5th Grade Read Aloud: Lawn Boy

This is a review of Lawn Boy by Gary Paulsen. We really liked this story about a boy (unnamed) who receives a lawn tractor from his grandmother. After mowing one lawn, he starts to receive more offers, more than he can handle. Soon he gets mixed up into a big business with a stockbroker named Arnold, a landscaper named Pasqual and his "family", and a prizefighter who goes by the name Joey Pow. In this whole ordeal, he makes more than friends that summer, including more than minimum wage along with an enemy trying to take over his business by the name of Rock.

What we liked best about this story was Grandma. She is always saying off-the-wall things. For example, when she dropped off the lawn tractor, she also mentioned she has bridge club that night. As well, Grandma suggested puberty was the reason the narrator was acting so goofy. The humor of this fast-paced story makes this a very worthy read.

This review was written by Mrs. Peplinski's 5th grade students.