Life at Robby Hummer's house is wild, fun, and a big mess since his twin brother and sister were born. At school, he'd rather read quietly than play games at recess of watch a filmstrip. But his teacher thinks he reads too much and sends him to Mrs. Van Gent, the schol counselor. Sheesh! Since when is liking books a problem?

Meanwhile, some kids at school think it's weired that Robby's father stays home to take care of the twins while his mother works. Robby worries that, if his family is not like everybody else's, the authorities could take him away from them. When he learns that Mrs. Van Gent is coming to dinner, he knows she plans to spy. He's got to turn the Hummers into a normal family-now!
Linda Crew is a recipient of the IRA Children's Book Award and the SCBWI Golden Kite Award, and her books have been named ALA Notables as well as ALA Best Books. Linda Crew didn't always have to be a writer. In fact, while attending junior high school in the early sixties, this award-winning author wanted to be a folk singer. By high school, when it had become apparent to her that she really couldn't sing, she decided to become an actress. Then, at the University of Oregon, her theatrical ambitions evaporated. At her mother's suggestion, Crew switched her major to journalism—and loved it. Crew's training was in journalism—interviewing, researching, and marketing—and she was encouraged to present the facts accurately and without fuss. But her assigmnents always ended up full of dialogue and she "had this compelling urge to make a story just a little better than the way it happened." Thus, her talent for writing fiction was born. After college, Linda Crew married her husband, Herb, and settled on a farm in her home state of Oregon, where the couple still resides today with their three children. Crew leads a full, busy life and admits, "It's difficult sometimes to carve out the time for writing with so many other demands, but it's important for me to do some living. After all, what could a person possibly write about if she spent all day closeted in front of her computer?" View titles by Linda Crew
Charles M. Robinson III is a native of Texas and graduate of St. Edward's University and the University of Texas–Pan American. He is the author of several books on the Old West, including A Good Year to Die. He won the T. R. Fehrenbach Book Award in 1993. Robinson lives in San Benito, Texas. View titles by Charles Robinson
  • WINNER | 1995
    Massachusetts Children's Book Master List
  • WINNER | 1993
    Kansas William White Master List

About

Life at Robby Hummer's house is wild, fun, and a big mess since his twin brother and sister were born. At school, he'd rather read quietly than play games at recess of watch a filmstrip. But his teacher thinks he reads too much and sends him to Mrs. Van Gent, the schol counselor. Sheesh! Since when is liking books a problem?

Meanwhile, some kids at school think it's weired that Robby's father stays home to take care of the twins while his mother works. Robby worries that, if his family is not like everybody else's, the authorities could take him away from them. When he learns that Mrs. Van Gent is coming to dinner, he knows she plans to spy. He's got to turn the Hummers into a normal family-now!

Author

Linda Crew is a recipient of the IRA Children's Book Award and the SCBWI Golden Kite Award, and her books have been named ALA Notables as well as ALA Best Books. Linda Crew didn't always have to be a writer. In fact, while attending junior high school in the early sixties, this award-winning author wanted to be a folk singer. By high school, when it had become apparent to her that she really couldn't sing, she decided to become an actress. Then, at the University of Oregon, her theatrical ambitions evaporated. At her mother's suggestion, Crew switched her major to journalism—and loved it. Crew's training was in journalism—interviewing, researching, and marketing—and she was encouraged to present the facts accurately and without fuss. But her assigmnents always ended up full of dialogue and she "had this compelling urge to make a story just a little better than the way it happened." Thus, her talent for writing fiction was born. After college, Linda Crew married her husband, Herb, and settled on a farm in her home state of Oregon, where the couple still resides today with their three children. Crew leads a full, busy life and admits, "It's difficult sometimes to carve out the time for writing with so many other demands, but it's important for me to do some living. After all, what could a person possibly write about if she spent all day closeted in front of her computer?" View titles by Linda Crew
Charles M. Robinson III is a native of Texas and graduate of St. Edward's University and the University of Texas–Pan American. He is the author of several books on the Old West, including A Good Year to Die. He won the T. R. Fehrenbach Book Award in 1993. Robinson lives in San Benito, Texas. View titles by Charles Robinson

Awards

  • WINNER | 1995
    Massachusetts Children's Book Master List
  • WINNER | 1993
    Kansas William White Master List

Reading with Purpose Summit Event

On Monday, June 10th, Penguin Random House Education and DK Learning co-hosted a Reading with Purpose Summit Event in collaboration with Molly Ness, PhD. The event took place at Penguin Random House’s NYC headquarters and included sessions featuring leading education experts and a lunchtime author panel. The in-person professional learning event was built to show

Read more

2024 Elementary School Collection

The Penguin Random House Education Elementary School Collection features outstanding fiction, nonfiction, and picture books from Penguin Young Reader’s, Random House Children’s, DK, and Grupo Editorial, as well as children’s publishers distributed by Penguin Random House. Explore online or download this valuable resource to discover great books in specific topic areas such as: Leveled Readers,

Read more

DK Learning Phonic Books Sampler Request

Thank you for your interest in DK Learning | Phonic Books. To download the DK Learning | Phonic Books sampler with four complete readers, please click here and complete the form. Once your information is successfully submitted, a link to download the sampler will be provided on the confirmation screen.   Click here to learn

Read more

PRH Education Translanguaging Collections

Translanguaging is a communicative practice of bilinguals and multilinguals, that is, it is a practice whereby bilinguals and multilinguals use their entire linguistic repertoire to communicate and make meaning (García, 2009; García, Ibarra Johnson, & Seltzer, 2017)   It is through that lens that we have partnered with teacher educators and bilingual education experts, Drs.

Read more