I can't wait for the next Ellie McDoodle now :)

I also loved the inclusion of all the jokes, pranks, how-to's, and games- excellent inclusions, all. I liked this second half of the book better as it felt the author was really in a groove and the story flows seamlessly, just as Ellie's life starts to flow the same way. But just when it looks bleakest, things finally start to go Ellie's way. It was fun to revisit Ellie on another I-don't-want-to-do-this-at-all adventure, which the author writes about so convincingly- trust me, Ellie is NOT happy. I'm sure some will compare this to Diary Of A Wimpy Kid because of the format, but I felt there was more story here, which of course translates also to more heart. It seems like a light read with all the fun sketches, but I think he'll be surprised at how much story there still is to read. It is a very accessible format- my reluctant-reader son still wants to read it even AFTER he found out it was a 'girl' book. I picked it up to read because I read the first one and enjoyed the format so much. Ha- I like to be confusing anyway :)Īll of this is to say that I thoroughly enjoyed Ellie McDoodle #2. In any case that doesn't matter- now that this one is out, I'll just recommend people read this one first, then the first one second. I almost think the two books should have been reversed- we needed to get to know Ellie in a familiar-to-everyone setting (I think everyone has been new somewhere at sometime) before we saw her in a new-to-her setting (being away from your immediate family with relatives) with which not everyone may be familiar. I liked this one even better than the first book.

Ellie McDoodle by Ruth McNally Barshaw