Junie B. Jones and Her Big Fat Mouth

When Job Day is announced at her school, Junie B. says her job will be the best job in the world and can do all sorts of things. The problem is, when asked what her job is, Junie B. has no idea. Realizing her big fat mouth has gotten her into trouble, Junie B. is frantic to come up with the best job in the world. Will she live up to her classmates’ expectations? Or will she get laughed out of the classroom?

Junie B. is a spoiled child with no respect for others’ boundaries. She shouts, she calls people dumb, she demands to get her own way, and she does not listen to her parents or teachers. After headbutting another classmate in the stomach, her main thought is, “And guess what? I didn’t even get caught!”

While Junie B. Jones is the main character in all of the Junie B. Jones books, readers do not need to read the books in order. Easy vocabulary and simple sentence structure make the story accessible to young readers. Black and white illustrations appear every five to ten pages and will help readers understand the plot.

Young readers will think Junie B.’s behavior is funny; however, parents will not want their children to emulate her behavior. If you’re looking for an entertaining book series with positive life lessons, check out the Zoey and Sassafras Series by Asia Citro.

Sexual Content

• None

Violence

• Junie B. doesn’t like Jim. “I made a fist at him. ‘How’d you like a knuckle sandwich, you big fat Jim?’”
• Junie B. threatens to “knock [Lucille] on [her] can.”
• Junie B. “butted that mean Jim in the stomach with [her] head. And guess what? I didn’t even get caught!”
• When a “stupid ant” bites Junie B. Jones, she kills it. “And so I had to drop a rock on his head.”
• One of Junie B. Jones’ classmates explains a hard hat. “You have to wear it when you’re building tall buildings. Or else somebody might drop a hammer from way up high. And it could hit you on the head and kill you . . . Ricardo just kept on talking about other stuff that could fall on your head and kill you.”
• Junie B. pinches a classmate when he doesn’t give her what she wants. “I wanted the mop. Only that stupid head Jim wouldn’t let go of it. And so I had to pinch his arm.”

Drugs and Alcohol

• A police officer comes to the school in preparation for Job Day. “He told us some other stuff that cops do. Like give our dads speeding tickets. And arrest drunk guys.”

Language

• Junie B. Jones calls things and people “dumb” frequently. For example, she says“I never even heard of that dumb word careers before.” Another time she thinks, “I couldn’t get any peace and quiet. ‘Cause everybody kept on talking about dumb old Job Day.”
• Junie B. Jones calls people “stupid” often. Once she says, “You stupid head Jim!”
• Junie B. Jones says heck several times. For example, “I won’t know what the heck we’re talking about.”
• A boy calls Junie B. Jones stupid. Later, when she announces to the class that she wants to be a janitor, “they called me the name of stupid.”
• Junie B. Jones says darn it several times. When she is mad, she says to herself, “Darn it, darn it, darn it.”

Supernatural

• It’s revealed that the Mickey and Minnie Mouse characters in Disney Land are fake; that they are people in costumes.

Spiritual Content

• None

by Morgan Lynn