Product Description

The moment they saw each other, Bean and Ivy knew they wouldn't be friends. But when Bean plays a joke on her sister, Nancy, and has to hide quick Ivy comes to the rescue, proving that sometimes the best of friends are people never meant to like each other. Vibrant characters and lots of humor make this a charming and addictive introduction to Ivy and Bean.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #10122 in Books
• Published on: 2007-05-03
• Original language: English
• Number of items: 1
• Binding: Paperback
• 120 pages

Features

• ISBN13: 9780811849098
• Condition: NEW
• Notes: Brand New from Publisher. No Remainder Mark.
• Click here to view our Condition Guide and Shipping Prices

From School Library Journal
Grade 1-4–Seven-year-old Bean likes stomping in puddles, climbing fences into neighbors' backyards, and playing tricks on her older sister, Nancy. She wears dresses as seldom as possible and avoids big books. Her new neighbor appears to be a quiet, orderly girl who sits on her front step day after day reading tomes. The two seem to have nothing in common, and Bean is not interested in getting to know Ivy, despite her mother's prodding to make friends with the nice girl next door. Then Bean gets into trouble, and Ivy helps her out. She discovers that Ivy is practicing to be a witch, and when they decide to cast a spell on Nancy, their friendship is sealed. With echoes of Beverly Cleary's Ramona series, this easy chapter book will appeal to children who are graduating from beginning readers. The occasional black-and-white illustrations highlight the text and provide visual clues. The characters are appealing, the friendship is well portrayed, and the pranks and adventures are very much on grade level.–Eve Ottenberg Stone, Cooper Lane Elementary, Landover Hills, MD
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

From Booklist
*Starred Review* Gr. 1-3. In the tradition of Betsy and Tacy, Ginnie and Geneva, come two new friends, Ivy and Bean. Ivy has just moved in across the street from Bean, who wants no part of her. She thinks Ivy looks dull, always with her nose in a book. Bean, on the other hand, is a spark plug; she's full of tricks, especially ones that can be played on her older sister, Nancy. But the day Bean pulls a trick that goes wrong and Ivy comes to her rescue, a friendship is born. The deliciousness here is in the details, with both girls drawn distinctly and with flair. Ivy, who at first seems to be a dud, has aspirations to being a witch, which is dangerously intriguing; Bean's spunky way of talking and acting (there's a classic moment when she wiggles her butt at Nancy) will make readers giggle. Even with all the text's strong points, what takes the book to a higher level is Blackall's artwork, which captures the girls' spirit. A chapter from the second book in the series, to be published in this fall, will whet readers' appetites for more Ivy and Bean. Ilene Cooper
Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved

Review
Barrow's debut children's book energetically kicks off a series about two seemingly unlikely pals, just right for kids moving on from beginning readers. Bean's mother suggests that she play with Ivy, the new girl across the street, "She seems like such a nice girl." Seven-year-old Bean says she already has plenty of friends ("Nice, Bean knew, is another word for boring"). After all, Ivy's long, curly red hair is neatly pushed back with a sparkly headband, and she always wears dresses and reads books; headband-, dress- and book-shunning tomboy Bean muses that Ivy "had never once in her whole life climbed a tree and fallen out." But when Ivy offers to get Bean out of a jam with her older sister, Nancy, Bean takes Ivy up on it. Bean discovers that the not-so-boring, wand-toting Ivy is in training to become a witch, and working on a spell that keeps its victim dancing for life--which sets Bean thinking about the ideal fate for bossy Nancy. Blackall's (Ruby's Wish) half-tone spot art and full-spread illustrations deftly capture the girls' personalities and the tale's humor, while also filling out fun details about Ivy's room and the neighbors' backyards. Barrows's narrative brims with sprightly dialogue and tidily ties everything together both Bean and Ivy find a fast friend and set the stage for Ivy and Bean and the Ghost that Had to Go, scheduled for the fall. -Publishers Weekly, starred review

In the tradition of Betsy and Tacy, Ginnie and Geneva comes two new friends, Ivy and Bean. Ivy has just moved in across the street from Bean, who wants no part of her. She looks dull, always with a book in her hand. Bean, on the other hand, is a sparkplug, full of tricks, especially when they can be pulled on her older sister Nancy. But the day Bean pulls a trick that goes wrong, and Ivy comes to her rescue, a friendship is born. The deliciousness is in the details here, with both girls drawn distinctly and with flair. Ivy, who at first seems a dud has aspirations to be a witch and put charms on people, which is dangerously intriguing to Bean's spunky way of talking and acting (there's a classic moment when she wiggles her fanny at Nancy) and will make readers giggle. Even with all the text's strong points, what takes the book to a higher level is Blackall's artwork, which captures the girls' spirit. A chapter from the second book in the series, to be published in Fall of 2006 will whet readers' appetites for more Ivy and Bean. -Booklist, starred review

Customer Reviews

An Amazing Story
Ivy and Bean is a book by Annie Barrow. It's a story about two girls who weren't even supposed to be friends. Bean is an active girl who loves to be barefoot and bounce a ball. Ivy, on the other hand, always has her nose in a book and wants to become a witch. When they meet, Ivy takes Bean to her secret hiding place. They both try to invent something so amazing they can't believe it. This book is set in
a little town in California.

My favorite part is when they first meet. It's sort of funny. I think a good age to read this book is 9 to 11.

by Isobel

Ivy and Bean Book 1
This is an excellent book that takes off where Junie B. Jones left off.
My 5th graders even have enjoyed it! Although the main characters are two girls, but my boys have enjoyed reading it also. It is a very funny book.
The 2nd book is just as good as the first one!!

Good points bad points
I am the mother of a very kind-hearted 7 year old, and adorable, but pain in the butt to her older sister 4 year-old. I bought this book for my 7 year old because it had some sort of illustration on each page (she was very reluctant to move into chapter books, so I thought one with pictures all through would be a good compromise). I totally agree that the message is not the best if you focus on that aspect of the story, but if you have instilled proper values in your children, reading these stories only introduce them into a fantasy land. My daughter, and I'm not kidding about her being kindhearted, she's very sensitive to other people's feelings, but she really enjoyed this book, and has read it twice in 1 week. I say so long as you instill the right manner of behavior in your children, allowing a little mischief won't kill them. Reading is all about imagination anyway. If they ask why she got away with all the bad stuff, you can tell them the truth - it is a fantasy world, it doesn't work that way in hour house. I still think it's a fun transitional book for kids reluctant to move out of picture books.