Ms. Hannah Is Bananas!

My Weird School #4

by Dan Gutman, Jim Paillot (Illustrator)

With more than 30 million books sold, the My Weird School series really gets kids reading! In the fourth book of the original My Weird School series, art teacher Ms. Hannah shows A.J. and the gang that art is everywhere! She wears dresses made out of potholders and collects garbage instead of throwing it out. But worst of all, she makes A.J. draw a picture with smelly, tattletale Andrea! Perfect for reluctant readers and word lovers alike, Dan Gutman’s insanely popular My Weird School series has something for everyone. Don’t miss any of the hilarious adventures of A.J. and the gang—from Weird, to Weirder, to Weirder-est! This chapter book is an excellent choice to share with children ages 6 to 10 who are ready to read independently.

Genres: Fiction, Humor, Childrens, Chapter Books, Juvenile, Audiobook, Realistic Fiction

96 pages, Paperback

First published October 21, 2004

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

[Janete on hiatus due health issues · Rating 4 out of 5]

Learning English and having fun with easy children's books. Book and audio from Scrib.

Synopsis: "In the fourth book of the original My Weird School series, art teacher Ms. Hannah shows A.J. and the gang that art is everywhere! She wears dresses made out of potholders and collects garbage instead of throwing it out. And even makes A.J. draw a picture with smelly, tattletale Andrea!"

[Emma-Leigh · Rating 1 out of 5]

Definitely going to find a new series for my kids to listen to with a better main character.

[Lady Tea · Rating 5 out of 5]

Rating: 4 / 5

Re-read in 2020 as part of my nostalgia-fest in times of boredom.

Note to self: This book (and all the books, actually) use the word "weird" a lot. Should I start keeping count or should I just go with the flow of it?

Quotes:

"'Even things that are invisible can be art.'" -- I wish someone had told my art teachers that in school. Cause I totally support that.

[Reagan · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book reminds me of a cartoon called Horrid Henry because the main character AJ and Andrea don’t get along. They have the same relationship just like Henry and Margaret. This book is about a funny art teacher named Ms. Hannah who never throws away garbage. She doesn’t even own a garbage can at home. But I also think she’s creative and she likes to inspire her class to learn about art.

[Taliahshaw]

I Really like this book it is a great book for kids to read.the main charters in the book is hannah,aj,andrea,emily,mr.klutz,micheal,rayn.The 1st chapter is about how aj dont like andrea young.he dont like her because she is annoying and she complain about everything and also she thinks she knows everything just because her mother is a famous.MY opinion about Andrea Young is that she is a entellgent person i like her persontily thats my opinion about her.The 2 chapter is aboutwhen the kids where finger painting with ms.hannah in the art room.okay while they was on there way to the art room they saw a lady witha colorful dress that was made out of a washcloths that you was your body with,also had some of these big mittens on her hands.Everybody thougt to thereself ms.hannah look weird.So when she told them to go in the class room.When they went in the class room she told them that it have to be boy girl boy girl just like what we do in our class room when a test is going on.the 3rd chapter is about weird people this chapter i had to read over a few times but now i know what is the summary of it.It is about how a.j think that ms.hannah is weird then ryan said that his mom is weirder then ms.hannah. then micheal made a satement and said then most of these in the world are weird.I learn from this book that you have to treat people how you want to be treated and also learn that some teachers are kind and some are not .Thank You

[Shelli · Rating 5 out of 5]

Dan Gutman understands young reader’s humor and has created a fantastic book formula to draw in even the most reluctant of readers. The My Weird School series is perfect for students to practice their reading skills with its repetitive yet hysterical narrative and story lines. But don’t mention that part to your kiddos, they might run away in fear they could learn something. A must have collection for any grade school library or classroom!

[Tweety Bird · Rating 5 out of 5]

ms. hannah wears dresses made out of potholders an collects garbage instead

[Kesley Taylor]

This book would be fun for young children in school because they will be able to relate to having a teacher. It will also keep the children's attention with the crazy things that happen in the story.

[AJ · Rating 5 out of 5]

I'm interested in the 5th book. Amazing book.

[Jemily · Rating 4 out of 5]

Read aloud with the kids.
These are great.
Sydney ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Asher ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

[Abigail Mohn · Rating 4 out of 5]

The nostalgia 🥰 I might have lost a few brain cells listening to this, but it was fun.

[Hannah Milosevic · Rating 3 out of 5]

I do not like when AJ said he didn’t like art cause I like art.

[Angie · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is number four in the My Weird School series, but I understood what I was reading without reading the books in order. AJ, the main character, is in second grade. In this installment of the series he has art class with Miss Hannah, an eccentric lady who never throws anything out. I think AJ says things that aren't nice (about school and his classmate Andrea). Overall, this is a pretty funny book and the ending is really sweet.

[Olivia · Rating 5 out of 5]

I think that Ms Hannah is bananas alright.

[Colleen · Rating 2 out of 5]

Meh. I wish the characters didn't say things like 'shut up' and 'I hate you' to each other, but I can see how they appeal to the target age group.

[Isla Jonsson · Rating 2 out of 5]

We had to quit reading this book after a few pages because my art loving 7 year old started to get seriously upset by A.J.'s nasty comments about art and Andrea, who she had begun to identify with. Quotes from chapter 1 speak for themselves:
1. " I hate Andrea Young" (the title of chapter 1.)
2. "I wish an elephant would step on her head."
3. "But I do hate school, and I especially hate Andrea Young."
4. "I love art," Andrea announced, like anybody really cared. "I like to create things."
5. "She should create an empty space where she is right now."
6. "Drawing pictures is for babies, if you ask me. And art is stupid."

We had read and enjoyed earlier books in the series, but all this in the course of 4 pages was too much. Particularly since the only thing "wrong" with Andrea is that she is smart girl who is interested in things, and gets along with adults.

[Catherine · Rating 1 out of 5]

The My Weird School series of books has been popular for years with many students that I have taught. Today, however, a student told me the book Miss Hannah is Bananas is objectionable to him because of the gun violence. One of the characters imagines what he thinks the teachers do for fun in the teachers' lounge. Some of the fun he imagines is shooting BB guns at each other. The young reader was upset by this and felt he should tell an adult about the book. In the present environment of schools and gun violence, I just want other parents and students to be aware of this matter in this book. I am absolutely not a supporter of banning books, but I am grateful to know now that guns appear in this way in this book, and I can make the informed choice that I think is best for my situation. I want others to be able to do the same.

[Claire M]

MS. Hannah is Bananas Dan Gutman

Ther is a boy named AJ and art teacher that clects trash and makes it into art and Ms Hannah is so weird and then thairs and art countest and of course AJ thinks it is weird and a girl named Andrea and they hate each other then they when to a museum and AJ hated of course Andrea loved it AJ says that she is annoying.

They had the contest the art contest and AJ dstord Andreas art project but Andrea pushed AJ in the project and the principal said if they were nise to each other then he would of gave them Kandy bars just and Ms Hannah wanted AJ and Andrea to work to gether and thar art project look really good but they were fishing over it and they ripped it.

I rate this book a 5 star I all ways loved My weird school .

I recommendation for people who like fantasy and people who like the weird school sereys.

[Anthony · Rating 3 out of 5]

A.J. and his classmates are learning all about art from Ms. Hannah, who tells them art is everywhere. Finger painting, the art museum, and performance art are all part of the class. The class thinks Ms. Hannah is bananas because she never throws anything away, and they are convinced that she's really just a garbage collector. The class has an art contest, but a ruckus caused by A.J. and Andrea may ruin the entire event before it even gets started.

[Rachel · Rating 3 out of 5]

I didn’t enjoy this book in the series as much. I felt like the art teacher was made fun of and not presented with any real redeeming qualities by the end, and A.J. and Andrea fought constantly, yet were rewarded for continued bad behavior simply because the adults weren’t in the room to see the fight occur as opposed to the “art” that A.J. claimed they made. I still think the series would get kids reading, and so do like it’s quirky formula, but the content of this one was sub-par.

[Anna Salvesen · Rating 3 out of 5]

I liked it because it was funny how Ms. Hannah wore dresses made out of potholders and it was funny how Andrea and AJ (enemies) had to get along for one whole day to get a candy bar. They got in a little fight but they told Mr. Klutz it was nothing so they got their candy bar. Ms. Hannah is bananas because she doesn't throw anything out. She thinks art is everywhere and keeps all of her garbage in her room to use for art.

[Karen & Gerard · Rating 4 out of 5]

Ms. Hannah Is Bananas! by Dan Gutman is book 4 in the "My Weird School" series. This one is about the art teacher who says "Art is everywhere." The animosity between AJ and Andrea is really funny and I enjoyed this book as well as the others in this series that I have read so far. The ending of this book made me laugh out loud, it was hilarious. I think elementary children would like this one. (Karen's review)

[Pooja Banga · Rating 3 out of 5]

Good read .. Recommended for all!!
If you are in bad mood this can improve your mood definitely..
Have to read this series ..
Story plot-Ms. Hannah wears dresses made out of potholders and collects garbage instead of throwing it out. Plus she's making A.J. be partners with smelly Andrea. This is the worst art class ever!
Happy reading:)

[Aminata Coote · Rating 4 out of 5]

My son and I enjoyed this book. Ms. Hannah really was Bananas. This was a short audiobook that provided a number of opportunities to point out that lying is sometimes a much too easy response. Even children need to think about their actions because everything they do is a choice to serve God or not.

[Alison · Rating 3 out of 5]

Ms. Hannah Is Bananas! R (one of the kids I used to watch) gave me this book. I read it before I saw him again so I could tell him I had read it (and he took it back!). This series is popular at work. They're fun school stories. Probably pretty formulaic (I'm just guessing, I've only read the one), but not bad. 

[Cynthia · Rating 3 out of 5]

This one was cute. It wasn't as crazy as some of the other books, although the art teacher definitely had some quirks. We finally got to see some development in Andrea's character and saw how her and AJ's relationship grew from more than just "Andrea, I hate her." which I really enjoyed. Overall, a solid 3 star for me.

[Maria · Rating 4 out of 5]

Mrs Hannah is art teacher. But Mrs Hannah were dresses made out of pot holders and collects garbage instead of throwing it out. Not only that she can make art out of garbage stuff. She's making A.J be partners with Andrea! A.J thinks this is the worst class ever.
Fun story!

[Gail · Rating 3 out of 5]

Art teacher's story.
I wish these books didn't use "dumbhead" as much as they do. Also wish that A.J. didn't "hate" everything (school, books, Andrea, art).
The kiddo likes these books though so we will be reading a few more I suppose.

[Lok Ching · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book is about a teacher teaching visual arts. It taught you to express your creativity and don’t be shy no matter what, no matter how others will think about your work and how you will do it, just express it.

[Melissa · Rating 1 out of 5]

Chapter 1: I Hate Andrea Young
Page 1: ....Andrea Young is so annoying. I barely touched her stupid elbow... she acted like an elephant stepped on it... I wish an elephant would step on her head.

This is a hard no for me. I do not want my child reading this.