My publisher decided to put Jerome the Babysitter and Jerome and the Witchcraft Kids out-of-print just as they published Jerome Camps Out. However, you may find dog-eared copies of one or both of the earlier books in your local library.

Differences in style:

1. Each Jerome book is illustrated with different media.
2. In Jerome Camps Out, Jerome is wearing clothes for the first time! (In the first two books, he is not.) His form is more 'human'-especially his legs. In the first two books, I wanted to be more true to an alligator anatomy. Ever try to put pants on an alligator? By the third book, I decided to clothe him and not worry about his alligator anatomy. Also, the big advantage to clothing is that it makes it easier to distinguish characters.

Anthropomorphic-what does it mean?

Anthropomorphic means giving shape or human characteristics to animals, obects, etc. There are many picture books about anthropomorphic animals and, for that matter, anthropomorphic trains, houses, cups, . . .

• Have your students look in the library for picture books with anthropomorphic characters.
  
  
• Which illustrators try to stay true to the animal form? Which illustrators make their animals look more like people with animal heads?

 

Everyone has had to deal with a bully. Jerome Camps Out offers a good chance to talk about this problem.

• Ask your students if they think that Jerome handled his problem well.
• Discuss with your students how they would handle a similar situation. Have they also had problems with bullies?
• Ask your librarian to suggest other stories about bullies. Compare how the characters in each story handle their troubles with the bully.
• Why does Buster Wormley act the way he does? Jerome Camps Out is written from Jerome's point of view. Have your students try writing the story from Buster's point of view.

 

It's always difficult to find the right name for a character. When I was trying to think of a name for Jerome, I resorted to looking for ideas in a phone book.

• Discuss Buster Wormley's name with your students. Does it describe his personality?

 

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