Saturday, April 1, 2017

Module 9: Fake Mustache

Summary
In Fake Mustache, the main character, Lenny, must stop his best friend from taking over America.  It all starts when Lenny’s friend, Casper, buys the Heidelberg Handlebar #7 mustache at the local store.  It turns out that the mustache is made from real hair, and the hair was originally taken from a prisoner against his will.  The mustache carries powers to hypnotize people, and corrupt the actions of whoever wears it.  What follows is a crazy scramble to save the day and return America back to normal.  Lenny finds young love and brings his friend back from the brink of national disaster.

Angleberger, T. (2012). Fake mustache or how Jodie O'Rodeo and her wonder horse and some hero kid saved the U.S. presidential election from a mad genius criminal mastermind. New York, Amulet Books.

Impressions
The events and storyline are quite silly and unbelievable, but it’s told with the type of humor that many 8-11 year old boys would probably find hilarious.  There is a girl heroine as well, and she literally saves the day by riding her horse on to the stage and lassoing Casper before he takes over America.  The two heroes even steal a kiss in the end, so there is a touch of romance in the book.  I found it somewhat hard to stay engaged in the story.  It was just a little too silly for me, and the characters stayed fairly superficial.  I’m glad, though, that Angleberger writes these types of books because it does appeal to some of the boys in my class that struggle to find something to read.  The vocabulary and interest level is more varied than the typical informational books they tend to select, and at 208 pages it’s an entertaining way for them to stretch their stamina for reading.  If any of your 3-5 grade students are looking for a silly story with a few twists and turns then they might enjoy this 2012 book from Angleberger, especially if they like his Origami Yoda series.

Professional Review
If the Origami Yoda books hint that Angleberger is just a kid at heart, this madcap adventure seals the deal.  Set in the town of Hairsprinkle, it stars seventh-grader Lenny Flem Jr., whose life is upended when his best friend, Casper Bengue, buys a fancy suit and an expensive fake mustache: the Heidelbery Handlebar #7.  Soon after, billion dollar robberies start occurring in Hair-sprinkle, and a mysterious man named Fako Mustacho is quickly becoming a local celebrity--one with major political aspirations.  Lenny is sure Casper is behind it all, but with the population under the spell of Fako Mustacho's fabulous mustache, it's up to Lenny and TV star Jodie O'Rodeo (think Hannah Montana crossed with Sandy the squirrel from SpongeBob SquarePants) to save the day.  And naturally, a crisis caused by a fake mustache can only be fixed with gag items like a Nasal Gun and an Ultra-Sticky-Stretchy Grabber Hand. There's no twist too goofy or absurd as Angleberger pulls out all the stops for this unabashedly silly story.

Publisher's Weekly. (2012). [Book review of Fake Mustache by T. Angleberger.] Retrieved from http://www.publishersweekly.com/978-1-4197-0194-8 

Library Uses
This book would provide young readers with an alternate type of mystery, one with fantastical adventures and humor.  Mysteries for elementary age readers vary greatly, and a comparison and contrast activity would be helpful for students so they could see all of the possibilities withing this genre.  Small groups could study templates for mysteries and then develop characters, problems, events, and solutions.  This could tie in nicely with classroom activities related to mystery genre studies, plays, and science.  Often mysteries use science to solve crimes, and this story has science related ideas that could be explored. 

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