Lucille Ball Had No Eyebrows?

by Dan Gutman, Allison Steinfeld (Illustrator)

Did you know that Lucille Ball could pick up radio signals through her teeth? Or that her career was almost destroyed because she was a registered Communist? Bet you didn’t know that, as a studio executive, she green-lit both Star Trek and Mission: Impossible! Siblings Paige and Turner have collected some of the most unusual and surprising facts about the beloved actress, from her impoverished childhood and her first forays into the film industry to her marriage with Desi Arnaz and her rise to become both the most prominent actress in television and one of its most successful executives.


Narrated by the two spirited siblings and animated by Allison Steinfeld’s upbeat illustrations, Wait! What? Lucille Ball Had No Eyebrows? is an authoritative, accessible, and one-of-a-kind biography infused with Dan Gutman’s signature zany sense of humor.

Genres: Biography, Nonfiction, Humor, Historical, Biography Memoir, Childrens, Juvenile

112 pages, Paperback

Published May 16, 2023

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

[Kari Yergin · Rating 4 out of 5]

I'd be interested in checking out more of this series. It's written as a dialogue between siblings and tells about Lucy's crappy childhood as well as her place in our cultural history and is filled with fascinating information. It's the most modern-feeling bio for kids I've read in a while as it continually points out how wacky it was to live "back in the day," therefore also making it the one that made me feel most like a dinosaur.

[Joan · Rating 4 out of 5]

I can’t believe Dan Gutman was apparently the first to write a kids’ biography of Lucille Ball! Like many of the older comedians, Ball had a wretched life as a child. She met Desi Arnaz pretty early and married him. She and Desi invented the rerun episode and many other tv standards. Lucille also overrode her people and insisted Star Trek be made. She certainly helped women become successful with her incredibly successful career!

[Kelly · Rating 5 out of 5]

What a fun and easy biography! Perfectly written for kids.

[Ryal Mcmurry · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book is a great engaging biography for kids. Unlike most biographies, it is told from the point of view of two kids doing research and sharing what they know. They like surprising each other with great "little known" fact, thus the "Wait! WHAT?"

I have read lots of biographies about Lucille Ball (both for adults and children), and this one is certainly unique. It covers the usual important things ("Stuff Your Teacher Would Want You to Know"), but it also brings in different unique facts that get kids attention, like that Lucille Ball had to shave her eyebrows early in her career. It also goes through several famous and great episodes of "I Love Lucy" and shares them from a youthful perspective, even encouraging kids to check them out on YouTube!

This is a great biography introducing Lucille Ball to a new generation. It is very engaging and fun! Dan Gutman has several titles in this new "WAIT! WHAT?" series, providing kids with engaging ways of reading non-fiction! Gutman has long been great at writing books that kids love, especially reluctant readers (like the "Wayside School" series). This new series is great, presenting facts in a fun way. This book is great for young readers and Lucille Ball fans alike!

[Great Books · Rating 4 out of 5]

The new volume to "Wait! What?", the biographical series about famous people by Dan Gutman, details a wide range of facts about the life of Lucille Ball "Lucy". Some of the facts are quirky for example, Lucy volunteered to be in a movie scene with a toothless crocodile. Also, she and her husband, Dezi Arnez, raised farm animals. One time a grateful cow crashed through the house wall to give Dezi a kiss. The biography mentions a few serious facts including Lucy's father passed away when she was four. A bird was trapped in the house on the day of the funeral, which resulted in her lifelong fear of birds. Also, she was a registered communist. In addition, she and her husband Dezi Arnez, a Latin American, faced resistance from studio executives as an interracial couple.
The format of these books in the series, a light and scripted conversation between a girl and a boy, appeals to even resistant readers of non-fiction. Also, quotes by Lucille Ball are interspersed throughout the book. However, an explanation about "I Love Lucy" being a favorite show of readers' grandparents or great-grandparents at the beginning of the book would grab readers more successfully.
#15

[Becky · Rating 3 out of 5]

brother, Turner.

Premise/plot: Two kids--siblings--provide a framework (is it supposed to make the book more appealing????) in a nonfiction biography of Lucille Ball. These two kids are "presenting" readers with interesting-fascinating facts about her life and her work. They interject themselves throughout the book--but not heavy-handedly, I guess. They're there, but not obnoxiously there. (That being said, I didn't personally want them there at all.)

So it is in part a basic, straightforward biography. But it also goes out of its way to be quirky and odd. It seeks to share details that are more obscure, more "interesting," more unique. (Hence the "clickbait" title meant to intrigue.)

My thoughts: I liked this one. I did. I do hope that Lucille Ball continues to be appreciated by each generation. I did learn a few new things about her life.

[Stasia · Rating 3 out of 5]

Cute idea, and the way the book is written as dialogue between the siblings is a cute idea. My rating would be higher were it not for the constant jabs at 'the old days were MESSED UP'. Literally, every three pages the brother has to make this remark.... It's really sad to me. The times we live in TODAY are messed up. And, some of the way information was given came across hypocritical or ironic... For example, they make a comment that 'back in those messed up days', movie companies pretty much owned actors and actresses, told them how much weight to lose, gain, what color their hair should be, etc.... um, that stuff still goes on in the movie world TODAY.... 🤔

[Robin · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is the 6th book in the series targeting middle school readers. It will make a good introduction for those readers who may know nothing about Lucy, or who may have briefly seen her on the constant reruns of her iconic TV show. I didn't learn much of anything new after reading the book, but I did enjoy the format and the interactions between the two children telling the story. I highly recommend the entire clever and unusual series.

[Julie · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book is part of a fascinating series of biographies designed to grab your attention: from its obscure title to its fast-paced dialogue between two knowledgeable kids. Whether you like biographies or not, this is a great set of books to learn about historical figures.

[Jeanine · Rating 4 out of 5]

Middle reader about Lucille Ball. Part of the Wait! What? Series. Lucille Ball was born on August 6, 1911. She was an amazing woman, a major innovator in the film and studio industry. She appeared in more than 70 movies.

[Andréa]

Note: I accessed a digital review copy of this book from the publisher through Edelweiss.

[KMitch · Rating 4 out of 5]

Really interesting trivia and information on Lucille Ball's life. I struggled with the format (2 people talking back & forth to each other for most of the book), but enjoyed the information.

[Marsha · Rating 4 out of 5]

I have always loved Lucille Ball. We share the same birthday. I found out some new interesting facts about her in this book.

[Heather McC · Rating 5 out of 5]

A fun and fast-paced fly-by biography about a legendary lady in the film, radio, theatre, and television history.

[Paige Holmes · Rating 5 out of 5]

Cute little biography read (intended for kiddos). Just like reading what I’ll be gifting one day to family and friends’ bbs

[Leah · Rating 2 out of 5]

I love the ins formation as I love Lucille Ball, but I did not care for the format of the book.

[Jennifer · Rating 5 out of 5]

Mildly interesting and very quick read.

[wildct2003 · Rating 4 out of 5]

Entertaining and informative quick read

[Alex · Rating 4 out of 5]

This series cracks me up. And, I legitimately learned a lot from this book!

[Robin · Rating 3 out of 5]

A kid's-eye-view of the TV icon, told in a fun, accessible fashion.

[Scarlett · Rating 5 out of 5]

Wonderful facts that are less well known!

[Nancy · Rating 3 out of 5]

Interested in reading more in the Wait! What? series.

[Hannah Jane · Rating 4 out of 5]

It looks like the Who Was/Is series has a serious competitor! I'm super impressed with this book. The back-and-forth interview style with two "kids" sharing information and asking questions is such a clever idea. This style tastefully and appropriately exposes how ridiculous some of the ideas were during the early twentieth century. While I love the Who Was/Is series, it doesn't shine a light on historical events with a modern lens/perspective. This book is also written well, filled with lots of juicy information, and still contains the biography essentials: timeline and main life events. My only gripe is that it's missing a page listing extra reading recommendations. There's only a tiny nudge to look up YouTube videos about Lucille Ball. It's only a small gripe though. I can't wait to read more books in this series!