About the Author

Herman Parish was in the fourth grade when his aunt, Peggy Parish, created Amelia Bedelia, the literal-minded housekeeper. Peggy wrote twelve books in the series before she passed away in 1988. The interest of educators and the enthusiasm of young readers prompted Herman to continue the character in 1995 with his first book, Good Driving, Amelia Bedelia.

Since then, Herman has added more than thirty books to the series. He has carried on her adventures as a housekeeper in books such as the best-selling Amelia Bedelia, Bookworm, and he has broken new ground in his most recent books portraying Amelia Bedelia as a young girl. She may be little, but she is as literal as ever. There are picture books for the youngest children, including the national bestsellers Amelia Bedelia's First Day of School and Amelia Bedelia's First Valentine. Young Amelia Bedelia also appears in I Can Read Level 1 beginning readers and a new series of chapter books, starting with the best-selling Amelia Bedelia Means Business and Amelia Bedelia Unleashed.

Amelia Bedelia celebrated her 50th birthday in 2013, and she is still going strong.

Reviews

"No child can resist Amelia [Bedelia] and her literal trips through the minefield of the English language-and no adult can fail to notice that she's usually right when she's wrong." -- New York Times Book Review Praise for the young Amelia Bedelia series: "Parish has turned the clock back, making Amelia Bedelia young again and giving a new generation of readers the opportunity to enjoy her humor and self-confidence." -- Kirkus Reviews "Her ingenuous spirit will continue to capture hearts." -- Publishers Weekly

Gr 2-4-Beginning chapter-book readers can meet the young Amelia Bedelia and enjoy her literal take on the world around her. In Business, the homophonic-challenged girl is looking for ways to earn money for a new bike. She encounters all sorts of mayhem as she helps out at the local diner, sells stolen flowers, has a run-in with the local police, and tries her luck selling drinks at her lemonade sit. (After all why should customers have to stand?) Wordplay abounds as Amelia "steps on it," splattering pie on a customer at a diner and taking each word to heart. Her parents are helpful in explaining meanings to her, but readers will laugh out loud as she navigates her way through a variety of business opportunities. In Unleashed, Amelia Bedelia searches for the perfect puppy. Her parents encourage her to learn about different breeds by helping her neighbor with her dog-walking business. While out walking several of the dogs, Amelia meets her friend Charlie and his pedigreed poodle. He invites her to help get Pierre "show ready" with a bath and coat trim. Things go badly awry, and the two friends have two hours to find the dog and figure out a way to fix his coat in time for the show. In both books, the illustrations bring the characters and plot to the forefront, and well-designed drawings provide reluctant readers with dynamic and whimsical visual cues. Rendered in gouache and black pencil, the artwork splashes across the pages. Sure to be favorites on the early chapter-book shelves.-Melissa Smith, Royal Oak Public Library, MI (c) Copyright 2013. Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.