Piper Reed Gets a Job

Piper Reed Gets a Job by Kimberly Willis Holt, pictures by Christine Davenier is a fun novel for children ages 8-10. Piper Reed Gets a Job is a fun novel that I think all pre-teens could read. It is about an 11 year old girl, Piper, and all the different jobs she comes up with. Holt did a good job, in my opinion, getting in the head of a young girl because the language sounded like language that would come out of the mouth of a young girl as well as the thoughts she had. Piper and three of her friends want a clubhouse for their Gypsy club, but the club house they want is $1999. Her older sister has to get a job babysitting to help raise money for a trip to England; her younger sister becomes an author to make money for something she wants; Piper makes up a business that helps plan birthday parties. Piper gets her first job opportunity with the neighbors 3rd birthday. Everytime a new job opportunity comes up Piper makes a sign that says 'substitute babysitter' for example, so then she can have another job, or another way to make money. Throughout the novel Piper also has a research paper that she keeps putting off to do all the other stuff she is trying to be involved in. This book is a fun way to show pre-teens responsibility things they may learn when things do not go according to plan. I decided to read this book because the cover, title, and inside blurp entriged me to wonder what would happen in this book. The back of the book has Piper's to do list as well as her reflection list. I have heard from some kids I work with that they liked reading a Piper Reed book, so when I saw it, it made me want to read it to see how it was. I would recommend this book being read by pre-teens and could even be a read-aloud in a classroom.