Crazy Hair Day by Barney Saltzberg

This is going to be a day I will never forget.

Back in 2008 I wrote my first post for this blog and I mentioned Crazy Hair Day. This year I visited a tiny rural school here in NSW and Crazy Hair Day was one of my chosen books to share with this group of children aged 5-10. This is a book that appeals to every age. Yesterday I was talking about some favourite books and I again mentioned Crazy Hair Day.  I thought it was time I talked in more detail about this little gem.

Stanley is so excited because today is Crazy Hair Day. His mother helps to wrap, dip and spray his hair. As Stanley says "I am a work of art!". The final flourish of Halloween hair spray is just perfect.

Stanley bounces along to school. He knows this will be a great day. His class really enjoy celebrations like this. They have already had Twin day, Sixties day, and Pyjama Day. You have probably guessed what is going to happen. As Stanley walks along the hall towards his class he hears his teacher, Mr Winger, say some terrible words:

"And remember,' Mr Winger was saying, 'Crazy Hair Day is ... Next Friday."

Making things even worse it turns out today is also class picture day. Stanley runs down the hall and hides in the bathroom.

I love the emotional arc of this story.
Happy anticipation - today will be great
Despair - he has the wrong day
Boredom - hiding in the bathroom time moves slowly
A laugh or two when Stanley invents a race to flush all the toilets
Reconciliation - Stanley and his best friend Larry need to heal their friendship
Problem solving - Is there a way to help Stanley feel he is part of this class and to take away the pain of this day?
Happiness when Stanley re-enters his class and discovers the kindness of his friends and wonderful teacher.

The repeated parts of this story also add to the fun when you read this book aloud:

Stanley rolled the elastic bands in is hair. 
He gently tapped the tops of his spikes.
This is going to be a day I will never forget.

You can hear the song here but be warned it may lead to an ear worm it is just so catchy. Barney Saltzberg is an illustrator and a talented musician. I have this album of children's songs.

You can see and hear the author Barney Saltzberg reading the whole book here. He explains the inspiration for this book:

"I was talking to some students at a school one morning before the bell rang, and a boy came up to us with his hair dyed orange and blue and with big spikes," the author-illustrator recalls. "Somebody looked at him and said, 'Crazy Hair Day is tomorrow!' The boy looked horrified, blurted out something, then ran the other way. I felt terrible for this boy and wondered how it could possibly turn around into a better situation."  I wanted Crazy Hair Day to show how Stanley might come to terms with feeling so out of place and realize he still belong to a larger group of friends, even though he looked different. Of course, I didn't want to hit anyone over the head with a 'message', so I tried to plant the seeds through humour." 

There are two other books where you can read about Stanley Birdbaum and his best friend Larry Finchfeather. I love these names. Can you also see a link with Mr Winger?