It's Lulu's birthday and she's decided she'd like a pet brontosaurus as a present. When Lulu's parents tell her that's not possible, Lulu gets very upset. She does not like it when things don't go her way. So she takes matters into her own hands and storms off into the forest to find herself a new pet, all the way singing:

I'm gonna, I'm gonna, I'm gonna, gonna, get
a bronto-bronto-bronto-bronto-saurus for a pet!

In the forest Lulu encounters a number of animals; a snake, a tiger, a bear, all of whom don't particularly impress her. And then she finds him...a beautiful, long-necked, gentle, graceful brontosaurus. And he completely agrees with Lulu that having a pet would be a wonderful thing, indeed! Lulu thinks she's gotten her birthday wish at last. Until she realizes that Mr. Brontosaurus thinks that she would make an ideal pet for him!

How will Lulu ever get out of this sticky situation without throwing a fit (Mr. B does not respond well to those), or using force (Mr. B is much to tall to bonk on the head with her suitcase), or smushing her pickle sandwich?

Excerpt

There once was a girl named Lulu, and she was a pain. She wasn’t a pain in the elbow. She wasn’t a pain in the knee. She was a pain—a very big pain—in the butt.

Now, Lulu was an only child, and her mom and her dad gave her everything she wanted. And guess what? Lulu wanted EVERYTHING. Tons of candy. Tons of toys. Tons of watching tons of cartoons on TV. And if her mom and her dad ever said (and they hardly ever said it), “Sorry, darling, we think you’ve had enough,” Lulu would screech till the lightbulbs burst and throw herself down on the floor, and then she would kick her heels and wave her arms. And pretty soon her mom and her dad would say, “Well, just this once,” and let her have whatever it was she wanted.

© 2010 Judith Viorst

About The Author

by Milton Viorst

Judith Viorst

Judith Viorst is the author of the beloved Alexander and the Terrible, Horrible, No Good, Very Bad Day, which has sold some four million copies; the Lulu books, including Lulu and the Brontosaurus; the New York Times bestseller Necessary Losses; four musicals; and poetry for children and adults. Her most recent books of poetry include What Are You Glad About? What Are You Mad About? and Nearing Ninety. She lives in Washington, DC.

About The Illustrator

Photograph by Molly Leach

Lane Smith

Lane Smith is the author-illustrator of Grandpa Green and the illustrator of The Stinky Cheese Man and Other Fairly Stupid Tales, both Caldecott Honor winners. His books have appeared on the New York Times Best Illustrated list four times, and several of his books, including It’s a Book and John, Paul, George & Ben, have been New York Times bestsellers. He lives with book designer Molly Leach in rural Connecticut, and can be visited at LaneSmithBooks.com.

Product Details

Publisher: Atheneum Books for Young Readers (September 14, 2010)
Length: 128 pages
ISBN13: 9781416999614
Ages: 6 - 10

Raves and Reviews

* "Pitch perfect for the beginning chapter-book crowd." --Kirkus, STARRED REVIEW

"Plenty of child-friendly humor. . . . This inventive, lighthearted fantasy should be a solid hit with young readers looking for a lively first chapter book." --School Library Journal

“Quite clever” –Booklist