Common Sense Media Review
By Barbara Schultz
,
based on child development research. How do we rate?
Chapter-book version of young Amelia is vulnerable, funny.
Parents Need to Know
Why Age 7+?
Any Positive Content?
Where to Read
What's the Story?
Young Amelia Bedelia is happy with her own bike until she sees her classmate Kaite-Lynne cruise up on a sparkling new, green model. From that moment, Amelia's heart is set on a shiny new bike, but her parents say they will only \"meet her halfway\"; she must earn half of the money for the bike on her own. Hilarity ensues as the little girl -- age about 8 -- tries her hand at different jobs. As a helper in a diner, she lasts less than a day. She opens a lemonade stand with a sign declaring \"Lots of Lemons\" next to a car lot. But like the grown-up Amelia in the original early-reader books, young Amelia Bedelia bakes a mean lemon tart, and people can forgive a lot when lemon tarts are on the table.
Is It Any Good?
Creating a chapter-book series about Amelia Bedelia is a nice idea, and on the whole the lovable, literal character is still amusing. However, as a child and within the larger framework of a chapter book, the Amelia of AMELIA BEDELIA MEANS BUSINESS becomes a more developed character, so when she gets in trouble for making a mistake, readers feel sympathy as well as amusement. In other words, it's harder to laugh at a little girl who gets fired from her first job for literally stepping on it (pie) than it is to laugh at an adult housekeeper who foolishly "trims the steak" like a Christmas tree. It's also just plain funnier for an adult to make those mistakes than it is for a kid to make them.
Talk to Your Kids About ...
Families can talk about which one of Amelia Bedelia's jobs seems like the most fun -- helping in a diner, selling lemonade, or baking tarts? Which job do you think you would be good at?
Did you read the first Amelia Bedelia book? How does this one compare? What do the two books have in common?
Make kup your own Amelia Bedelia book. Can you think of phrases that would be funny for her to misunderstand?
Book Details
- Author :
- Illustrator : Lynne Avril
- Genre : Humor
- Topics : Book Characters , Friendship
- Book type : Fiction
- Publisher : Greenwillow Books
- Publication date : January 29, 2013
- Publisher's recommended age(s) : 6 - 10
- Number of pages : 149
- Available on : Paperback, Nook, Hardback, Apple Books, Kindle
- Last updated : December 3, 2025
Did we miss something on diversity?
Research shows a connection between kids' healthy self-esteem and positive portrayals in media. That's why we've added a new "Diverse Representations" section to our reviews that will be rolling out on an ongoing basis. You can help us help kids by
Suggest an Update
Common Sense Media's unbiased ratings are created by expert reviewers and aren't influenced by the product's creators or by any of our funders, affiliates, or partners.
See how we rate