Alexander and the Terrible, Horrible, No Good, Very Bad Day
Encyclopedia
Alexander and the Terrible, Horrible, No Good, Very Bad Day, published in 1972, is an ALA Notable Children's Book
written by Judith Viorst
and illustrated by Ray Cruz. It has also won a George G. Stone Center Recognition of Merit, a Georgia Children's Book Award, and is a Reading Rainbow
book. Viorst followed this book up with a sequel, Alexander and the Wonderful, Marvelous, Excellent, Terrific Ninety Days.
On the way to school, he doesn't get the window seat in the car-pool. At school, his teacher, Mrs. Dickens doesn't like his picture of the invisible castle (which is actually just a blank sheet of paper), criticizes him for singing too loud and leaving out 16. His friend, Paul deserts him to his third best friend and there is no dessert in his lunch.
At the dentist's, Dr. Fields tells Alexander he has a cavity, the elevator door closes on his foot, Anthony accidentally pushes him in the mud, Nick says he is a crybaby for crying, and Mom punishes him in the act of punching Nick.
At the shoe store, they're sold out of Alexander's choice of sneakers (blue ones with red stripes), so Mom has to force him to buy himself plain white sneakers, which he refuses to wear.
At Dad's office, Alexander makes a mess of things when he fools around with everything there (the copying machine, the books, and the telephone) getting to the point where Dad tells him not to pick him up from work anymore.
At home, the family has lima beans for dinner (which he hates), there is kissing on TV (which he also hates), bath time becomes a nightmare (too hot water, soap in his eyes, and losing a marble down the drain) and he has to wear his railroad train pajamas (he hates his railroad train pajamas).
At bedtime, his nightlight burns out, he bites his tongue, Nick takes back a pillow, and the family cat chooses to sleep with Anthony. No wonder Alexander wants to move to Australia
. The book ends with Mom's assurance that everybody has bad days, even people who live in Australia.
In the Australian and New Zealand
versions, he wants to move to Timbuktu
, not Australia.
that aired on HBO in the United States
. It was produced by Neptuno Films.
While the special remained true to the book, there were some differences from the original book that are as follows:
1. Dad has no mustache like he did in the book, Anthony has brown hair instead of blonde hair, Nick has blonde hair instead of brown hair and wears glasses, and the family cat is named Timothy (the cat's name wasn't mentioned in the book).
2. Aside from the running gag of Alexander making references to Australia, they added another running gag in the special: Alexander searches for his favorite yo-yo; a purple glow in the dark one at home, school, and Dad's office.
3. Several other bad things for Alexander were added to the special:
4. Three good things were added to the special to show the audience that even a bad day can have some good in it:
5. Although mentioned, the following bad things were cut from the special.
The special also included three original songs:
composed the music, Viorst wrote the lyrics, and the musical score was composed by Shelly Markham. The productions have been performed around the country.
Other characters in the play are Audrey, Becky and many others.
Currently, the Coterie Theatre is putting on a musical based on the book.
, often used by bloggers, and sometimes by mainstream media, to criticize, or characterize setbacks for, an individual or political movement.
American Library Association
The American Library Association is a non-profit organization based in the United States that promotes libraries and library education internationally. It is the oldest and largest library association in the world, with more than 62,000 members....
written by Judith Viorst
Judith Viorst
Judith Viorst is an American author, newspaper journalist, and psychoanalysis researcher. She is perhaps best known for her children's literature, such as The Tenth Good Thing About Barney and the Alexander series of short picture books.In 1968, Viorst signed the “Writers and Editors War Tax...
and illustrated by Ray Cruz. It has also won a George G. Stone Center Recognition of Merit, a Georgia Children's Book Award, and is a Reading Rainbow
Reading Rainbow
Reading Rainbow is an American children's television series aired by PBS from June 6, 1983 until November 10, 2006 that encouraged reading among children. The award-winning public television series garnered over 200 broadcast awards, including scores of Emmy Awards, many for "Outstanding Children's...
book. Viorst followed this book up with a sequel, Alexander and the Wonderful, Marvelous, Excellent, Terrific Ninety Days.
Plot
From the moment Alexander wakes up with gum in his hair, things just don't go Alexander's way. When Alexander gets out of bed, he trips on the skateboard and drops his sweater into the sink while the water was running. At breakfast, Alexander's brothers, Anthony and Nick reach into their cereal boxes and find amazing prizes while Alexander ends up with cereal.On the way to school, he doesn't get the window seat in the car-pool. At school, his teacher, Mrs. Dickens doesn't like his picture of the invisible castle (which is actually just a blank sheet of paper), criticizes him for singing too loud and leaving out 16. His friend, Paul deserts him to his third best friend and there is no dessert in his lunch.
At the dentist's, Dr. Fields tells Alexander he has a cavity, the elevator door closes on his foot, Anthony accidentally pushes him in the mud, Nick says he is a crybaby for crying, and Mom punishes him in the act of punching Nick.
At the shoe store, they're sold out of Alexander's choice of sneakers (blue ones with red stripes), so Mom has to force him to buy himself plain white sneakers, which he refuses to wear.
At Dad's office, Alexander makes a mess of things when he fools around with everything there (the copying machine, the books, and the telephone) getting to the point where Dad tells him not to pick him up from work anymore.
At home, the family has lima beans for dinner (which he hates), there is kissing on TV (which he also hates), bath time becomes a nightmare (too hot water, soap in his eyes, and losing a marble down the drain) and he has to wear his railroad train pajamas (he hates his railroad train pajamas).
At bedtime, his nightlight burns out, he bites his tongue, Nick takes back a pillow, and the family cat chooses to sleep with Anthony. No wonder Alexander wants to move to Australia
Australia
Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
. The book ends with Mom's assurance that everybody has bad days, even people who live in Australia.
In the Australian and New Zealand
New Zealand
New Zealand is an island country in the south-western Pacific Ocean comprising two main landmasses and numerous smaller islands. The country is situated some east of Australia across the Tasman Sea, and roughly south of the Pacific island nations of New Caledonia, Fiji, and Tonga...
versions, he wants to move to Timbuktu
Timbuktu
Timbuktu , formerly also spelled Timbuctoo, is a town in the West African nation of Mali situated north of the River Niger on the southern edge of the Sahara Desert. The town is the capital of the Timbuktu Region, one of the eight administrative regions of Mali...
, not Australia.
TV adaption
In 1990, the book was adapted into a half-hour animated musical television specialTelevision special
A television special is a television program which interrupts or temporarily replaces programming normally scheduled for a given time slot. Sometimes, however, the term is given to a telecast of a theatrical film, such as The Wizard of Oz or The Ten Commandments, which is not part of a regular...
that aired on HBO in the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
. It was produced by Neptuno Films.
While the special remained true to the book, there were some differences from the original book that are as follows:
1. Dad has no mustache like he did in the book, Anthony has brown hair instead of blonde hair, Nick has blonde hair instead of brown hair and wears glasses, and the family cat is named Timothy (the cat's name wasn't mentioned in the book).
2. Aside from the running gag of Alexander making references to Australia, they added another running gag in the special: Alexander searches for his favorite yo-yo; a purple glow in the dark one at home, school, and Dad's office.
3. Several other bad things for Alexander were added to the special:
- Alexander pulling out a drawer too far, making it land on his foot.
- Alexander spilling breakfast cereal on the floor while searching for the free prize.
- Alexander's friends refusing to let him play Monkey in the Middle with them.
- Alexander singing "roll" and "merlily" in the "Row, Row, Row Your BoatRow, Row, Row Your Boat"Row, Row, Row Your Boat" is an English language nursery rhyme, and a popular children's song, often sung as a round. It can also be an 'action' nursery rhyme where singers sit opposite one another and 'row' forwards and backwards with joined hands...
" song. - Alexander's friends teasing him for going to the dentist when he explains why he can't come play ball with them.
- Alexander fooling around with the toothpaste, dentist chair, and tray during his dentist appointment.
- The shoe store man turning down Alexander's alternate choice of sneakers (green ones).
- Dad unfairly punishes Alexander for playing with the copying machine and knocking the books off his desk by forcing him to sit on the couch for a timeoutChild time-outA time-out involves temporarily separating a child from an environment where inappropriate behavior has occurred, and is intended to give an over-excited child time to calm down and thereby discouraging such behavior. It is an educational and parenting technique recommended by some pediatricians...
when he didn't even do those things on purpose.
4. Three good things were added to the special to show the audience that even a bad day can have some good in it:
- Anthony and Nick making up for what they did to Alexander while waiting for Mom to pick up the car.
- Mom finding Alexander's favorite yo-yo in the closet while turning out the closet light.
- Before the special closes out to the credits, Timothy changes his mind and sleeps with Alexander while Alexander is telling us how Mom says everybody has bad days, even in Australia.
5. Although mentioned, the following bad things were cut from the special.
- The family eating lima beans for dinner.
- Alexander watching kissing on TV.
- Alexander's bath making the evening worse for him.
The special also included three original songs:
- "So much to do, so little time in the morning"
- "If I could be the only child"
- "I've had a terrible, horrible, no good, very bad day"
Theater
In 1998, Viorst and the Kennedy Center joined together to turn the book into a musical production. Charles StrouseCharles Strouse
Charles Strouse is an American composer and lyricist.-Life and career:Strouse was born and raised in New York City, the son of Ira and Ethel Strouse...
composed the music, Viorst wrote the lyrics, and the musical score was composed by Shelly Markham. The productions have been performed around the country.
Other characters in the play are Audrey, Becky and many others.
Currently, the Coterie Theatre is putting on a musical based on the book.
Characters
Alexander and his two older brothers, Anthony and Nick, are based on Viorst's own three sons of the same names.Influence
The phrase "terrible, horrible, no good, very bad..." has become an Internet memeInternet meme
The term Internet meme is used to describe a concept that spreads via the Internet. The term is a reference to the concept of memes, although the latter concept refers to a much broader category of cultural information.-Description:...
, often used by bloggers, and sometimes by mainstream media, to criticize, or characterize setbacks for, an individual or political movement.