Please give this book a try if you have a loud, rowdy boy

Holler Loudly has a voice as big as the southwestern sky, and everywhere he goes, people tell him to “Hush!” From math class to the movies and even the state fair, Holler’s LOUD voice just keeps getting him into trouble. But when a huge tornado comes twisting into town, Holler (with that voice of his!) saves the day.
“His exceptionally loud voice has always posed a problem for Holler, the young son of the Loudly family,” reads a review in School Library Journal.  Holler Loudly is a tall tale which proves that everything truly is bigger in Texas, even voices.  According to an amazon review, every few generations a Loudly baby is born with an enormous voice, and Holler is the newest inductee to this hall of fame.

“The good townsfolk shush Holler everywhere he goes until one day he realizes the value of quiet,” the review continues.  “However, soon thereafter, they learn to appreciate Holler’s gift when he saves the town using his innate ability to quell a dangerous force of nature.”  Readers can experience a visual an audible feast on the smorgasboard  of literary devices that Smith uses, from the protagonists’ volume, to the townsfolks’ ire, to everyone’s jubilation.

I found my children cheering for this rollicking story about celebrating our unique gifts, written by Cynthia Leitich Smith.


Barry Gott’s bright, fun illustrations will have you hollering for more. He depicts Holler’s adventure in bright, colorful, full-bleed, double-page spreads that mirror the characters’ magnitude.

His parents, teachers, friends, and the townspeople have hushed and shushed him all his life, but to no avail. Loudness just comes naturally to him as it has to others of his line, every several generations. Getting kicked out of a movie theater, ruining a day of fishing with Gramps, and scattering all the animals at the state fair’s hog-calling contest finally convince him to settle down and understand that being quiet and listening can be quite pleasant. However, when a tornado threatens his town, Holler decides there are times to be quiet and times that require LOUD. And that’s when he takes action; he shouts down that durned tornado and breaks it up into harmless bits of breezes, finally putting his gift to good use. This original tall tale with its highly energetic, brightly colored illustrations has expressive typeface showing the word “LOUD” repeatedly in bold capital letters. Readers as well as listeners will have fun with this animated story, and the Southwestern twang will just come naturally.

Holler Loudly is a story about a larger-than-life Texas boy who travels throughout the town building toward his epiphany. Thus,  it could be used to introduce episodic adventures like Homer’s The Odyssey.
New York Times best-selling and award-winning author Cynthia Leitich Smith writes fiction for everyone, but she has a particular affection for young readers, from kids to twenty-somethings. Cynthia’s fiction is noted for its diversity, humor, lyricism, imaginativeness, compelling action, and mid-to-southwestern settings.
Please give this book a try if you have a loud, rowdy boy.