TJ and the Time Stumblers: OOPS! (book 3) by Bill Myers

The story continues for TJ and the Time Stumblers in OOPS! the third book in Bill Myers series for kids ages 8 and up.  This time TJ  learns how important it is to guard your thinking.  It's easy to think well of others when they are nice, but no so easy when they are mean.  Herby and Tuna are always wanting to help and decide that the Thought Broadcaster Pen would help things out a bit.  Of course, their 23rd century devices usually start acting up and create quite a bit of chaos.  When their pen acts up and everyone's thoughts are broadcasted throughout the lunch room, people become a little bit uncomfortable....as you can imagine.  Would you want others hearing everything you were thinking?  TJ's mom was a great lady, who never said anything bad about anyone.  Her secret was this--"'She said the key isn't what you say--it's what you think.  Whenever somebody got on her nerves, she tried to think something nice about them.'" (pg. 84)

Like the other books in the series, I thought it was good in that the book taught another great message: what you think comes out your mouth.  If you can't say anything nice, you have to change how you are thinking.  It's hard to say and think something nice about others when they are mean, rude and annoying.  But seeing everyone as someone that God created, will help you to treat them differently.
This book, like book #2, also had more "bleeps" in it.  When the Thought Broadcasting pen landed on the mean bully at school, his thoughts were "bleeps" and lots of them (pg. 101).  I really don't think this is needed to make the story and it certainly doesn't add anything to it.  Swearing shouldn't be seen as normal or expected of the bad kid at school.   Wish this could of been left out.
Another thing about this book is that it is kind of becoming predictable.  The books seem to follow the same pattern each time: Time stumblers create problems, TJ messes up and then problems somehow resolve at the end.  Overall, there is a good moral to the story, but I wouldn't say it is my favorite series.

***I checked this book out from my local library to read for the Summer Reading Program by Tyndale House.