This is a very funny and memorable story of an outrageous family of children who discover the Christmas story and help everyone rediscover its meaning.

The Herdmans—Ralph, Imogene, Leroy, Claude, Ollie, and Gladys—are horrible. They do horrible things like finding out everybody's weight in order to blackmail the fat kids, and threatening to stuff pussy willows in their enemies' ears. They are the terrors of the public school, and it's hardly surprising when they extend their reign of terror to Sunday school and take over the church's Christmas pageant.

Imogene is the Virgin Mary. Ralph is Joseph. And little Gladys is the Angel of the Lord. But they have never heard the Christmas story before, and their interpretation, which includes beating up Herod and finding some decent gifts for the Wise Men (Leroy, Claude, and Ollie, naturally), promises disaster. The actual pageant is full of surprises for everyone, including the Herdmans themselves.

From the dust jacket