Alvin Ho: Allergic to Babies, Burglars, and Other Bumps in the Night by Lenore Look

Reviewed by Chiling

Alvin Ho is a 7-year-old boy who is afraid of many things-- like moldy food, hairy ice cream, hairy ears, and full moons. He never speaks up in school, and he cries a lot. But right now, his worst problem is that HIS MOM IS GOING TO HAVE A BABY, and babies are just trouble to Alvin. This is because Scooter, one of his classmates, brings pictures of his baby brother during show-and-tell and complains how he cries all the time, wears a diaper, and smells bad. Now, Alvin Ho has to overcome his fear of babies and find a way to accept his new sibling.

One of the reasons I found Alvin Ho: Allergic to Babies, Burglars, and Other Bumps in the Night very enjoyable to read is that the personality traits of the characters in the book are very interesting. My favorite character in the book is Calvin, Alvin Ho’s older brother. When Calvin works on his “Rube Goldberg” machines, he remains in a calm, non-violent mood. Yet, when Calvin practices karate, it puts him in a mood to start kicking Alvin’s butt. So, I thought it was interesting that someone could have an easily changing mood. Lenore Look was very successful in bringing her characters to life.

Another reason why I fell in love with Alvin Ho: Allergic to Babies, Burglars, and Other Bumps in the Night is because it’s comical. An example when humor was present in the book was when Alvin thought that an ultrasound of the baby inside of his mom’s stomach were UFO landings. Also, Alvin says that if he concentrated really hard, all he would have seen would be an alien or two. The book’s humorous events make the readers want to keep on reading and experience the plot in the book.

I would rate it a 9/10 because the ending was really joyful and sweet. Even though it had some unanswered questions in the end, I would recommend this book to people who like humor and enjoy reading diaries of students. Also, you have to be okay with reading a lot of crying and whining if you read this book. Give this comical book a try!

Schwartz and Wade Books, 183 pgs.