No one at home or school understands Amanda Frankenstein's devotion to insects until she meets Maggie.
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From Publishers Weekly
Pigtailed and bespectacled-and with a freckled, round face and turned-up nose-Amanda Frankenstein looks like a junior pedant. And perhaps she is. Crazy about insects, the strong-willed girl dumps her brother's fireflies out of the jar and informs him, "Bugs are people, too, you know." Amanda amasses a huge collection of bugs ("Dead ones, of course"), is proud of the number of mosquito bites on her leg (22) and utters the dramatic claim stated in the book's title. Incessantly talking about (and even acting like) various insects, she antagonizes her brother and classmates. The plot wears thin, although some of Amanda's antics are engaging and many of McDonald's (Is This a House for Hermit Crab?) lines are quite funny (when the aspiring entomologist puts her feet on the kitchen table because, she announces, butterflies have taste buds in their feet, her mother orders her to "please keep your taste buds on the floor"). Johnson's (The Cow Who Wouldn't Come Down) animated watercolor, colored-pencil and pastel illustrations depend on exaggeration for their humor; even so, they are truer to life than the text in their depiction of ordinary feelings. Ages 4-7.
Copyright 1995 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.
Copyright 1995 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.
From School Library Journal
Kindergarten-Grade 3?Amanda loves bugs, a fact that no one else seems to appreciate. She examines them, collects them, protects them, and imitates their behavior. She even gets into trouble at home and at school because of them. Kids tease her, and one in particular, Victor, makes her life miserable. In one humorous exchange she calls him "... a stinkbug on the leaf of life." Then she discovers Maggie, a classmate who has a passion of her own?reptiles. Factual tidbits slipped surrepetitiously into the appealing text add information to this spirited tale. It's refreshing to have nonsqueamish female characters who are willing to take on all adversaries in defense of their causes. Full-page and vignette illustrations rendered in soft-hued watercolors, colored pencils, and pastels complement and add humor to the story. They are energetic, engaging, and entomologically correct. Insects Are My Life is an almost-perfect specimen.?Virginia Opocensky, formerly at Lincoln City Libraries, NE
Copyright 1995 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.
Copyright 1995 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.
Inside This Book
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First Sentence
The night that Andrew caught the fireflies in a jar, Amanda set them all free. Read the first page
Front Cover | Copyright | Excerpt | Back Cover
The night that Andrew caught the fireflies in a jar, Amanda set them all free. Read the first page
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Front Cover | Copyright | Excerpt | Back Cover
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Customer Reviews
Most helpful customer reviews
By Liz Cary
Format:Paperback
My little girl is afraid of bugs. She loved this book--it introduced her to the idea that insects are interesting, and that it is okay to be really really excited about the world. A positive, funny and informative book.
Format:Hardcover
My mom asked me to read it since she thought it was a great book. I did. And I like it. Amanda looks like any nerd in school, but she is actually really smart and cool.
She is smart because she knows everything about bugs, most of them in the story that I have never heard of. I would say she is an Einstein in the field of insects! I bet it takes a lot of hard work and a strong passion to be able to learn so much.
Amanda is cool too. Nobody tries to understand her. However, she never gives up her passion even though she often gets herself into troubles for it. That's what a real hero is about.
Well, I am glad that hero is not always lonely. At the end of the story, Amanda finally finds a bosom friend that shares the same passion with her. I like the happy ending!
She is smart because she knows everything about bugs, most of them in the story that I have never heard of. I would say she is an Einstein in the field of insects! I bet it takes a lot of hard work and a strong passion to be able to learn so much.
Amanda is cool too. Nobody tries to understand her. However, she never gives up her passion even though she often gets herself into troubles for it. That's what a real hero is about.
Well, I am glad that hero is not always lonely. At the end of the story, Amanda finally finds a bosom friend that shares the same passion with her. I like the happy ending!
By Movie Lady
Format:Paperback
I guess I am partial about liking this book. The reason is that I am the mother of the Amanda Frankenstein, whose name was used in this book. When the "real" Amanda was young, she too liked bugs. I thoroughly enjoy sharing this book with the students at my school where I teach. The students love the story and that my daughter's name is in the book. It is a special book to my family and I as well. Mrs. McDonald wrote a cute story showing how girls can like bugs and things of nature. She also showed how students can meet others who share similar likes.
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4.7 out of 5 stars
Most recent customer reviews
5.0 out of 5 stars
"Insects Are My Life" is one of our favorite books.
My grandaughter (age 4 and a half) loves this story. All of us have felt a little at-odds with the world at times and Amanda Frankenstein is no exception. Read more
Published on Jun 13 2000 by Marilyn Burkman
5.0 out of 5 stars
Insects are great!
I like when Amanda Frankentein loves insects so much that she tries to act like one. Amanda wants to even let bugs in her window! Read more
Published on April 8 1999
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