Author | Louis Sachar |
---|---|
Country | United States |
Language | English |
Publisher | Knopf (h/b) Avon Books (p/b) |
Publication date | 1981 |
Pages | 128 |
ISBN | 0-679-90411-5 |
Johnny's in the Basement is a children's novel by the author Louis Sachar, the author of the National Book Award and Newbery Medal winning novel, Holes . [1] This book was published in 1981, by Knopf. It is Sachar's second book ( Sideways Stories from Wayside School was his first, in 1978). [2] The book's title is a reference to the song "Subterranean Homesick Blues" by Bob Dylan, which begins with the line "Johnny's in the basement mixing up the medicine."
The book remained popular for many years. [3] [4] According to WorldCat , the book is held in 446 libraries. [5]
Reviewers consider the book "full of sly humor", [6] and "another corker" [7] It is also described as "a preadolescent way to show contempt for adults' exploitation." [8] A film named Johnny's in the Basement was planned, but it was canceled on May 2, 2003.
Johnny, who has just turned 11 years old, goes in the basement where nobody bothers him. His parents want him to grow up and go to dance class. [9] They also want Johnny to get rid of his bottle cap collection. At dance class Johnny meets a girl named Valerie who also hates dance class, but likes Johnny. Johnny sells his bottle cap collection, and he and Valerie spend the $86.33 they receive for it on miscellaneous impractical items.
Judith Blume is an American writer of children's, young adult and adult fiction. Blume began writing in 1959 and has published more than 25 novels. Among her best-known works are Are You There God? It's Me, Margaret (1970), Tales of a Fourth Grade Nothing (1972), Deenie (1973), and Blubber (1974). Blume's books have significantly contributed to children's and young adult literature.
Louis Sachar is an American young-adult mystery-comedy author. He is best known for the Wayside School series and the novel Holes.
Robert Sward was an American and Canadian poet and novelist.
Laurence Edward Alan Lee, was an English poet, novelist and screenwriter, who was brought up in the small village of Slad in Gloucestershire.
Everyman's Library is a series of reprints of classic literature, primarily from the Western canon. It is currently published in hardback by Random House. It was originally an imprint of J. M. Dent, who continue to publish Everyman Paperbacks.
Mona Jane Van Duyn was an American poet. She was appointed United States Poet Laureate in 1992.
Holes is a 1998 young adult novel written by Louis Sachar and first published by Farrar, Straus and Giroux. The book centers on Stanley Yelnats, who is sent to Camp Green Lake, a correctional boot camp in a desert in Texas, after being falsely accused of theft. The plot explores the history of the area and how the actions of several characters in the past have affected Stanley's life in the present. These interconnecting stories touch on themes such as racism, homelessness, illiteracy, and arranged marriage.
Abram Leon Sachar was an American historian and founding president of Brandeis University.
Robert Adams Gottlieb is an American writer and editor. He has been editor-in-chief of Simon & Schuster, Alfred A. Knopf, and The New Yorker.
Howard Morley Sachar was an American historian. He was Professor Emeritus of History and International Affairs at the George Washington University in Washington, D.C. and the author of 16 books, as well as numerous articles in scholarly journals, on the subjects of Middle Eastern and Modern European history. His writings, which have been published in six languages, are widely regarded as solid reference works.
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Small Steps is a 2006 novel for young adults by Louis Sachar, first published by Delacorte Books (Dell). It is a spinoff and the sequel to Holes, focusing on Theodore "Armpit" Johnson, a secondary character from Holes. Stanley Yelnats, the main character of Holes, is only briefly and indirectly mentioned.
Stanley Yelnats' Survival Guide to Camp Green Lake is a 2003 novel for young adults by Louis Sachar, first published by Yearling Books. It is the second in a series inaugurated in 1998 by the award-winning Holes.
Sonia Wolff Levitin is a German-American novelist, artist, producer. Levitin, a Holocaust survivor, has written over forty novels and picture books for young adults and children, as well as several theatrical plays and published essays on various topics for adults.
James Haskins was an American author with more than 100 books for both adults and children. Many of his books highlight the achievements of African Americans and cover the history and culture of Africa and the African American experience. His work also included many biographical subjects, ranging from Lena Horne and Hank Aaron to Scatman Crothers and Malcolm X. Most of his writings were for young people. He wrote on a great variety of subjects that introduced young people to the language and cultures of other continents, especially Africa.
Elizabeth Garver Jordan was an American journalist, author, editor, and suffragist, now remembered primarily for having edited the first two novels of Sinclair Lewis, and for her relationship with Henry James, especially for recruiting him to participate in the round-robin novel The Whole Family. She was editor of Harper's Bazaar from 1900 to 1913.
Valerie Sybil Wilmer is a British photographer and writer specialising in jazz, gospel, blues, and British African-Caribbean music and culture. Her notable books include Jazz People (1970) and As Serious As Your Life (1977), both first published by Allison and Busby.
Kim Yong-ik, also known as Yong Ik Kim, was an early Korean–American writer originally from Tongyeong, Korea. His works were primarily in English but also translated into other languages such as German and Korean.
Phyllis Rose is an American literary critic, essayist, biographer, and educator.
Tonya K. Bolden is an American writer best known for her works of children's literature, especially children's nonfiction.