.

[Michelle · Rating 5 out of 5]

Melvin's parents, teacher, dog, best friend and other characters in his life each weigh in on their opinion of Melvin, giving insight into his complete personality.

Nick Bruel, author of the Bad Kitty/ Poor Puppy series, hits a home run here: this hilarious boook is great for teaching point of view or voice for grades 3-7, and a great read-aloud for all kids 6 and up.

[Luann · Rating 5 out of 5]

Loved this! Very clever and humorous. I can see all sorts of applications for this in the school setting - voice, perspective, concept of self - yet it's also the type of book students would enjoy reading on their own.

[Anthony · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book is an expose with candid interviews from Melvin's dad, mom, his best friend Jimmy, his dog, Santa, his teddy bear, and various other characters on who the real Melvin Bubble is. The book was written after his best friend sent Mr. Bruel, the author of The Bad Kitty Series, a letter requesting that it be written. It is very revealing of who Melvin Bubble really is.

[Amanda · Rating 5 out of 5]

I love this book! It's a funny collection of responses to the question, "Who is Melvin Bubble?" Answered from a variety of perspectives this is a great book to use when teaching point of view in writing.

[Julie · Rating 5 out of 5]

Wouldn't this make a cool writing project? Use the book as an anchor text, then have others add to a child's book!?

[Rani · Rating 4 out of 5]

#SelfImage #Opinions #YoungReaders #PictureBook #BookReview #ChildrensBooks #amreading Everyone see you as an extension of themselves, not the one you are. Deep ideas for Children!

[Jared Luecken · Rating 5 out of 5]

good book

[Natalie · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book is my personal favorite book! I would recommend it for ages 4-8. I remember when I was younger and I checked this book out, while it was it our hands, I read it probably 27 times! I LOVE this book, because it also teaches children what the pictures, and what they are.

[Kelly · Rating 4 out of 5]

The author is trying to find out who Melvin Bubble is so he asks a bunch of people. Fun book.

[Gretchen · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a great book for thinking about character traits and what we learn from other people about what someone says and does. It is interesting to learn what things you pick up as the same and different from the different opinions and how we can appear so different to different audiences. We are all looking for different things. This is also great to show how our background and purpose colors our opinions. This would be a great book for adults as well as students. Think before you speak and think of what you would like to be thought of as.

[Dolly · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is an entertaining biography of a young boy. The narrative shows the perspective of different people (and animals) before finally getting it straight from the horse's (I mean Melvin's) mouth.

The illustrations are cartoonish and humorous and I can see the similar style to Mr. Bruel's work on the Bad Kitty series. We enjoyed reading this book together.

[Mti Librarian · Rating 4 out of 5]

I liked the style of this book. It starts out with a letter from Jimmy to the author, Nick Bruel, asking him to write a book about Jimmy's best friend, Melvin Bubble. Mr. Bruel, being a nice guy, does and interviews parents, friends, pets and more to answer the question Who is Melvin Bubble?

[RachelAnne · Rating 4 out of 5]

Who is Melvin Bubble? Melvin's mom, dad, teacher, etc. each devote a page to answering that question in this delicious picture book. A great introduction to ideas of perspective and voice for grade school (or even older!) students.

[Debrarian]

Author asks Melvin’s parents and friends, as well as his teddy bear, his dog, the monster in his closet, the Tooth Fairy, a talking zebra, and a purportedly magic rock for info on this kid. Good read-aloud for first grade.

[Becky · Rating 4 out of 5]

Very cute, gets kids thinking about voice/tone and author's intent when writing vs. just listening without thought to a story. We'll see how my 2nd grade class's own "Who is?" books turn out...though it's a bit too metacog for most of my caseload kids.

[Kylie · Rating 5 out of 5]

A very funny book by the author of Bad Kitty. Who is Melvin Bubble would be great for teaching point of view to your students!

I recommend this title to readers of all ages who are looking for a laugh.

[Suzanne · Rating 5 out of 5]

I had the pleasure of listening to a live reading by the author himself. An adorable book; will appeal to boys and girls alike. (Keep an eye out for "The Big Book of Robots.")

[Mikaela · Rating 5 out of 5]

My 6 1/2 year old loved this book and thought it quite fun. He's had me read it to him 5-6 times in the last couple weeks.

[babyhippoface · Rating 4 out of 5]

This one is lots of fun to read, plus it has great potential for use in lessons on point of view.

[Julie · Rating 5 out of 5]

Just heard a mom reading this book to her two little boys and they were giggling like crazy. It was adorable! So i found another copy on the shelf, read it, and thought it was great!

[Katie · Rating 5 out of 5]

I loved it. It was super-fun to read aloud. Steve heard me reading it to Faith and was laughing, too:)

[Kathy · Rating 4 out of 5]

Melvin's mom, dad, friend, santa claus and even the tooth fairy tell us about what they think of Melvin.

[Michelle · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a really funny kids book. We loved it!

[Jenette · Rating 5 out of 5]

A very cute and original idea on how to write a children book! It was a breath of fresh air and super fun to read!!

[Jayanne · Rating 5 out of 5]

I laughed so hard that people around the desk demanded that I read the book aloud - so I did.

[Brian · Rating 4 out of 5]

great concept, very fun book. we liked discovering Bad Kitty hidden in this story.

[Marci · Rating 3 out of 5]

Various people in Melvin's life tell who they think Melvin is. The random zebra showing up on the pages was our favorite part of the book.

[Beth · Rating 4 out of 5]

Read this book to my son's first grade class and they loved it. Good silly fun. Also a great book to help kids think about the concept of perspective.

[Laura Komos · Rating 5 out of 5]

I think this will make a great mentor text for young writers! (And they'll enjoy reading everyone's description of Melvin!)