Alexander and the Terrible, Horrible, Nogood, Very Bad Day

"I went to sleep with gum in my mouth and now there's gum in my hair and when I got out of bed this morning I tripped on the skateboard and by mistake I dropped my sweater in the sink while the water was running and I could tell it was going to be a terrible, horrible, no good, very bad day."

So begin the trials and tribulations of the irascible Alexander, who has been earning the sympathy of readers since 1972. People of all ages have terrible, horrible days, and Alexander offers us the cranky commiseration we crave as well as a reminder that things may not be all that bad. As Alexander's day progresses, he faces a barrage of bummers worthy of a country- western song: getting smushed in the middle seat of the car, a dessertless lunch sack, a cavity at the dentist's office, stripeless sneakers, witnessing kissing on television, and being forced to sleep in railroad-train pajamas. He resolves several times to move to Australia.

Judith Viorst flawlessly and humorously captures a child's testy temperament, rendering Alexander sympathetic rather than whiny. Our hero's gum-styled hair and peevish countenance are artfully depicted by Ray Cruz's illustrations. An ALA Notable Book, Alexander and the Terrible, Horrible, No Good, Very Bad Day is a great antidote to bad days everywhere, sure to put a smile on even the crabbiest of faces. (Ages 5 to 9)

Judith Viorst was born and brought up in New Jersey and has lived in Washington, DC, since 1960, when she married Milton Viorst, a political writer. A graduate in 1981 of the Washington Psychoanalytic Institute, Viorst writes in many different areas: science books, children’s chapter and picture books—including the beloved Alexander and the Terrible, Horrible, No Good, Very Bad Day, which has sold some four million copies; adult fiction and nonfiction including the New York Times bestseller, Necessary Losses; poetry for children and adults, and four musicals. Her most recent book of poetry for children, What Are You Glad About? What Are You Mad About? was published in 2016. Lulu Is Getting a Sister is the fourth book in the Lulu series.

Ray Cruz is the illustrator of the modern classics Alexander and the Terrible, Horrible, No Good, Very Bad Day and Alexander, Who Used To Be Rich Last Sunday.