Tales of a Fourth Grade Nothing by Judy Blume ★★★☆☆

A classic kid’s book.

Fiction – Juvenile

Age Range: 7 and up

144 pages

Publication Date: 1972

Fudge #1

Literary awards: West Australian Young Readers' Book Award (WAYRBA) for Younger Readers (1980), Grand Canyon Reader Award (1977), Massachusetts Children's Book Award (1977), Sequoyah Book Award (1975), Pacific Northwest Library Association Young Reader's Choice Award (1975) Charlie May Simon Children's Book Award (1974)

Peter, as the oldest, must constantly deal with his little brother, Fudge’s antics.  Fudge won’t leave Dribble the turtle alone, is always getting into Peter’s room, wrecks school projects and finally does the unthinkable.  In the end Peter can’t decide whether he loves Fudge or hates him, though the scales seem to tip in favor of hate.

Fun, easy to read with a nice flow, Tales of a Fourth Grade Nothing, is the story of the day-to-day trials and tribulation of nine-year-old Peter Hatcher.  From Shelia the cootie girl, babysitting mishaps and figuring out where he fits, with a spoiled little brother on a terror always overshadowing him, Peter navigates through the pitfalls of his life. 

Peter as the narrator gives the story a rather straightforward perspective and while in most cases he has a fairly astute assessment of the world his viewpoint is only really skewed in regard to parent’s love for him and his brother Fudge.   As a reader you can really feel for Peter.  His mother is overwhelmed and his father is rather unconnected to the day-to-day life of the family, while his brother is a bit out of control.  Peter’s parents are trying very hard to meet both of the boy’s needs, but Fudge-as a strong-willed toddler- does kind of suck up most of their time and energy, while Peter spends a good deal of time being used to manage his brother; unfortunately, a rather normal dynamic for some families. 

In its most basic form this entertaining little story is about the normal chaos and havoc of family life. 

ISBN  0142401013 (ISBN13: 9780142401019)