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    Charlie Joe Jackson's Guide to Extra Credit
    Charlie Joe Jackson's Guide to Extra Credit
    Charlie Joe Jackson's Guide to Extra Credit
    Ebook253 pages2 hours

    Charlie Joe Jackson's Guide to Extra Credit

    By Tommy Greenwald and JP Coovert

    3.5/5

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    About this ebook

    Charlie Joe Jackson, the most reluctant reader ever born, made it his mission in the first book to get through middle school without reading a single book from cover to cover. Now he's back, and trying desperately to get straight A's in order to avoid going to academic camp for the summer. In order to do this, he will have to betray his friend, lose the girl of his dreams, and end up acting in a school play about the inventor of paper towels. Charlie Joe's not exactly the "school play kind of guy", but desperate times call for desperate measures.

    LanguageEnglish
    PublisherMacmillan Publishers
    Release dateAug 7, 2012
    ISBN9781429955430
    Author

    Tommy Greenwald

    Tommy Greenwald--according to his wife, Cathy--has the maturity level of a thirteen-year-old, which makes him uniquely qualified to write this book. He has had the best time ever writing the Charlie Joe Jackson series, and is looking forward to his next challenge, which may involve dogs, or chocolate, or both. He is also the author of Jack Strong Takes a Stand and Katie Friedman Gives Up Texting! (And Lives to Tell About It). To read annoyingly outdated information about Tommy, please visit tommygreenwald.com. @tommygreenwald

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    Reviews for Charlie Joe Jackson's Guide to Extra Credit

    3.5/5

    89 ratings17 reviews

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    • 3/5
      I'm not a big fan of books with cartoons in them, like Diary of a Wimpy Kid, but I do recognize that there's a big market for them, and that they are just right for certain readers. This is a humourous book about a boy who has to read a book for school, and his usual avoidance techniques don't work, which catapults him into all kinds of trouble. Definitely will be appreciated by Wimpy Kid fans.
    • 5/5
      Charlie Joe Jackson guide to not reading is a book about Charlie not reading and struggling to get through school. The story begins where Charlie is assigned his assignment to read the book Billy's Bargain. as usual he tries to get his friend to read it for him. They have a bargain Charlie buys his friend an ice-cream sandwich. However he can't because his friend doesn't want to help him. Then his sister reads the book and Charlie gets an A. After that Charlie has to write a position paper so he can move on to the next grade. His topic is on groups of students (nerds, jocks, etc.).Of course he has to read books but gets his other friend to read his books. Lastly his friends tattle on Charlie because he never read anything. I think this is a great book because it is funny. It also has tips on how to not read. This book has great characters with great personalities. I highly recommend this book. This highly recommended book has a great story line that must have been perfectly thought out. I hope you read it and enjoy it.
    • 2/5
      Charlie Joe Jackson is trying to get out of reading. He's been trying this scheme for several years And has gotten away with it that is until his "reader" has told on him. After his punishment you would have thought he has finally accepted that he should read, but this time he comes up with an even better idea. He will lose his unanswered love for Hannah though but that is the price he is willing to pay. Katie his best friend thinks he is nuts. This time it is a position paper Charlie joe has to write and complete a couple of books to back up his research. The book is written in the first person as a how to guide with tips and lists. It's odd though to find out who the audience is supposed to be since Charlie joe talks a lot about girls and going out.
    • 4/5
      Ha Ha! Charlie says he's not going to write a book with lots of words, but can he really do it? Ha Ha! The joke's on Charlie. I enjoyed the effort he put into not reading. Have you ever thought about what you read that's not a book?
    • 3/5
      Charlie Joe Jackson REALLY hates to read. For twelve glorious years he has managed to avoid it almost completely (exception: Shel Silverstein's "The Giving Tree" because it only has 62 words). But middle school is proving difficult ground to manipulate his way around the written word. It doesn't help that his best book-reading buddy has begun to blackmail him, and now there are girls to pay attention to too. But Charlie Joe comes up with a daring master plan that almost works. This is a quick and fun read for this adult and has plenty of laughs to keep a reluctant reader, especially a boy, turning the pages.
    • 4/5
      Charlie Joe Jackson really dislikes reading books - and after getting away with it for so long he has a reputation to protect. So when his plans are thwarted and it looks like he may have to - read a book - to what lengths will he go to keep his perfect score intact?

      This book had me laughing out loud and smiling throughout the story. Charlie Joe is an immensely likeable character who keeps getting into trouble as his grand plans for not reading go awry. The book is written with tips for not reading alternating with the story of how the story came to be. The writing really draws you in, the characters are realistic and the story is truly funny. This is the first book in a series and I am looking forward to reading the next.
    • 4/5
      Charlie Joe Jackson is famous for never having read an entire book in his short but dazzling school career; middle school has made this a challenge; one that he enthusiastically accepts. Once his agreement with his classmate Timmy falls apart, Charlie Joe desperately seeks to hold on to his non-reading record while he navigates the social climate of his middle school. As it turns out, he simultaneously fails and succeeds (you’ll see) and the book is a result. Charlie Joe Jackson’s guide is “written by” a reluctant reader, for reluctant readers. The narrator promises short sentences, words, and chapters and is sprinkled with hilarious tips for keeping reading to a minimal. As a result, there are sometimes awkwardly placed breaks that are just unobtrusive enough to not break concentration. Despite choppy arrangement, the book reads quickly, mostly because of the narrator’s easy-going, conversational tone. Readers (reluctant or not) will find something to appreciate about it.
    • 3/5
      o say that Charlie Joe Jackson didn’t like to read would be a huge understatement. He would do anything, at any cost, to avoid reading. (Sound like anyone you know?)

      Charlie Joe managed to make it to middle school without ever having read an entire book.  He had a plan, and it worked for him…until now! His friend Timmy no longer was willing to accept ice cream sandwiches in exchange for telling Charlie Joe about the books he should have read.

      You might think that Charlie Joe would realize it was time to start doing his own reading.  Yeah, right!  More scheming and plotting ensues.  Will he get through middle school with his non-reading record intact?

      This is a fun, fast read that even Charlie Joe Jackson would enjoy if he weren’t so busy trying to NOT read!

      Oh, and if you too are a non-reader and aren't convinced this book is worth picking up, you may want to read it just for the Tips for NOT reading that Charlie Joe provides throughout the book, starting with “If you have to read a book, make sure it has short chapters.” 
    • 4/5
      Lots of reviewers said reluctant readers would like this amusing book. I'm not so sure. However, I do believe that kids who like to read will like it. Charlie Joe hates to read (his father was too enthusiastic about turning him into a reader, so all of his birthday presents when he turned 6 were classic books meant for a much older reader -- what a turnoff!) so has gone into complicated contortions to avoid reading. He buys snacks for a friend so he'll read Charlie Joe's books and give him synopses of them. When his friend won't read for him any more and his big project is looming, he hatches a creative scheme that at first is a huge success, but then crashes and burns and gets him into more trouble than ever before. Charlie Joe pays his debt, but happily this doesn't turn into a book where the protagonist learns his lesson at the end -- he continues to hate reading and supposedly comes up with even more plans to avoid it his next school year, but the reader clearly can see that he would have been far better off if he had just read the books himself.
    • 5/5
      Even though the title of this book makes you believe that reading books is the cardinal sin of the land, it is actually very enjoyable and perhaps may want to make you read even more. I know that I am not in the age range that this book was intended for, which is along the middle school age line, but I still found it very fun and easy to breeze through. The main character, Charlie Joe, is endearing to me, despite his disdain for reading. I would recommend this for any age group, as it has a few good lessons along the way.
    • 3/5
      Charlie Joe has made it all the way to middle school without ever reading a full book cover to cover. He's plenty smart--smart enough to find ways to get out of reading, while still looking like he's done it. Charlie Joe's brains don't extend to other people, though, and his schemes backfire in a variety of ways. His helpful tips on not reading ("if you have to read a book, don't care about the main character") keep the tone light, but you can't help get sucked into Charlie Joe's world anyway.

      A decent Wimpy Kid readalike, and worth booktalking at the middle school next month.
    • 3/5
      Charlie Joe hates to read and will do just about anything to avoid it. Sometimes the avoidance is more work than reading the book would have been, and it certainly gets him in a lot more trouble. With a major research paper due, and his best friend refusing to do the work for him, Charlie Joe needs to get very creative to get the required reading done for him.
    • 3/5
      3.5 I wasn't a huge fan BUT I know readers who will absolutely love this book. They are the intended audience, so 3 stars for me and 4 stars for many young readers.
    • 3/5
      Charlie Joe Jackson is NOT a reader. In fact, he's gotten by without actually reading any books for years thanks to a sweet deal with a kid in his class. Charlie Joe's here to offer his expert advice and tips on how NOT to read. This is a funny book with a little bit of a heartfelt story behind the gimmick. It's Diary of a Wimpy Kid meets Andrew Clements and I'd hand it to fans of either.I listened to the audio, narrated by the fantastic Macleod Andrews and he's a great fit for this book. His voiced performance brings out the humor and makes this book a pleasure to listen to.
    • 5/5
      "CHARLIE JOE JACKSON'S, GUIDE TO NOT READING" BY TOMMY GREENWALD (REVIEW)WARNING! CLEAR ALL CHILDREN FROM THE ROOM BEFORE READING THIS REVIEW! This is a delightful book for middle grade children that actually makes them want to read regardless of the title. It turns out that this book is a clever reverse psychology tool that you can use to get your kids to read regardless of their determination not to.The book is extremely imaginative and written for fun! When Charlie Joe loses his link to NOT reading books, he finds himself coming up with ways to get around actually reading and still being able to figure out what the book is about. The ending is GREAT!Definitely pick up this book for your child or children whether they enjoy reading or not! It's a fantastic read!-Kitty Bullard / Great Minds Think Aloud Book Club
    • 4/5
      Charlie is funny and likable, with a touch of the cocky charmer. Just enough that you know his type and know you'll probably let him get away with too much. He's not interested in reading, but is smart and capable and knows how both he and his story come off. Self-reflexive reluctant reader fare.
    • 3/5
      Charlie Joe Jackson is the most avid non-reader you might ever meet; complete with lists and suggestions for avoiding the dreaded task - how well will his techniques hold up now that he is in middle school? With lists and illustration this is sure to be popular with Wimpy Kid fans.

    Book preview

    Charlie Joe Jackson's Guide to Extra Credit - Tommy Greenwald

    1

    Let’s go back to the beginning: Report Card Day.

    2

    You probably already know that books and me don’t get along.

    And I’m not exactly what you’d call the most studious kid in the world.

    In elementary school, that didn’t really matter. I’d make my teachers laugh, and I’d participate in class, and I’d do just enough to get pretty good grades.

    But everything changed in middle school. All of a sudden, the teachers expected me to actually read all the books and to pay close attention in class.

    School turned out to be a lot more like school than it used to be.

    Which is how Report Card Days became my least favorite days of the year.

    So what’s the plan? said my buddy, the ridiculously brilliant and unnecessarily hard-working Jake Katz. We were sitting at lunch. He asked me that every Report Card Day, as if I had some grand scheme to leave school in the middle of the day, go to my parents’ computer, print out my report card (then delete the e-mail), find the nearest report-card-forgery expert and have him change all my C pluses to A minuses.

    I don’t have a plan, I answered. Jake looked disappointed. I was pretty famous for my plans.

    My grades are definitely up this quarter, chimed in Timmy McGibney, my oldest and most annoying friend.

    That’s super, I said, but I don’t want to talk about report cards right now.

    I felt nervous, and I wasn’t used to feeling nervous. I could usually get myself out of pretty much any bad situation, but going home to a lousy report card was kind of like going to a scary movie with your friends even though you hate scary movies. There was no way out.

    I took a big swig of chocolate milk and immediately felt better. Chocolate milk is like that.

    Let’s talk about something happy, I suggested, like the fact that this is the last quarter of the year. Summer is right around the corner. Summer was my favorite time of year, by far. No school. No books. No report cards. There was absolutely nothing wrong with summer.

    Then Hannah Spivero came up to our table and put her arm around Jake Katz, and I immediately felt worse again. Hannah Spivero is like that.

    (Hannah, for those of you who have been living under a rock, happens to be the girl of my dreams. Only now, those dreams are nightmares, ever since she shocked the entire nation by deciding to like Jake Katz.)

    Right behind Hannah was Eliza Collins and her adoring gang of followers, who I like to call the Elizettes. Eliza is the prettiest girl in school and has had a crush on me since third grade. The combination of those two things didn’t make sense to anyone, especially me.

    Did I just hear someone mention summer? Eliza asked. What perfect timing! The girls and I have decided to form a Summer Planning Committee. Then she looked right at me. It’s coming up fast, and we need to make sure we have the best summer ever!

    Everyone cheered.

    Eliza was used to people cheering in her presence, so she ignored it.

    The first meeting of the committee is this Saturday at my house, and you’re all invited, she added.

    Another cheer.

    Hannah looked at Jake. We have plans to go to the mall this Saturday.

    I’ll go to the mall with you, I thought.

    Maybe we can go to the mall on Sunday, Jake said. The Summer Planning Committee sounds fun.

    I couldn’t believe my ears. Passing up alone time with Hannah Spivero went against everything I stood for as a person. Okay, sure, Hannah said, but I could tell she was a little disappointed.

    What’s wrong, Charlie Joe? Eliza asked cheerfully. Since she liked me and I didn’t like her back, seeing me unhappy always made her happy.

    Charlie Joe is feeling nervous about his report card, Timmy announced. He was another kid who enjoyed my misery.

    I am not.

    Hannah put her hand on my shoulder, probably figuring she could help me forget my troubles and make me feel all warm inside from just the tiniest bit of physical contact. (She was right, but that’s beside the point.)

    Oh, Charlie Joe, I’m not worried. You’ll probably figure out a way to convince everyone that C’s are the new A’s. I’m sure your parents will be taking you to Disneyland by the time you get through with them.

    Everyone laughed—it was a perfectly okay joke—but for some reason Timmy decided it was unbelievably hilarious, and instead of laughing he snorted apple juice through his nose and all over my fish sticks.

    Great. Not only was I going to be nervous the rest of the day, I’d be starving, as well.

    Timmy looked at the soggy fish sticks.

    Are you going to eat those? he asked.

    He’d eaten three of them before I could answer.

    Charlie Joe’s Tip #2

    YOU CAN’T GO THROUGH LIFE THINKING YOU’LL GET EXTRA CREDIT JUST FOR DOING NORMAL STUFF.

    There’s extra credit … and then there’s just regular credit. Getting regular credit for something just means you’ve avoided getting in trouble. If you want to actually get rewarded, you have to do more than what’s expected. That’s where the extra part of extra credit comes from.

    Here are some things that I used to think would give me extra credit but didn’t:

      1. Wearing matching socks

      2. Turning in homework

      3. Not swearing

      4. Brushing my teeth

      5. Eating salad

    3

    As I went to put my tray away after lunch, I saw my unofficial best friend Katie Friedman talking to her friend Nareem Ramdal. They were in the gifted program together. The gifted program was supposedly to help challenge the really smart kids, but I think it might have been more for their parents, who could brag to their friends about it at dinner parties.

    I’m telling you, after Brian Jones died, the Rolling Stones lost some of their weird creativity that they never got back, Katie was saying to Nareem. He nodded, even though it was obvious he had no idea what Katie was talking about.

    Hey, sorry to interrupt, I interrupted.

    Katie looked at me. Charlie Joe, what’s your favorite Rolling Stones song?

    Um, I’m more of a Beatles guy. But I guess ‘Satisfaction.’

    She shook her head. What a cliché.

    I pulled Katie over to the vending machine, which used to have candy and soda but now had vegetable snacks and tomato juice.

    Katie was a little annoyed—she didn’t like being interrupted when she was talking about classic rock. What’s up?

    It’s Report Card Day.

    Why do you insist on calling it Report Card Day? Nobody does that but you. Her phone beeped—incoming!—but she ignored it. Are your grades going to be mediocre as usual?

    I wasn’t exactly sure what mediocre meant, but I nodded. Would I be talking to you if they weren’t? I need to know what to say to my parents.

    Listen, Charlie Joe, Katie began, but her phone beeped again. It was clear she’d rather be texting her friends than talking to me about my bad study habits. I can’t really help you with this one. You’re a really smart kid, but you hate to read and you hate to study. Your homework is always late and always lazy. And even in the easy classes, you find a way to get on the teachers’ nerves all the time. So what do you expect? I’m not sure why four days out of the year you suddenly get all guilty and upset about it. It’s who you are.

    I thought about that for a second. So what you’re saying is I should tell my parents that they should just love me for who I am, lousy grades and all?

    Katie bought herself a bag of carrot sticks, which are like potato chips without the goodness.

    I think it’s a good place to start, she said, chomping away like a very intelligent rabbit. Where you finish is up to you.

    4

    I brought Pete Milano home with me after school because he was the one kid who could be counted on to make my report card look good. Pete had somehow figured out how to fail music, which takes talent.

    Dude, I will totally come with you, Pete said, when I invited him over. The last place I want to be right now is at my house. My mom is going to be super ripping mad at me. Then he cracked

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