"Ramona the Patient" is the third episode of Ramona, based off Ramona Quimby, Age 8.
Summary[]
It's morning, and Ramona is dishing herself up some oatmeal, while the parents are outside arguing. She and Beezus sit at the table, where the latter tells the former that she "doesn't look so hot". Ramona says that she doesn't feel so hot, then wonders what their parents are doing. It turns out that they're trying to get the car to go into reverse, and when they can't, Mr. Quimby decides to take it to the mechanics despite this making him late for college. Beezus asks Ramona if she is sick, and she shrugs, so Beezus tells her to try to eat. While Mr. Quimby talks to the mechanic on the phone, Beezus suggests that Ramona stay home from school, but she doesn't want to stay with the Kemps. Mrs. Quimby leaves for work despite the car being broken, and the girls again discuss staying home from school. Ramona, however, says that she will be fine as long as she doesn't see any oatmeal.
At school, however, Mrs. Whaley shows the students blue-dyed oatmeal with fruit fly larvae in it. After a discussion on the larvae, the students start to read their book reports. While listening to the book reports, Ramona feels dizzy and nauseous, then throws up. Marsha takes her to the office, where the nurse has her lay on a bed, and later, Mrs. Quimby arrives in a taxicab to pick Ramona up, surprising Ramona as Mrs. Quimby was meant to be at work. That night, Mr. Quimby has a word with Ramona and reveals she has stomach flu.
The next day, Ramona lies on the couch, reading and watching commercials on TV. Howie comes over and brings "get well soon" cards from the class. Beezus comes home and the girls talk about school, then Aunt Bea comes over and gives Ramona presents. The parents go into the kitchen to talk about repairs the car needs, and Beezus leaves to do her homework, leaving Ramona and Aunt Bea alone together. Bea tells Ramona that throwing up is so common in the school she teaches at that she hired one boy to be the "vomit monitor", but then he got sick and threw up himself. She also gives Ramona advice on her book report.
At school, it's revealed that some of the fruit flies escaped, and Ramona does her book report, which she bases on TV commercials.
Differences from Book[]
- Beezus notices that Ramona seems unwell, and she affirms. In the book, her first symptom was simply that "her spoon felt heavy", and no one else noticed.
- Howie asks to take the larvae out of the jars, which he doesn't in the book.
- In the book, Ramona's first class was arithmetic, whereas in this episode, it was biology, followed by English.
- In the book, we see Ramona on the bus, but we don't on the show.
- In the book Ramona doesn't tell Mrs. Whaley about her condition, but in the show she tries to.
- Aunt Bea visits the sick Ramona, which she doesn't in the book.
- In the book, Ramona says, "I can't believe I read the whole thing!", whereas in the show, she says, "Even Mikey likes it!". Both are references to real commercials.
- In the show, Ramona's reason for going to school despite being sick was because she didn't want to stay with the Kemps, but in the book, she didn't know she was sick.