Dear Judy…Love, Judy

Dear Judy Moody,

You and I have a lot in common. We have the same name (spelled with a “y” and not an “ie” or an “i”). We are both older sisters. We both love to read. And we both collect Band-Aids—you like to decorate them, and I like to stick them on the soles of my new shoes so they aren’t slippery.

We both have messy hair and we both are not good at everything. We have big moods (and big mood swings) and we hope the people in our lives understand that it’s okay to be mad when our little brothers (and not-so-little grown-ups) are driving us crazy.

We both like to help all kids see themselves in the books they read. I do it for my job at Scholastic Book Clubs, and you do it as the main character in a funny, beloved chapter book series that has made millions and millions of kids proudly shout, “Double Rare! I am a reader!”

I know our friend Megan McDonald was participating in a writer-in-residence program at an elementary school when she first thought about you. The third grade students were making “All About Me” collages, and she got the idea that you could star in a book about a kid making a collage too.

The only problem was: Megan’s first draft was hundreds of pages long because she had so much to say about you! Her editor told her there was no way kids could make it through all those chapters.

Like you and I have to do all the time, Megan put on her listening ears and cut some chapters (even though she wasn’t happy about it), and the first book about you, Judy Moody Was in a Mood, was published in 2000. Two years later, Megan took some of those original chapters that she had to cut and turned them into one of my favorite books about you: Judy Moody Saves the World! My friends at Scholastic Book Clubs and I love this book so much, we made it our Book of the Week. Roar!

As of today, no one has written a book about me, but I am happy to see that a lot of what you go through in Judy Moody Saves the World! (and in all of your books) reminds me of myself—and so many kids I know. I try to win contests like you do in the Band-Aid competition and I try to make myself feel better if I lose. Just like you, I want us all to take good care of our planet and I want to make sure I do my part for the environment.

And if someone does write a chapter book about me, I would want it to be illustrated by Peter H. Reynolds too, whom I love. Another thing we have in common!

I think the reason so many kids (and grown-ups like me) love to read your books is because you are the “everykid.” You have ups and downs and you make a lot of mistakes, but you learn from them and you never let them stop you from being you. And I think that’s Yankee Doodle Dandy.

We don’t want students to feel like learning is a math-ternity, so we’ve created some fun resources to get them ready to read (and save the world!):

• Max, Allister, and Elliott—the Scholastic Book Clubs Book Boys—sing and dance in this for sure and absolute fun brand-new music video.

• Krista Gedney, who teaches fourth grade in New Rochelle, New York, shares how she uses Judy Moody Saves the World! to teach her students about world-saving and writing in Book Talks.

• Our friend, the wonderful author Megan McDonald, did an interview to explain to kids and teachers why you are her most favorite third grader ever, and how a Band-Aid inspired your story in Behind the Scenes.

• Kids who want to be just like you can download and create their own way rad Crazy Strip bandage design in Cooked Up from a Book.

We also want to make sure students know that they’re never too little to make a big difference! That’s why in addition to the $1 Book of the Week, we’ve created inflation-busting savings, exclusive author events, live read-aloud shows, and fun contests to help teachers (like your teacher, Mr. Todd) inspire their readers to be the next changemakers in the world.

From one Judy to another, thank you for being such a wonderful reading friend.

Readers, please feel free to reach out anytime at judy.newman@scholastic.com. I’d love to hear from you!

XX,

Judy