BooksForKidsBlog: School Days: <em>Hooray for Reading Day</em> by Margery Cuylar

Jessica was a worrier. She worried all the time.

But in first grade she had a big worry. Reading.

Jessica loves books, but when she tries to read aloud from the class reader Hot Pot, she stutters embarrassingly. At one point, she is so eager to get her part over with that she blurts out "The p-p-pot was snot," providing her class with a good giggle at her expense.

When her teacher Mr. Martin announces that the class will host a Reading Theatre Day for their parents to showcase their new skills, the day looms ahead of Jessica like the Day of Doom. To add to her worries, Mr. Martin says everyone must wear a costume. Jessica is paralyzed by her fear that she will embarrass herself and let her parents down on the big day.

"What's wrong," asked Mom when Jessica is too worried to eat her dinner.

"Everything!" said Jessica.

"Go on," said Dad. "Tell us."

And together they come up with a Plan. Jessica will practice reading out loud, not just to her parents, but to her dog Wiggles, who is always pleased with her efforts. Her sister and brother even come up with a costume of sorts which makes Jessica feel comforted and safe. Jessica feels better when her mother tells her that she had trouble at the beginning of first grade but eventually became the best reader in the class.

Reassured, Jessica reads her lines perfectly on the day of the Reading Theatre, costumed in her favorite blanket, along with Anita, dressed as the pot, and Leslie as the baker who heats the pot. The Reading Day is a roaring success with the audience of proud parents, and that night Jessica reads two bedtime stories out loud to her dog Wiggles.

As always, Cuyler's text for Hooray for Reading Day! (Jessica Worries) is simple but believable as she describes the thought processes of a born worrywart. Arthur Howard's nuanced illustrations are softer and lighter than his usual broad comic style, but he slips in a sly bit of illustrator's humor which even beginning readers will appreciate. The back cover of Hot Pot features this "publisher's blurb:"