Junie B. Jones Has a Monster Under Her Bed

Junie B. Jones #8

by Barbara Park

Barbara Park’s New York Times bestselling chapter book series, Junie B. Jones, is a classroom favorite and has been keeping kids laughing—and reading—for more than twenty years. Over 60 million copies in print and now with a bright new look for a new generation!

Meet the World’s Funniest Kindergartner—Junie B. Jones! Junie B. knows there’s no such thing as monsters. Mother and Daddy even said so. But then why is there monster drool on Junie B.’s pillow? Oh, no! What if Paulie Allen Puffer is right—what if she really does have a monster under her bed? If Junie B. goes to sleep, the monster might see her feet hanging down. And he might think her piggy toes are yummy little wiener sausages!

USA Today: “Junie B. is the darling of the young-reader set.”

Publishers Weekly: “Park convinces beginning readers that Junie B.—and reading—are lots of fun.”

Kirkus Reviews: “Junie’s swarms of young fans will continue to delight in her unique take on the world. . . . A hilarious, first-rate read-aloud.”

Time: “Junie B. Jones is a feisty six-year-old with an endearing penchant for honesty.”

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

69 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1997

About the author

Barbara Lynne Park was an American author of children's books.

Reviews

[anna ✩ · Rating 3 out of 5]

the grownups are so impatient! she literally has a monster under her bed and you don’t even CARE

[Ellenjsmellen · Rating 5 out of 5]

I thought this was cute, but my son couldn't handle it! Junie B Jones is a mini version of me.

[Kerry]

"plus also"-Junie B. Jones and also me, constantly, after reading this book with my kid

[Emily · Rating 4 out of 5]

I would gladly give this adorable book 5 stars, except for Junie B. Jones's mother. WHY IS SHE SO AWFUL? How did such a bland and unpleasant person give birth to such a spirited, imaginative daughter?I don't know. At least she showed some human emotion other than irritation at the end. I'm looking forward to reading more of these books with my little sister. :)

[melhara · Rating 3 out of 5]

I feel like the Junie B. Jones series is slowly getting better. She's still annoying, but she no longer calls everything dumb or stupid. I can't tell if her behaviour has improved, but I suppose her irrational fear of the monster under her bed is pretty normal for a kid her age.

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Part of a personal challenge to read all of my boyfriend's and his sister's childhood books before we donate and give them away.

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My average rating for this series so far: 1.88/5
My reviews for the books I've read in this series:
Junie B. Jones and the Stupid Smelly Bus (1.5/5) | Junie B. Jones and Little Monkey Business (1.5/5) | June B. Jones and Her Big Fat Mouth (1.5/5) | Junie B. Jones and Some Sneaky Peaky Spying (1.5/5) | Junie B. Jones and the Yucky Blucky Fruitcake (2/5) | Junie B. Jones and That Mean Jim's Birthday (1.5/5) | Junie B. Jones Loves Handsome Warren (2.5/5) | Junie B. Jones Has a Monster Under Her Bed (3/5)

[Lee]

Embrace the ugly, I love it so much.

[Lovmelovmycats Hart · Rating 2 out of 5]

My daughter loves these books. But the misspellings bug the heck outta me. Some people say, "That's how kids that age talk". I disagree. When my five year old daughter makes gramatical mistakes, I correct her, and she learns. Junie B. Is so annoying because she does not seem to want to learn. The books are less bad as stand-alones, because the lack of character development over the series is so disappointing.

[Sofia]

This was the first book I ever read on my own. I was six years old in a brand new state and school, and Junie B became one of my first friends. This book (and the rest of the series) not only taught me quite literally how to read, but was also the first stepping stone on the path that transformed me into the reader I am today

[hope mohammed · Rating 4 out of 5]

So cute and beautiful story about little girl who fear of monster under bed this story written by lovely sense humor and perfectly fit for young reader and adult one.

[Riley R · Rating 5 out of 5]

for janna:


very helpful insight into how children act

[Ella Nadine · Rating 4 out of 5]

June B got scared and couldn’t sleep at night because she thought there was a monster under her bed. This book was a quick read and had some funny parts!

[Emma Sunderman · Rating 2 out of 5]

Quick read, maybe 20 minutes. Feel like I have some fonder memories with others in the series. Would be great for early readers but the girl has some grammar problems.

[Briar's Reviews · Rating 4 out of 5]

I enjoy taking a blast to the past and enjoying a bit of nostalgia once and a while. I stumbled across the Junie B. Jones book at a local charity, used book sale and I was like... why not? I remember these books so fondly from my childhood.

It's been many years since I've read them, but I still enjoy it. The book is silly and goofy, following a young kindergartener trying to make her way through life. I can see why I loved it so much and why other young readers would enjoy it. It's honest, goofy, and quite real. Monsters are scary and we absolutely will believe our classmates over our parents, grandparents and siblings!

This book is ridiculously cute and a fun read. I hope I'm able to catch up and read the many I missed since my local school gave up after about book nine in the series. Barbara Park has a wonderful set of classics with this series.

Four out of five stars.

[Lauren Iuppa · Rating 5 out of 5]

I loved Junie B. Jones as a child they were my favorite childhood books as I was got older and more familiar with reading. I feel like the series of the Junie B. Jones books are great for the older generation. I found that reading the series again because I love them they all have messages to children. I enjoy these books so much and love the message they convey for children.

[Stefu Smith · Rating 4 out of 5]

My favorite Junie B. book. I never considered that the monster in a child's room turns invisible when you look at it. Now I have ammunition for frightening my children. Although they made it through me reading this to them, so I guess it's old news.

[Ella · Rating 5 out of 5]

“Junie B. Jones finds out how to get rid of her monster but monsters aren’t real but she figures out it and she puts the pictures under the bed that are so ugly and but we don’t know what the pictures look like though.” -Ella, 6.

[Courtney Stevens · Rating 4 out of 5]

Junie B. learns that monsters live under beds and drool on pillows and put kids' heads in their mouths. Yet she cleverly uses her school pictures to scare that monster away real quick!

[Brooke · Rating 5 out of 5]

Another adorable story from Barbara Park

[Gretchen Morgan · Rating 4 out of 5]

I like the book but it is really short. Now it is for kids so I dont mind the shortness but the least they could do was make it 70 pages. overall it is a great book. I definetly recommend for young ones.

[Samantha · Rating 5 out of 5]

Junie B. Is afraid of a monster under her bed.

[Larissa · Rating 3 out of 5]

Really Mother and Daddy, you couldn’t get creative in getting rid of a monster?! Junie B. is a hero

[Kirbygirl · Rating 5 out of 5]

Wow - really good book! I think it was amazing. I had a lot of build up with the story. BOOM!!!

[Melissa Eversole · Rating 5 out of 5]

I loved this book so much I did a gulp.

[ariel · Rating 4 out of 5]

junies “plus also” is grained in my vocabulary at school

[Taylor · Rating 3 out of 5]

PERSONAL RESPONSE: Personally, I did not really like this book. I did not like it because it is so below my reading level. I think that Junie B. and her friends are extremely annoying. I did not relate to any of the characters in this book at all.

PLOT: While Junie B. Jones is at school, a boy tells her during recess that everyone has monsters under their bed and they can tell if a monster has been in their room at night if there is slobber on their pillow from them trying to fit your head in their mouth. This really scared Junie. She thought that if she hung her feet off the side of the bed the monsters under her bed would get her. That night, she had her grandma vacuum under her bed before she went to sleep. However, she never ended up sleeping that night anyway. The next day, Junie had her grandma take out the vacuum cleaner bag and throw it away. This made Junie feel much more relieved and she eventually got some sleep. Just when Junie thought there was no such thing as monsters, she woke up to find slobber on her pillow. At school the next day, Junie got her school pictures back. She did not like them, and thought that she looked very scary. She decided to put her pictures under her bed because it might scare the monsters away.

CHARACTERIZATION: Junie B. Jones is a young, little girl who is in kindergarten and is not that smart. She believed the boy who told her that monsters are real. Junie B. Jones is also very gullible, because she truly thinks monsters live under her bed and the slobber she finds on her pillow belongs to them. She does not think for one second that the slobber is hers. She definitely lets her imagination take a hold of reality, which is bad in this situation; it makes her lose sleep. She also seems a little sassy, because in the first paragraph, she explains that she does not like her middle name.

IMPACTS ON SETTING:This book first takes place on Junie B. Jones’ playground at school. Then, it transfers to her house. The impact the setting has on this story is that if it was not at her house, then the story would not be happening to her; it would be happening to another little kindergartner at their house. I am not sure what time this all takes place, but I am assuming that it takes place within a weeks time during school. I think it takes place over a weeks time because it explains what Junie does each of the days to avoid the monsters under her bed. Over the week, Junie is trying to overcome her fear of monsters being under her bed.

AUDIENCE:I think this book would be great for third graders and lower level readers. I think this because the reading level is low; there are not many words on a page, the font is big, there are pictures, and they can relate to Junie B. Jones. Depending on which book the reader chooses to read out of the entire series, it is mostly gender neutral.

[anjali · Rating 3 out of 5]

Title: Junie B. Jones has a Monster Under Her Bed

Author: Barbara Park

Series: Junie B. Jones #8

Rating: ★★★

Summary: There's no such thing as monsters. Mother and Daddy even said so. But then why is there monster drool on Junie B.'s pillow? Oh, no! What if Paulie Allen Puffer is right -- what if she really does have a monster under her bed? If Junie B. goes to sleep, the monster might see her feet hanging down. And he might think her piggy toes are yummy little wiener sausages!

Review: Kind of scary. At the time, of course. Now it's just stupid.

Things I Loved: N/A

Things I Hated: Grammar. It isn't hard, especially for a successful writer.

[Ashley · Rating 3 out of 5]

Adorable. Barbara Park really captures how children think, act, and speak. There's some controversy about the language used - that the improper use of grammar and incorrect pronunciation of certain words will have a negative effect on the way children speak - but I think that's how kids talk regardless. Older kids that read the books already know better and can see the humor in Junie B.'s mistakes.

[Christina · Rating 1 out of 5]

These books are AWFUL!! I bought two at a used book store for my 5 year old in kindergarten. I hate them--I have to correct grammar as I go along. I get what the author was trying to capture, but isn't our job to teach proper language skills, not validate bad pronunciation and grammar? I will NEVER buy another one of these.

[bookgirl · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book is about a girl named Junie B Jones. At school her friend told her that there was a monster under her bed. And she didn't want to believe him but she did so she asked her best friend how to
make the monster go away. Her Best friend told her how but you will have to read the book to find out what happens. Junie B. Jones is a series so if you like this one read the others.

[Beth · Rating 2 out of 5]

Junie B. Jones, the character, sounds like she was created by an AI that used as its source material Little Rascal movies, the Eloise books, Amelia Bedelia, and SpongeBob. No kid on earth has ever talked like Junie B. Jones. Particularly no kid since the 1950s.

Junie B. Jones, the books, are just lightweight ripoffs of Beverly Cleary.

But do my children love them? Oh yes they do.