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bak8382's review
4.0
All Josh wants to do is be a normal 13 year old kid, but that's seriously hard when your Dad is an Elvis impersonator. As Josh works to blend in at his new school it seems like everything is against him from his Dad's girlfriend's kooky daughter to the weird notes being left on his locker. When his Dad is asked to sing at his school it's the last straw, and Josh fights back.
This hilarious book is entertaining from start to finish. Josh's descriptions of the world around him, especially Chicago, and his asides to the reader are spot on.
This hilarious book is entertaining from start to finish. Josh's descriptions of the world around him, especially Chicago, and his asides to the reader are spot on.
nerfherder86's review against another edition
5.0
Middle schooler Josh has to stay several weeks with his dad in chicago, while his mom takes care of his ill grandmother. He's not too keen on that, since he's lived with his mom since their divorce. But then Josh learns that his dad has quit his job to become an ELVIS IMPERSONATOR! If any of the kids at his new school find out, he'll die of embarrassment. So who keeps leaving him notes on his locker signed "Elvisly Yours"?? Great story, funny characters, and I liked how the author incorporated lyrics from Elvis Presley songs into the chapter breaks.
tami_provencher's review against another edition
4.0
I have recently become a HUGE fan of this author. She writes everything from amazing historical fiction to contemporary fiction, to stories based on current, real-life events. I first became aware of her when her book ALL OF THE ABOVE showed up on the Maud Hart Lovelace Award Nominee list for 2010-11 in Division II (5th -7th grade).
Having read ALL OF THE ABOVE and enjoyed it so thoroughly, I went looking for more of Ms. Pearsall’s work. I also visited her website, which is quite informative and interesting to explore.
The next novel of Ms. Pearsall’s I read this summer was ALL SHOOK UP. This is set in the present. The main character is a 7th Grade boy whose parents are already divorced at the beginning of the story. His maternal grandmother falls in her home in Florida and his mother has to relocate there for a few months to help her mother with her recovery. Josh is sent to live with his dad in Chicago.
Upon arriving in Chicago Josh discovers that the father who had always worked as a shoe salesman has lost his job and is now working as an Elvis Presley impersonator. Josh is mortified by this information. He even goes so far as to pick up a job application from a local video store for his dad so he can have a “real” job again. The really moving part about this novel is the honesty with which Josh speaks. We all have feelings of anger and resentment and embarrassment connected at times with our parents. It’s hard to admit those things to ourselves. We see in Josh’s gradual realization of the discrepancy between his perceptions and his father’s our own understanding of those feelings and thoughts that can otherwise fester. When Josh decides to manipulate circumstances, sacrificing his father’s goals for his own he discovers that the consequences are far-reaching in ways he never anticipated. And he discovers how to find his way back from some questionable decisions. It is a remarkable book that adds to my admiration for Shelley Pearsall and her work.
Having read ALL OF THE ABOVE and enjoyed it so thoroughly, I went looking for more of Ms. Pearsall’s work. I also visited her website, which is quite informative and interesting to explore.
The next novel of Ms. Pearsall’s I read this summer was ALL SHOOK UP. This is set in the present. The main character is a 7th Grade boy whose parents are already divorced at the beginning of the story. His maternal grandmother falls in her home in Florida and his mother has to relocate there for a few months to help her mother with her recovery. Josh is sent to live with his dad in Chicago.
Upon arriving in Chicago Josh discovers that the father who had always worked as a shoe salesman has lost his job and is now working as an Elvis Presley impersonator. Josh is mortified by this information. He even goes so far as to pick up a job application from a local video store for his dad so he can have a “real” job again. The really moving part about this novel is the honesty with which Josh speaks. We all have feelings of anger and resentment and embarrassment connected at times with our parents. It’s hard to admit those things to ourselves. We see in Josh’s gradual realization of the discrepancy between his perceptions and his father’s our own understanding of those feelings and thoughts that can otherwise fester. When Josh decides to manipulate circumstances, sacrificing his father’s goals for his own he discovers that the consequences are far-reaching in ways he never anticipated. And he discovers how to find his way back from some questionable decisions. It is a remarkable book that adds to my admiration for Shelley Pearsall and her work.
nshemezis's review against another edition
3.0
Oops! I forgot that I finished this the other day! Anyway it was a fine book. The kid was a total negative nancy. I hope I don't have a child like this. I would say hey kid of mine! Lighten up a bit! But yeah it was an OK book. Not great. But the fact that it took place in Chicago made it cooler!
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