Miss Malarkey Doesn't Live in Room 10

Author: Judy Finchler
Publisher: Walker and Company
Copyright: 1995
Genre: Picture/Fiction
Pages: 32
Reading Level: Ages 5 to 8 (Barnes and Noble)
Summary: The story is told by a boy who believes that his teacher lives at the school. He says that he bets the teachers’ room is where they all sleep and that Miss Malarkey, his teacher does all of her stuff in their classroom, room 10. She just stays there and sets up for school the next day. He says he bets the kids aren’t supposed to go into the teachers’ room because the teachers don’t want them to see their messy room. When Miss Malarkey moves into his apartment complex he is bewildered! His mom bakes cookies and tells him to bring some to his teacher at her apartment. He’s shocked when she answers the door with no shoes on and her toenails painted red. He sees her taking out the garbage which she never does at school because the janitor takes it out. He sees her throwing a party. He learns that she lives just like any normal person. He says next year he won’t be in the same apartments as his teacher though because he’ll have Miss Boba next year and he’s sure she lives in room 12 at the school.
Who would you recommend this book to? I would recommend this book to elementary school children--probably on the younger end.
Potential problems or conflicts: None
My reaction: I kind of liked this book just because it's so silly but it really gets you into the mindset of children.