Stink: The Incredible Shrinking Kid

Stink #1

by Megan McDonald, Peter H. Reynolds

In Stink's first solo adventure, his style comes through loud and strong - enhanced by a series of comic strips, drawn by Stink himself, which are sprinkled throughout the book. These very funny, homespun sagas reflect the familiar voice of a kid who pictures himself with super powers to deal with the travails of everyday life - including the occasional teasing of a bossy big sister!

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

112 pages, Kindle Edition

First published January 1, 2005

About the author

"Sometimes I think I am Judy Moody," says Megan McDonald, author of the Judy Moody series, the Stink series, and THE SISTERS CLUB. "I'm certainly moody, like she is. Judy has a strong voice and always speaks up for herself. I like that."

For Megan McDonald, being able to speak up for herself wasn't always easy. She grew up as the youngest of five sisters in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. Her father, an ironworker, was known to his coworkers as "Little Johnny the Storyteller." Every evening at dinner the McDonalds would gather to talk and tell stories, but Megan McDonald was barely able to get a word in edgewise. "I'm told I began to stutter," she says, leading her mother to give her a notebook so she could start "writing things down."


Critically acclaimed, the Judy Moody books have won numerous awards, ranging from a PUBLISHERS WEEKLY Best Book of the Year to an International Reading Association Children's Choice. "Judy has taken on a life of her own," the author notes, with nearly 3 million Judy Moody books in print. Interestingly, the feisty third-grader is highly popular with boys and girls, making for a strong base of fans who are among Megan McDonald's strongest incentives to keep writing, along with "too many ideas and a little chocolate." And now -- by popular demand -- Judy Moody's little brother, Stink, gets his chance to star in his own adventures! Beginning with STINK: THE INCREDIBLE SHRINKING KID, three more stories, and his own encyclopedia, STINK-O-PEDIA, Stink's special style comes through loud and strong -- enhanced by a series of comic strips, drawn by Stink himself, which are sprinkled throughout the first book. About the need for a book all about Stink, Megan McDonald says, "Once, while I was visiting a class full of Judy Moody readers, the kids, many with spiked hair à la Judy's little brother, chanted, 'Stink! Stink! Stink! Stink! Stink!' as I entered the room. In that moment, I knew that Stink had to have a book all his own."


More recently, Megan McDonald has recalled some of her own childhood with the warmth, humor -- and squabbles -- of three spunky sisters in THE SISTERS CLUB.


Megan McDonald and her husband live in Sebastopol, California, with two dogs, two adopted horses, and fifteen wild turkeys that like to hang out on their back porch.

Reviews

[Karen · Rating 4 out of 5]

There are so many great, comical series centered around girl protagonists: , , and my personal favorite, . It's great to finally have one for boys - My six-year old LOVES Stink- we've read them all and now he wants to read all the Judy Moody's. Stink appeals across the ages as well - I have students all the way up through seventh grade who enjoy these books.

[Gordon Elijah · Rating 5 out of 5]

I thought this book was kind of funny and cool. It was a very awesome book because Stink is kind of weird and funny, and so is Stink's sister, Judy Moody. And they're kind of silly and a little bit crazy.

[Rossy · Rating 1 out of 5]

1.5 stars
Judy Moody is a horrible sister! I only enjoyed the cute cartoon adventures Stink draws, and how encouraging his teacher is.

[Jennie · Rating 1 out of 5]

Oooof this was tough! The newt dies in the garbage disposal and I just couldn’t put my kids through that trauma so I made something up on the spot ROUGH

[Lindsay Wallace · Rating 5 out of 5]

I very much enjoyed Megan McDonald's Stink...The Incredible Shrinking Kid. The story followed the trials and tribulations of second-grader, James Moody... also known as "Stinky". Stinky is the shortest kid in room 2D, and to make matters worse, he is apparently SHRINKING! When the class is instructed to write a paper discussing their favorite president on Presidents' Day, Stinky of course chooses James Madison, the fourth, and the shortest president of the United States of America. Stinky's family helps to mend his worries with a special surprise, which leaves him realizing that growing takes time and is a long process... but it WILL happen!
This book includes extremely creative illustrations and funny periodic cartoon strips, done by Peter H. Reynolds, both of which help the reader to understand the text, and get a stronger feel for Stinky's personality and feelings.
This book would best be used in a small group setting, or as a class read aloud. All students would feel a connection to the characters in the story, and would love to follow stinky and his well known sister, Judy Moody on their everyday antics! I would recommend this book to any transitional reader, and any elementary school teacher!

[midnightfaerie · Rating 3 out of 5]

A book my 6 yr old loved, a little old for my preschoolers. A solid reading level 2 book, this reader has a good amount of advanced vocabulary words, but not so long that it discourages a new reader. Used it for his read out loud book, which was perfect. It took about 15 mins for him to read and had just enough new vocabulary words to make it challenging. Also, it was a fun and interesting story he could get into. He liked it so much, he asked for more by this author. Great reading book!

[Louise Buchanan · Rating 5 out of 5]

Graciela has really enjoyed reading this whole series. She whizzes through these and can't wait for the next each time. The only one she won't read is the one about zombies. She described the books in her Bookworm Journal as 'funny and cool'. She is grade 2.

[Jen · Rating 3 out of 5]

2.5

[Laynara · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book was super cute and nostalgic. My son got this given to him and I picked it up seeing it was Judy Moody’s little brother and decided why not read it.

[Jackie · Rating 4 out of 5]

James Moody, aka, Stink, brother to Judy, takes the reader through some hilarious happenings. His shenanigans run the gamut from elation to gruesome. Stink moans and laments that he is not getting any taller and fears he will be stuck at 3 feet eight inches for the rest of his life. But, when his teacher, Mrs. Dempster allows him to take the class pet home for the weekend, he stands just a little bit taller with pride. Then, catastophe strikes involving a garbage disposal...yikes! not a pretty sight. So, to lift his spirits, Stink decides to write an essay about his favorite president (also the shortest president) James Madison. He writes a letter to the governor. He campaigns for James Madison to have a 'president's day' , to be recognized on a state quarter, or at the very least have a song written about him. In the end, his family rallies around him (even his sometimes mean sister, Judy) to lift him up (no pun intended) and sing his praises.

[Renee · Rating 4 out of 5]

Read this with my daughter and we really enjoyed it. Stink is the brother of Judy Moody, and he has his own series. With thinking he is shrinking, and the trouble he had with Newton, the newt from school, Stink is not having a good week. Judy tries to make him feel better with a President's Day party for his favourite president, James Madison. Very fun book, and we enjoyed looking at the comics at the end of each chapter.

[Grace Deuser · Rating 5 out of 5]

I will not apologize for taking a brain break with this book. Really brought back childhood, & the font is HUGE so it’s easy on the eyes & the brain. Cant relate to his struggles though since it’s all about him being short :/

[Khanh · Rating 4 out of 5]

Hehheh, this was cute. I still love these short chapter type books. I intend to read this entire series plus the books about his older sister.

[Stephanie · Rating 4 out of 5]

A funny realistic fiction chapter book that included fun facts throughout and ended with a nice message!

[Mehsi · Rating 4 out of 5]

A brand-new (for me) Stink story! With a lot of shrinking, newts, and presidents!

Imagine my surprise when I visited Library #1 and saw this book! I never expected to see this series there and in English even! So of course I had to bring it with me.

In this book Stink feels like he is shrinking. He is the tiniest in his class, his sister (who is also way older than him, but he seems to forget that) is bigger, and all he wants is to grow, grow and grow! Throughout this book we see him struggle with growing, and shrinking (as he thinks that is what happens).

Plus I could kind of understand his frustration. I am also not the tallest, never been that, so I can imagine the desire to grow (though unlike Stink I can't grow any more). I vaguely can remember that I also wanted to be taller when I was Stink's age. :P

But next to the fact Stink wants to grow up we also have a pet newt (from Newt Hampshire) and all that happens to that little guy (which had me in tears for two reasons, if you read the book you will get which reasons).

And we have presidents, especially one in particular, namely James Madison. Who also wasn't that big, and who shared a name with Stink (Stink's normal name is James). I loved what Stink tried to do and the answer he got back was fun and great. Happy to see them replying to kids.

Of course there is lot of Judy and her antics. In this one she paints her poor brother's hair orange. :P

And like all the other books this one has a bunch of illustrations to make the story even more fun (though I did think that Stink seemed taller than he seemingly was).

All in all, I hope to one day read more about Stink, his adventures, his daily life. Crossing fingers that Library #1 will be getting more of these (but then again they are limiting/shrinking... RIP YA section). I would recommend this book (and of course the Judy Moody series).

Review first posted at https://twirlingbookprincess.com/

[Jennifer Budde · Rating 4 out of 5]

Stink the Incredible Shrinking kid was a very engaging and meaningful read. Megan McDonald created a very intentional story about a boy and his feelings of inadequacy because of his height. She showed the importance of human relationships as this boy went on a journey to find confidence within himself. While I feel that the text was written in a very intentional way that allowed the reader to relate to the characters and feel for them deeply I was more drawn in by the text features. As a first grade teacher going into a new year we are working on building stamina with out young readers. I feel that this text does a great job keeping students engaged through illustrations, captions and aspects of a graphic novel spread throughout. The strongest feature in this book to me was the graphic novel pieces. I found that they offer students an opportunity to stop and reflect on what they are reading. They also help students solidify what they have just read by restate some of the main ideas in a fresh and fun way.

Copyright: 2006
Genre: Fiction

[AllBookedUp · Rating 3 out of 5]

He is Judy Moody's kid brother. His favorite president is James Madison. He is the 4th president and he too is short. He wants to have James Madison be included in hte president's day. Stink's real name is James Moody. He also had a pet newt from school for hte weekend which shedded it's skin. Unfortunately, Judy was trying to help and she dropped the newt into sink and down the drain. She then turned on the garbage disposal. Hence, Newty went to Newt heaven. Teacher wasn't mad and she had the class write the adventures Newt could be having since Newt "escaped".

In this book, Judy measures Stink every night. One particular night, they find he is shorter than the day before. The school nurse deduces that every evening, our body shrinks due to the compression and weight of our body.

[Rykki · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book turned out to be quite a surprise! I was expecting something funny in the vein of Judy Moody. What I got was a book that was funny, cute, and surprisingly educational. Stink is a smart kid! There's factual information in there about newts and James Madison, the 4th president of the United States of America! I think that was honestly my favorite part, as I'm kind of a history buff too. I think my daughter will love that part of the book.

Listening to the way the characters are written they actually sound like real kids, not the kid of idealized kids a lot of authors write. They remind me a lot of my kids, and some of the neighborhood kids too. It really helps the story come to life, not just be your average children's reading.

[Bianca · Rating 1 out of 5]

The only thing redeeming about this book are the little comics that Stink draws. The rest of Stink's interesting ideas are trounced by his rotten sister and it bemoans me to have to explain why she is the way she is to my child. Stink is overshadowed and if I were him I would wish that I were an only child.
If you want to show your child what it is like to A. be in traditional education and B. have a shitty sibling, then this is the book for you. I don't want to read the sequels and I don't even want to consider how terrible the Judy Moody books must be. Judy is the last character I would ever want to waste my time on.

[Ambar Flores · Rating 4 out of 5]

My summary is, one day a kid named stink and he was the shortest in his class and his sister made fun of him and she mesures stink every morning. Then when he went one day to school he got chosen for a rafle for him to take home the class pet a the state mamel a lizerd and stinks big sister judy sees the pet and puts the pet with her toad and she dosent listen yo her brother and acsadently slips into the stink. And she turns on the thing to smash the food and kills the lizerd. I recomend this book to every one this book. I like this book because it has action .

[Drew · Rating 4 out of 5]

Although "Stink" books aren't the easiest for a parent to read to their children, they definitely aren't too bad! My son truly enjoys them, and he enjoys the sketched illustrations to help create the story in his head, as well. As long as my son is smiling, I will keep reading. Stink is a likable character and easy for whom my son to relate.

[Shelli · Rating 4 out of 5]

I love how Megan McDonald slips in a mini history lesson in so many of her books. In this book Stink talks about his hero James Madison. While this was not the entire story line it's my number 1 reason as to why this series is so wonderful for kids. My daughter and I have learned about Elizebeth Blackwell, Paul Revere, Nelliey Bly and even learned about the famous classic Nancy Drew stories.

[J. · Rating 5 out of 5]

Two things I most like is that when his friend changes he name, he simply accepts the new name without protest--he accepts that she has the authority to name herself. I also like that he writes to his governor, and that the governor writes back--he gets involved with politics. The language play is clever, and the illustrations are wonderful. Recommended.

[Brittany · Rating 3 out of 5]

I picked this up today because I am trying to find things for my reluctant and lower-level readers. This may appeal to them, but it won't help them with their need to use mature vocabulary, mature thoughts, etc.

However, if they will enjoy it and keep reading, then that's half the battle and I'm satisfied.

It is a goofy and quick and would be good for kids ages 7-10 (or similar reading level).

[Rory · Rating 5 out of 5]

Austin is loving this series! Great reads for any 7 year old!! He is Judy Moody's little brother.

[Jocelyn Reynoso · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a story about a boy that everyone calls Stink. He thinks he's shrinking because everyone else is getting taller but in the end he also ends up tall.

[Darion Williams · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book is about a boy named Stink who is really short, his friends call him short as well as his sister.I liked this book because it was funny.I recommend this book to people who are short.

[Beka · Rating 4 out of 5]

We loved this book

My favorite part was when he pushed the monster into the super duper shrinking clothes dryer. We laughed and laughed!

[Mercy Thompson · Rating 5 out of 5]

I only read this one so that I could quiz my son on it.
I really really enjoyed this. A fun kids story, with a good message about how it's okay to be short. And I believe adults can enjoy it too.

[Cham · Rating 3 out of 5]

این یکی رو استثنائن تو شهرکتاب نخوندم، از نمایشگاه کرمانشاه مونده بود تو کتاب‌خونه‌م. بدک نبود، لااقل در حدی بود که تونستم تا آخرش برسم.