My Life As A Blundering Ballerina

The Incredible Worlds of Wally McDoogle #13

by Bill Myers

"It's way harder being a guy than a girl." "Is not." "Is too." "Is not!" "Is too!"


So begins another madcap McDoogle mishap as Wally agrees to switch places with Wall Street (his best friend even if she is a girl). Teachers, parents, friends, everyone is in on the act as the two try to survive 72 hours in each other's shoes. It's a custom-made Wally catastrophe that includes: exploding Home Ec cookies (apparently Wally used gun powder instead of baking powder), baby-sitting a mob of out-of-control monster babies, and imprisoned 2.2 hours in the bathroom every morning to fix his hair. Last, and by no means least, Wally must replace Wall Street as a star in The Nutcracker ballet!


All in all it becomes one of Wally's greatest misadventures as he finally learns the important lesson of honoring and respecting others.

Genres: Humor, Christian, Christian Fiction, Fiction, Childrens, Young Adult, Middle Grade

116 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1997

About the author

Bill Myers was born into a Christian home, and although as a child he became bored with Christianity, he decided at the University of Washington quote, to "make God my boss." Ironically, at the University his worst subject was writing. He claims to have prayed, and said that he would be able to do anything for God, except write. Even so, he has become a prominent Christian writer, and has a large amount of successful books and films to his credit.

Reviews

[Jerry (Rebel With a Massive Media Library) · Rating 4 out of 5]

Another great Wally McDoogle novel, with plenty of Nickelodeon-style zaniness and a great lesson at the end.

[Bookworm · Rating 3 out of 5]

Christian Middle Grade
Mostly good!

Wally and his girl best friend, Wall Street, argue whether guys or girls have it harder, so they switch places for the day.
Wally endures: having to get up two hours early to fix his hair, skipping breakfast to avoid getting fat, putting gunpowder in cookies in Home Economics class and setting the place on fire, babysitting and leaving the house an entire wreck with hungry kids, and being a ballerina (he does better than trained girl ballerinas).
Wall Street endures: having to NOT do her hair, having TO eat breakfast, flirting with the enemy football team to win, and doing Shop Class.

Mind you! Wall Street is a tomboy who is excellent at science and math.
Yet somehow, Wall Street tries to give up — she can’t handle being a boy because?? Why?? Not sure.

Page 22:
"Where do you think you're going?" she demanded.
"Breakfast.'
"No way."
"What?"
"Wall Street sniff doesn't eat breakfast,"
Francine explained, once again giving her nose a swipe.
"She doesn't?"
Sylvia shook her head. "Nope. Too fat."
"She's not fat."
"You know that, and I know that. But remen-ber how you guys always tease her at school? Wall Street the Walrus, isn't that what you call her?'
"But that's just a joke. We always tease you girls about being fat."
"Which is why we're always dieting."
"That stinks," I cried.
"Tell me about it," Sylvia said.
"But I'm starving!"
"We all are, Wally.”

Alternately,
Page 26:
“They made me eat so much breakfast, I’m about ready to explode!”

Page 43:
"What's going on?" I shouted.
"It's the Governor," she cried in excitement.
"The Governor?"
"That's right. She's running for president, and she thinks your bet with Wall Street is the perfect campaign issue.'
"The what?"
"She's going to use you as an example of how all men are male chauvinistic slobs and how they are actually inferior to women."

Page 45:
"Where is he?" Governor Makeasplash cried, as she stepped off the helicopter. She began scanning the crowd. "Where is that woman-hating, sexist, Wally McBigot?"

Page 49:
"How are you handling this competition? Are you about ready to give up?"
"I don't know," she sighed. "Maybe. Wally and I were just talking, and maybe it's time
"Are you admitting defeat?" one of the reporters shouted. "Are you agreeing that boys are superior to girls?"
"I didn't say that," she corrected. "I don't believe boys are superior, but-"
"Did you hear that, Wally?" another reporter shouted. "She doesn't believe you guys are supe-rior? Are you going to let her get away with that?"
"Well, no. I mean yes," I stammered. "I mean of course not."
"So you believe that girls are inferior?"
things-"
"In some things... Yeah, I suppose, but in other
"Did you hear that?" they spun back to Wall Street. "Are you going to take that? Are you really going to give up and admit boys are better?"

And at the end, Wall Street admits “Boys are Superior to Girls”.
Of course, then several pages later, Wally admits “Girls are better than boys.”
Then clarifies that Boys and Girls are both equal, just different.

[cindy harty · Rating 5 out of 5]

Hysterical! Even for an adult.

[Laura Ford · Rating 4 out of 5]

This text is a great for children as it contains humour, misadventure and friendship. It is told in the view of Wally, a young boy. Wally and his best friend Wall Street - a girl - and argue about if it is harder to be a boy or a girl. Finally, their teacher Ms Finglestooper suggests they trade places for 72 hours, that is, Wall will act like a girl and Wall Street will act like a boy. It ranges from baking mishaps, (using gun powder and creating exploding cookies), Wall being the ballerina in a major play, and even getting the Governor involved in their progress. The text all ends well, except for some major embarrassment on Wall's part being seen in a tutu. It all ends well, an expected ending for a text such as this; the two are still friends and realise being a boy or a girl both come involve differing circumstances, difficulties and worries.

The text is a short novel, only just over 100 pages long. The text is colloquial chat between the characters, yet also involves a few larger words and phrases to deepen the texts meaning and humorous events.

I think this text is quite relatable to children as the main characters are children themselves in a simple setting, everyday school life. Every child always has qualms and debate over the opposite sex; it's always seen as boys vs girls in a form of competition. So, how this story begins with the debate over whether it's harder to be a boy or girl, each child has experienced that debate with another, whether it is a sibling or a friend. It is a funny text, showing Wally's embarrassment through his tasks, and children always like to read a humorous text rather than a serious one.

I would recommend this text to readers around the ages of 8-10, depending on their independent reading level and ability. I would also find it is a good text to read aloud to the class, as there is some parts in the text - such as the exploding cookies - that would benefit from having it read aloud and with extra vivaciousness and liveliness put into the scene.

[Hannah Davis · Rating 4 out of 5]

As always, this was a funny and delightful book that had a good message at the end.