AWFUL ALEXANDER

by Judith Choate ‧ RELEASE DATE: Feb. 13, 1976

Awful Alexander is the larger, naughtier double that just plain Alexander invents as a fall guy on whom to blame all his mischief--but when the real Alexander is the one to fall off a ladder that Awful Alexander is climbing, the resultant bump on his head drives home Grandpa's reminder that ""there is no Awful Alexander; there is only you."" But Choate's adult timidity limits any involvement that the situation's familiarity might invite; not only is the ending unnecessarily explicit but Alexander is never even normally disobedient: after announcing that his uneaten spinach belongs to Awful Alexander, he'll ""gobble up his spinach and laugh and laugh""; after blaming his alter ego for snitching a cookie, he'll ""drop the cookie back into the cookie jar and laugh and laugh""; and even after claiming that it's only Awful Alexander who is up racing cars after bedtime, he'll ""race that car tight into his bed and laugh and laugh."" Even the usually gross Kellogg, especially when limited to soft pink and gray washes, can't make this kind of behavior awful.

Pub Date: Feb. 13, 1976

ISBN: N/A

Page Count: -

Publisher: Doubleday

Review Posted Online: N/A

Kirkus Reviews Issue: Feb. 1, 1976

Categories: CHILDREN'S