Flat Stanley

Flat Stanley by Jeff Brown

I chose the book, because in grade school my class did the Flat Stanley Project, and I want to incorporate that into my classroom one day. I even have made flat people to take on vacations. This past spring break, my church took its annual mission trip to New Orleans, and Pastor Roger was unable to go for the first time, so I had the bright idea of making Flat Roger. Flat Roger had way too much fun, he was out of control most of the time!

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Stanley Lambchop was a regular boy, one night when he was sleeping a enormous bulletin board fell on Stanley and caused him to be flat. Stanley was not hurt, and actually never woke up from the bulletin board. His parents took him to Dr. Dan to be examined to make sure nothing was wrong with him. Stanley was now four feet tall, about a foot wide, and a half an inch thick now.

Being flat took some time getting used to. He enjoyed in and out of rooms, when the doors were closed, by lying on the floor and sliding through the crack. His parents thought it was the silliest thing, but were proud that he took his difference and enjoyed being who he had become. Stanley's brother Arthur, was jealous and often tried doing what Stanley was doing, but never succeeded, because he was an average boy, and not flat like Stanley. Stanley used being flat to his advantage, he did tasks that normal people could not do, sliding through the bars of a grating and dangling by a shoe string, to retrieve his mother's ring. A few police men stopped and called Mrs. Lambchop cuckoo, and she replied "People should think twice before making rude remarks." I love this because, this is so true! You simply cannot say someone is crazy, because they are different, since that is who they are. We are all not the same people, we are all different and crazy in our own ways.

Stanley had a friend Thomas who moved to California, and his mom said it was too expensive to fly, so he slide himself into an envelope and was mailed. He was able to spend his vacation with his friend, for a nice affordable price and was sent back home. This is how the Flat Stanley Project will begin, when I am reading this book to my students.

As time goes on, Arthur becomes more and more jealous of Stanley and the attention he is receiving. Arthur even goes to the extent of laying on the floor and placing books on top of himself, so he too can be flat. After a few incidents, Mr. and Mrs. Lambchop talked to Stanley about his brother's behavior and they suggested to help him by being nice, since he was the big brother. Stanley decided to help his brother out by being a kite, since his brother really wanted to fly a kite. Stanley did all sorts of tricks in the air, and his brother had many people coming up to him. He brother was finally the show off with the attention.

Stanley also used his flatness to help an art gallery owner catch thieves  by pretending to be a painting in the museum. He was able to spot them, and alerted the police. The next day his face was all over the newspapers. After awhile, he grew tired of always being spotted and started to be made fun of. While his brother was comforting him, Arthur had a wild idea. Use an air pump to inflate Stanley, so he could be round again. After a few pumps, Stanley was normal again! The book ended when everyone said goodnight and they all went to sleep.

This was a fantastic book! I am really excited to read the rest of the series and come up with ideas for my future classroom to incorporate this book into lessons. This book can go in many directions from kindness to geography and exploring the world. The options are endless!