Saturday, May 7, 2011

Module 15: Captain Underpants and the Big, Bad Battle of the Bionic Booger Boy Part 1: The Night of the Nasty Nostril Nuggets


Summary:
Harold and George have found a fun prank to pull on everyone at school called the "Squishy." This consists of placing ketchup packets in between the seat and base of the toilet so that when someone sits down they become saturated in ketchup. This prank greatly disturbs Melvin and he decides to seek revenge on George and Harold by creating a robot. Melvin ends up turning into a Bionic Booger Boy and causes chaos at school when he sneezes and goo gets all over everyone and then grows out of control. It's time for Captain Underpants to save the day. In the end Melvin returns to himself thanks to another robot invented to specially change him back into himself.

Reference:
Pilkey, D. (2003). Captain Underpants and the big, bad battle of the bionic booger boy part 1: the night of the nasty nostril nuggets. New York: Scholastic.

Reviews:
Jones, T.E., Toth, L., Charnizon, M., Grabarek, D., Larkins, J., Aasonson, K. (2004, January 1). [Review of the Book Captain Underpants and the Big, Bad Battle of the Bionic Booger Boy: Part 1: The Night of the Nasty Nostril Nuggets]. School Library Journal, Vol. 50, Issue 1, p. 103-104.
Fourth-graders George and Harold are good at pranks involving ketchup on toilet seats; saving the planet from the "nasty forces of unrelenting evil"; and making fun of Melvin Sneedly, the school brainiac and tattletale. When his robot-making hobby backfires during a class demonstration, Melvin tries to transform himself into a bionic superboy to get back at the pair but ends up as Bionic Booger Boy instead. Chaos ensues after he accidentally doubles and triples in size. George and Harold call on Captain Underpants (the school principal), but he loses his powers when he is covered in saliva. When a bionic hamster hears the terrified cries of his two friends, he comes to the rescue. The typical Pilkey ending leaves the door open for a sequel, and the novel is filled with the familiar comic-book inserts, Flip-O-Rama animations, and black-and-white cartoon illustrations. Fans will love this installment, and the book would probably appeal to slow readers. Adults are likely to be turned off by the use of the words "idiot" and "dumb" to refer to children and by the graphic description of snot. Purchase where there is demand.-Kristina Aaronson, Henniker Community School, NH Copyright 2003 Reed Business Information.

My Impressions of the Book:
I found this book disgusting and immature. It was hard to read all the way through it because I couldn't stand it truthfully. I can see where some parents would object to it, but also why many students would enjoy reading it. I can especially see boys being a fan of the series. The humor is crude and some of the language isn't polite. The situations involve school, but these kids spend their time pulling pranks and being silly rather than doing anything productive. I love Dav Pilkey's other books, but this series is truly not my favorite.

Uses in a library setting:
This book could be featured in a censored book display with caution tape displayed around it.

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