Alvin Ho: Allergic to Birthday Parties, Science Projects, and Other Man-Made Catastrophes

Lenore Look's Allergic to Birthday Parties, Science Projects, and Other Man-Made Catastrophes is a very funny story for 6 year olds about a boy who would rather face a dragon than a tea party.

What happens

Alvin Ho is scared of lots of things. School is one of the big ones. He can't get a single word out once he's in the classroom, and a class trip to Louisa May Alcott's old house leaves him sure the tour guide is a ghost (then a whole gang of clones).

So when a pink envelope arrives for Mr. Alvin Ho, it isn't good news. Flea, his desk buddy, wants him at her girls' tea party. The invitation he actually wanted, to a boys' party where everyone plays at war, hasn't come at all.

Alvin has a plan, of course. If he goes shopping for Flea's present and behaves like a patient little gentleman, maybe he'll be rewarded with the costume he's wished for every Christmas. And then surely he'll get invited to the right party?

His big brother Calvin has plans too. His science fair project needs a guinea pig, and he reckons he can make Alvin invisible. Lemon juice doesn't work. Mum's whole stash of wrinkle cream is next.

Being inside Alvin's head is the joy of this book. Everything is a disaster waiting to happen. A tea party means secret codes and seventy-nine rules of manners, which his cousin Bucky tries to teach him in one afternoon (tea spills, and a rock gets served as dim sum). You'll probably find yourself laughing out loud as well.

One thing to know before you start. The gang's favourite game is settlers and Indians, and Alvin's big wish is a Deluxe Indian Chief outfit with a feather headdress. That's how the book talks, and some parents will want to have a quick chat about it along the way.

Alvin's silence at school is real, and it's handled gently. His teacher, Miss P, doesn't need to hear his voice to understand him. A child who finds school hard might take some comfort from that.

What to read next

This is the third Alvin Ho book. If your reader would like to meet him from the very beginning, Allergic to Girls, School, and Other Scary Things is where he starts second grade, Personal Disaster Kit and all.