Maggie is happy to go to school and learn new things. But she wishes she didn’t have to learn cursive. She complains to her parents about it, and they tell her not to be contrary; just be a good girl and do as she’s told. This only makes Maggie feel more contrary. Why should she have to learn cursive, anyway?She decides that she ABSOLUTELY WILL NOT EVER learn cursive. Even when her parents fuss and her teacher cajoles, she stands firm. And then, her teacher assigns her to be the classroom messenger. The messages she’s carrying (which she peeks at) are in cursive!What do they say? Are they about her? Maggie must know!Discussion.One thing I appreciate about Ms. Cleary’s writings is that she does not stereotype. In every situation – even the stereotypical ones – she depicts her characters and makes them act exactly as real people would. Maggie herself is a perfect example. There’s nothing so wonderfully original about a little girl not wanting to learn cursive. But in most stories, the child would have been seized by a wild hatred of cursive, would have stormed, would have steamed, and would NOT have relented. But this isn’t how Maggie’s aversion to cursive handwriting occurs.Maggie announces that she is going to learn cursive in school next week. She expects her parents to be impressed that she is to undertake so difficult a task. Instead, they are amused – after all, it’s funny when a child thinks that a simple task is a difficult one. This nettles Maggie. So she announces that she thinks cursive writing is dumb. Maybe this will get them to encourage her! But instead, they tell her not to be silly, that everybody writes in cursive, and that it’ll be easy. This pushes Maggie to further contrariness. Not only does she think that cursive is dumb, but she WON’T learn it. And so, this becomes her position.Even as she declares that she hates cursive, Maggie doesn’t know why she’s saying the things she is. She doesn’t mind cursive. It looks rather pretty. But she feels contrary about it. She almost wishes she didn’t feel that way. She wishes she had never started her brave stand in the first place. But she feels that now, everyone expects her to refuse to write in cursive.In the end, Maggie succumbs. She learns to read cursive. But she never repents for her disobedience.Visit The Blithering Bookster to read more reviews!www.blitheringbookster.com
Maggie is a third grader in Mrs. Leeper’s class. One day, it is time to learn to write in cursive. She is very nervous. She is struggling with it, more than the other students. They begin to make fun of her for it. Maggie talks to her mother about it and her mother listens. Maggie does not think she needs to learn cursive, so Mrs. Leeper, her teacher, writes a note in specifically in cursive about Maggie and has Maggie walk it to the office. Maggie is curious and wants to read it and gets frustrated that she can’t, knowing it is about her. This helps her become motivated to learn cursive and she does. I can use this book in my class to motivate and encourage students to learn cursive especially if my students are about to or in the process of learning cursive.
What do You think about Muggie Maggie (2009)?
Maggie is a third grader who does not like writing cursive. She thinks it's hard to write and read. And what will she do if she can't use the computer? Give in and learn cursive? Or do something where she won't use cursive. Everything is just too hard for her, writing Muggie instead of Maggie, not being able to use the computer, and reading different notes from in between teachers written in cursive. Maggie can make out few words. What do these notes mean? Are they about her, or something totally different?I liked the book. But I feel like Maggie. I'm not one who likes cursive that much. It never occurs to me to write in cursive. Cursive is just a fancy way of writing.
—Angela
Muggie Maggie, written by Beverly Cleary tells the story of a young girl named Maggie who beginning to learn cursive. Maggie is avoiding the correct ways of writing cursive because she wants her writing to look just like her parents, which is very sloppy. The teacher is getting very mad at Maggie for not following directions and writing neat. Maggie knows how to read cursive, which means she knows how to write but is pretending she doesn’t. When Maggie discovers the notes are about her she really needs to get her act together. Beverly Cleary is a great author. Her book helps children relate to something going on in their life. Most children who are Maggie’s age are learning cursive and a lot of them are having issues writing neat. The author makes the book appealing to children on a variety of levels. Beverly Cleary uses humor to help keep readers interested. Illustrations by Alan Tiegreen help readers relate to events going on in Maggie’s life and understand what she is going through. This book is perfect for children 9 to 12 years of age.
—Jackie
