Super Diaper Baby 2: The Invasion of the Potty Snatchers (linked to my review) is Dav Pilkey’s latest graphic novel in the Captain Underpants series. 5 Minutes for Books was happy to participate in the “10 QUESTIONS WITH DAV PILKEY” blog tour, and Dav graciously answered our two submitted questions.
Which character is most like you?
George and Harold are both based on me when I was in elementary school. Like George and Harold, I was always getting in trouble with one authority figure or another when I was a kid. My troubles usually came from trying to entertain the classroom (with either my comics or my silly behavior).
But unlike George and Harold, I don’t think I actually saved the world very often (maybe just once or twice).
As moms, we have to ask why your books have so many misspellings and grammatical errors?
Unfortunately, there are tons of kids out there who feel stifled, creatively, because they’re afraid of making mistakes. I want to show kids that they can be creative without having to worry about being perfect. My hope is that they’ll be so inspired by George and Harold’s wildly imperfect (but still fun) stories that they’ll pick up a pencil and start creating their own stories “just for fun.”
So far I feel like my plan is working. Each year I get hundreds of original comics and stories sent to me by kids (or their grateful parents or teachers). And yes, many of the stories have misspellings and mistakes. But these stories weren’t homework assignments—they were made for fun. And for many of these kids, it might be the first time they ever realized that writing could be fun. And who knows? That very thought could inspire a lifetime of creativity!
In addition to the opportunity for us to interact directly with Dav Pilkey, Scholastic is offering one winner both Super Diaper Baby books! Leave a comment below to enter; the winner (U.S. only, please) will be announced on July 13. This giveaway is closed.
5 Minutes for Books is the second stop on the blog tour. Please visit these other blogs for more questions and answers from Dav Pilkey, along with additional chances to win the books, and be sure to check out my review, and a fun book trailer HERE.
Jun. 27: Tree, Root, and Twig
Jul. 1: Susan Heim on Parenting
Jul. 5: Mom Most Traveled
Jul. 7: Momma Findings…
The winner of Sisters of the Sari is Linda, #13.
The winner of Healer is #26 Nancy Davis.
I was curious about all the misspellings and grammatical errors. His answer is good, because I do know that “perfection” is something that gets in the way of kids writing, which is valuable. That said, seeing something in print is a great way to reinforce what is correct without correcting them.
But I do agree with Nancy’s review that getting kids to read without arguing is a pretty great thing.
That’s the issue I have with it. I can see where he’s coming from, but I also worry about learning incorrect spellings and grammar because of it.
Love Dav Pilkey! The Paperboy is my favorite, but CApt. Underpants, et. al. are beloved by my students!
We adore Dave Pilkey
books in our home…
Many thanks!
Cindi
We love Dav Pilkey and his books in our house. We read the crazy adventures of Capt Underpants every day, LOL:) Thanks!
My kids have more-or-less outgrown these books, but they still love them!
I used to worry about the mis-spellings and grammatical mistakes, but I no longer do. The kids have sooooooo many models of “correct” writing. A few books that they know have incorrect grammar will not make any difference. When my daughter was little, she *loved* the Junie B. Jones books. Junie made lots of mistakes in her writing, and it made my daughter feel more of a kinship with her.
Hooray for Super Diaper Baby!
My youngest son LOVED Captain Underpants ~ I can’t wait to share these books with my 5 grandchildren.
I remember when the two older grandsons were in that age range, I gave them Captain Underpants books. They loved them.
Now the next grandson may be ready for the potty humor 🙂
Great Items 🙂
My kids love all of Dav Pilkey’s books. Thanks for the opportunity.
Dav Pilkey really knows how to write what kids like! I’d love this for my students.
mearley1979 at gmail dot com
Well your students will be happy to know that you won! Please reply with your mailing address.
This looks like a fun book. I’d love to be entered.
pbclark(at)netins(dot)net
My daughter is nuts for pilkey’s books.. her love of reading has increased so much 🙂
My students love these books and read them over and over again.
My daughter would love this!
I really really love your books!!!!! I read them all the time. I wish i had all of them.I’m your biggest fan!I’m only 8 years old and I’m in grade 3 and because of you I want to be a writer when I grow up. from Jesse Curtis