Tales of a Fourth Grade Nothing

By: Judy Blume

Narrated by: Judy Blume

Length: 2 hrs and 33 mins

Publisher's Summary

Living with his little brother, Fudge, makes Peter Hatcher feel like a fourth grade nothing. Whether Fudge is throwing a temper tantrum in a shoe store, smearing mashed potatoes on the walls at Hamburger Heaven, or scribbling all over Peter's homework, he's never far from trouble. He's a two-year-old terror who gets away with everything, and Peter's had enough.

When Fudge walks off with Dribble, Peter's pet turtle, it's the last straw. Peter has put up with Fudge for too long. How can he get his parents to pay attention to him for a change?

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©1972 Judy Blume (P)2002 Random House Inc. Listening Library, an imprint of the Random House Audio Publishing Group

Critic Reviews

"It should be true that the author is the best narrator of his/her own work, and Blume more than fulfills this expectation. In a children's title, it's especially grand if the reader can capture all of the bratty, sweet, and simple nuances of the little characters. Blume is great as the parents, pretentious boss, and older brother, and she outdoes herself with two-year-old Fudge. She throws the perfect temper tantrum and cajoles adults with the best of them. All listeners, regardless of age, can identify with the exasperation of the older child who's often called upon to parent." (AudioFile)

Definitely not a waste of credits.

I've been a fan of this book since a teacher read it to me and the rest of my class when I was in, fittingly enough, the fourth grade. It tells the story of Peter Hatcher and the trials and tribulations he goes through having a little brother like Farley Drexel AKA Fudge. Such misadventures include Fudge causing Peter's advertiser father to lose a potential client, to jumping off a set of monkey bars and losing a few of his own teeth, culminating in an act so bizarre even now I find it hard to imagine. Audible had this book, read by the lady of the hour herself. I've always been rather skeptical of authors reading their own novels since some just don't have the voice for it (Stephen King comes to mind for me rather quickly as does Douglas Adams), but Judy, though she took a little bit of getting used to, grew on me. The author knows what is or her characters should sound like and Judy does them justice, from Peter to his parents, even Fudge's temper tantrums. An excellent book brought excellently to life, and by its author no less. I always like it when an author is able to read their own work and actually give it personality.

Tales of a fourth grade nothing

Having it read bye the author gives us a insight in how the author imagined the characters voices and expressions.

Problematic Parenting

Great reading performance by narrator. I know this story is a ‘classic’ but Peter and Fudge’s relationship is not good throughout the entire book. The parents do nothing to reconcile the issues and hateful dialogue (other than buy Peter a puppy when his little brother eats his turtle). That type of behavior doesn’t fly in our house, but I suppose it gave my kids talking points on how not to treat each other.

Great Children Story

If you could sum up Tales of a Fourth Grade Nothing in three words, what would they be?

My daugter (11) and her friend listned to this with me while on a car drive. The length was perfert for the trip. We all enjoyed the story and had many a laugh. My daugther has since become engrossed in reading all the books.

Who was your favorite character and why?

Fudge was hillarious

Did you have an extreme reaction to this book? Did it make you laugh or cry?

Found the book to be very funny at times

A Childhood Treasure

There are so many nuances that came out as a result of having it read by the author. Hearing how she envisioned Fudge saying Peter's name was really sweet. The book is a treasure to hear. My children and I loved it.

Story great narration awful

Kids loved it (6 yr. old boy and 8 yr. old girl.) Husband and I had to endure the awful narration. Listened during long car ride. There was one chapter that started off with mugging as in what to do if you get mugged and then about dope sellers in central park. We skipped that chapter quick.

AWESOME 👏!!!!!!!!!!!!

Everything about it is AMAZING!!! ❤️ ❤️❤️❤️❤️ LOVE IT 😍 Part where Fudge ate Dribble was hilarious 😂! Super narration too! 😝

the best book ever

i love this book everyone should read it

Terrible narration

Who would you have cast as narrator instead of Judy Blume?

The author's read is terrible, constantly jumping between speaking so low she can't be understood, to reading so loud that the audio distorts. She also does not have a lot of range in the tone of her reading.

Great family audiobook

I listened to this audio book with my nine-year-old son and we loved it! We can't wait to go onto the next Judy Blume book.