The Readers and Writers Paradise

The real scoop on middle grade books.

Archives for February 2014

The Readers and Writers Paradise Podcast Episode 002: Interview with Erik from This Kid Reviews Books!

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I am super excited to share the second episode of my podcast with you today. For the first guest ever on my show, I interviewed Erik from This Kid Reviews Books. Erik is an absolutely awesome guy and has the most popular book review blog on the entire internet. Plus, he’s already published a book! But get this: He’s only twelve years old.

A couple of years ago Erik interviewed me on his website, so it was only natural for me to return the favor. I had a great time interviewing Erik; I hope you guys enjoy the show as much as I did. Please comment and let us know what you think.

Click here to download the podcast

Two Hot Dogs with Everything by Paul Haven Review

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I used to love baseball. In fact, there was one year where I watched every single game the Yankees played. That, and the strength of Dan Gutman’s baseball series, made me excited to read Two Hot Dogs with Everything by Paul Haven, a book about a boy who tries to use luck to make his baseball team, the Sluggers, win the World Series.

This is kind of a weird story, based on hidden magic rituals. I have mixed feelings about the book, because the theme of the book is taking the idea of superstitions and baseball to a whole new level.

Summary

Danny Gurkin is an 11 year old who absolutely loves his favorite baseball team: The Sluggers. The only problem is that they are an awful team. Year after year they endure horrible defeats.

Although Danny puts in valiant efforts to help his team by having two hot dogs with the right amount of toppings before every game, it seems to have little effect. He also has other rituals, from what he wears to where he watches the game.

Danny and his friends, however, come across bubblegum from Manchester E. Boddlebrooks, the founder of the Sluggers. Manchester’s house is about to be demolished, and they hope to find something valuable in it. The bubblegum, however, turns out to be much more valuable than they could have thought.

By chewing the gum Danny is able to change the outcome of the Sluggers games and make them play better. In fact, they are able to get all the way to the world series! But will it be enough to last the Sluggers through the season? What mysterious characters are still alive? And will the owner of the Tornados stop Danny before he can will the Sluggers to win their first victory in 108 years?

Review

As I said earlier, this book is really just taking baseball superstitions to a whole new level, with the magical bubblegum and mysterious characters. The whole thing is quite eery.

The book is well-written, and we are able to identify with Danny as we feel the loses of our own sports teams. For me, though, this book was just a little too weird. I could’ve been okay if it was just the bubblegum, but the whole history of it and everything was a little too much for me. Most kids would love it, however.

This book probably won’t be very well-liked by kids who aren’t into baseball. If they are, however, it may very well capture their attention. On Amazon, there is not a single negative review for Two Hot Dogs with Everything. That’s saying something.

Thank you for reading this review and if you’d like to purchase the book you can do so through this link. You can also like my Facebook Page or enter your email below to get more book reviews.

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The 39 Clues Book 7: The Viper’s Nest by Peter Lerangis Review

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I was more excited for this book than any other in The 39 Clues series. Some of you may find this surprisingly, knowing that I am one of the biggest fans of The 39 Clues, and also knowing that I really didn’t like Peter Lerangis’s earlier contribution to the series.

Why why I was so excited, then? Because in this book we learn the identity of Amy and Dan’s branch!

In case you don’t know, The 39 Clues is a multi-author series in which two kids, Amy and Dan Cahill learn that they are members of the most powerful family in human history. The source of their families power is hidden across the world in the form of thirty-nine clues, or chemical elements, which when put together will create a virtual superman potion.

The 39 Clues is one of my all-time favorite kids series, and I consider it was a part of my childhood. If you haven’t read it yet, then you might want to start with the latest books and then backtrack your way from the first book. If you have read it, though, than read on!

Summary

As you probably already know, there are four main branches in The 39 Clues, one for each of the children of Gideon Cahill, the patriarch of the entire Cahill clan. The Ekaterina, Lucian, Tomas, and Janus branches all want to be the first to find the clues.

Amy and Dan, however, don’t know what branch they’re apart of. That’s a problem that has dogged them throughout the entire series. The matter of Amy and Dan’s branch was the thing that intrigued clue hunters (including me) the most. We all had a pretty good idea; after all, clues throughout the series hinted that Amy and Dan were actually Madrigals, a secretive group that everyone is afraid of.

Before Lerangis tells Amy and Dan’s branch, however, he first continues the story from the last book. Irina just sacrificed her own life to save Amy and Dan, and they can barely believe that the vicious ex-KGB agent would do such a thing. Their suspicion of Nellie also continues to grow, but they little choice but to trust her for the moment.

Amy and Dan realize that Irina’s last words-“I’m with you and you’re with me and so we are all together”-were actually the words to a song called marching to Pretoria, a city in South Africa. Amy and Dan quickly discover that the clue has to do with Shaka Zulu, one of the greatest warrior kings of all time.

Amy and Dan also discover that Winston Churchill was involved with the clue, and infiltrate the Tomas stronghold. They are helped throughout the book by Professor Bardsley, a friend of Grace.

Although Amy and Dan find the clue in the stronghold, they are once again attacked by Isabel. Isabel offers them Amy and Dan a chance to join her family, but of course they decline. Isabel is about to kill them once again, but their ingenuity and the help of Professor Bardsley keeps them alive.

The Professor was such a good friend of Grace’s that he has access to her plane, The Flying Lemur. Amy and Dan, however, accidentally spill a vial full of poison onto Dan’s arm. They head to Grace’s secret house in Madagascar to get Dan some medicine.

Dan gets the medicine, but he and Amy also get far more. They find Grace’s notebook, that has the secret of their family branch. If you want, you can click here to see what that branch is. Me; I’d read the book.

Review

This book was a pretty mediocre one, to be honest. The plot itself was good enough, but the way it was written wasn’t. It literally gave me a headache to read it because a lot of it wasn’t clear. I wanted to stop and try to reread, but I just pushed on so I could get to the branch revealing.

There was some historical information in the book about Shaka Zulu and South Africa, but it wasn’t understandable at all. All that I remember is that Shaka Zulu was a great warrior of some kind and that there was recently slavery in South Africa. The slavery could’ve been a powerful moment, but it was pretty weak the way Lerangis wrote it.

The style was a little more matching the other authors than in book 3, but it still wasn’t quite there, and wasn’t really any better. In fact, it might have been worse. This book was more of a blend between his style of writing and the other authors, but it only meets halfway and is kind of like an orchestra not sure of what note to play.

Either way, this is a necessary book for any serious fan of The 39 Clues. This book contains perhaps the most important information in the whole series. I’d just skim through it and to the end. If you’ve been paying attention, I don’t think you’ll be very surprised.

Thank you for reading this review and if you’d like to purchase the book you can do so through this link. You can also like my Facebook Page or enter your email below to get more book reviews.

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Pop by Gordon Korman Review

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We’ve all heard of the stories of people who have Alzheimer’s, or maybe we even know someone who has it. We’ve also all heard the talk about how dangerous the NFL is becoming, how past players are now suffering from Alzheimer’s.

In Pop, Gordon Korman explores this theme of football players getting Alzheimer’s through the eyes of a boy named Marcus, a kid who just moved into a new town. Before long he meets a man named Charlie (aka the “King of Pop”), an ex-NFL linebacker who has Alzheimer’s.

Charlie gets worse and worse since Marcus knows him, and before long he loses all reality whatsoever. He imagines things as though they were decades ago, and has no knowledge of the present world. His condition is very sad, and this book does not have a happy ending.

Summary

When Marcus moves into a new town with his divorced mother, things don’t go quite as well as he had hoped. Although Marcus was the starting quarterback at his last high school, the school in his new town has already won the state championship two years in a row and has no need for a new player.

Marcus ends up practicing on his own, and it is not long before he runs into an unknown middle-aged man. He hits extremely hard, and at first Marcus doesn’t like it, but as time goes on he learns to enjoy the contact, the “pop.”

Things are strange about this man, however. Whenever Marcus tries to schedule a meeting with him, he waits for hours and the man doesn’t show up. And other times the man accuses him of being late even though it wasn’t the agreed upon time.

Meanwhile, Marcus is having a competition with Troy, the starting quarterback of the football team. He even has a brief romance with Alyssa, who is usually Troy’s boyfriend.

After some digging, Marcus learns that the friend he’s been playing with is Charlie Popovich, a former NFL linebacker who is the celebrity of the town! Marcus also discovers that Charlie is Troy’s dad.

Other strange things start happening. Charlie begins to call Marcus “Mac,” apparently an old friend of his, and acts as though he’s still a kid. Marcus knows that something isn’t right, and he discovers that Charlie has Alzheimer’s, something his family is trying very hard to keep a secret.

Of course, there can’t be a Korman book without an exciting story. There is a college hall of fame induction for Charlie, but he doesn’t even know what’s going on. His family doesn’t want him to go, but Marcus has a feeling that he’ll have a great memory of the times that happened decades ago.

Will Charlie get to experience the joy of his old college days again? Will his old friend Mac come out again? Most importantly, will Charlie survive?

Review

Korman normally says he writes books that kids would want to read, period. This book is clearly written as education about the rough condition of Alzheimer’s. It is very sad, but also very true, and it makes you feel great compassion for Charlie.

I have a family member who currently has Alzheimer’s and it’s very hard for all of us. I do feel I understand it better having read this book, but this is not at all meant to a factual presentation of the disease; for that you’ll have to look elsewhere. This story merely follows its impact on one man.

I almost want to cry thinking about the book now. Yet there are happy times in it, as well, and even the hardest moments are mixed with happiness. This is not a depressing book, but more of a reflective one. Still, I’d talk to your child about Alzheimer’s and how they feel about it if you’re planning to have them read the book.

Would I recommend it? Yes, it’s a very powerful book. Probably Korman’s most powerful in several years.

Thank you for reading this review and if you’d like to purchase the book you can do so through this link. You can also like my Facebook Page or enter your email below to get more book reviews.

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The Million Dollar Shot by Dan Gutman Review

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Dan Gutman writes books that kids want to read. That’s why he did his “million dollar” series, where he puts kids into situations in which they have the opportunity to win a million dollars. Gutman says he believes that’s the kind of stuff kids dream about, and the success of his books prove that he’s right.

What makes the books so good is that he creates believable characters that you can really identify with. The Million Dollar Shot is no different, in which young Eddie Ball unexpectedly has the opportunity has the opportunity to shoot one basket worth a million dollars.

Summary

Eddie’s family is poor, and his mom works for a company called Finkle Foods, a snack company that employees most of the people in the area (Eddie’s dad passed away sometime in the past). Eddie loves playing basketball and befriends a girl named Anne who is able to beat him in horse.

Unfortunately, Eddie and Anne come home from school one day to find out that both of their parents have been fired. Finkle Foods isn’t doing as well as it used to, and so they’re having to make a few cuts. They already lived in trailers, but now they’re going to be a dire financial situation.

Earlier in the story, however, Eddie had run across a poetry competition that will give the winner the opportunity to win a million dollars by sinking a shot during halftime of the NBA Finals. Originally Eddie couldn’t enter because his mom worked for Finkle Foods, but now that his mom was fired he can enter the contest.

Unfortunately, however, all Eddie can come up with is a silly rap song. Anne laughs when he reads it and she writes her own poem for Eddie to send in. Eddie doesn’t think much of it (it’s a little old-fashioned), but it ends up winning him the contest!

After that, Anne’s dad starts coaching Eddie. He was a great college player and almost made it to the NBA, but he slacked off and instead ended up having to live in a trailer. He tells Eddie the secret to shooting a free throw and has him shoot 1000 free throws a day.

Eddie is shooting over 90%, so things look good for him to win the prize. Finkle, however, really doesn’t want Eddie to win. Now that his company is doing poorly he can’t afford to pay out a million dollars. He starts paying people to say nasty things to him and try and throw off Eddie’s shot. It works, and Eddie has to work hard to not let it get to him.

I think we all know the ending already, but I won’t spoil it anyway. Eddie’s mom and Anne’s dad also start dating, much to Eddie’s chagrin, but he learns to handle it.

Review

This is a very good book. Sure, there isn’t that much suspense as to what’s going to happen, but Dan Gutman doesn’t really write his books to be suspenseful. Eddie is a down-to-earth, identifiable character and you really feel for him and his family.

The stuff about basketball was interesting, too. I love basketball, and it was fun to read about Eddie’s preparation to become a free-throwing champ.

It’s not good for older kids, though; probably it would be best for age eleven and under. It’s only 128 pages, and those go fast, even for kids who don’t normally like reading.

There are criticisms I could give for the book, but there aren’t really things missing; there are things Gutman intentionally didn’t put in. This is a book about a poor kid who lost his dad taking his opportunity to make it to the top and his journey to get there. The character tensions and development make The Million Dollar Shot well worth the read.

Thank you for reading this review and if you’d like to purchase the book you can do so through this link. You can also like my Facebook Page or enter your email below to get more book reviews.

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I’m Starting a Podcast-Info and Episode 001!

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Hey guys, I’m super excited to announce that today I’m launching my podcast! I’ve wanted to do a podcast for a while but just haven’t had the time to do it. Well; now I do, and here it is!

I don’t want to write too much because I explain most of it in the podcast, but the goal of the podcast is to present my book reviews in another media for people to access. What I’m most excited about is being able to interview people. For my next episode I’ve got an interview with Erik from This Kid Reviews Books that I’m really excited about.

I’ll be publishing a new episode of the podcast every Wednesday, so stay tuned and here’s the first one! I’m submitting it to iTunes right now so that you can listen to it easier.