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3.83 AVERAGE
3.83 AVERAGE
Really, I'd rather give this 4.5 stars because it's part of a series and it's not entirely self-contained. I now have to read the next book, which I was going to do anyway. I just wish the author had completed a story arc with this one.
This is the first writer/book that even comes close to measuring up to the greatness of Daniel Manus Pinkwater's writing. It contains some of the same elements: zaniness, surreality, odd and strange yet fascinating characters. I laughed quite a lot at this book. The author's asides for advice in-between chapters is great.
I hate comparing books/artistic works/artists to others, but this book seems like what would happen if A Series of Unfortunate Events was written by Pinkwater and Weird Al Yankovic.
I will be tagging along for the other two books, and those are moving up the priority list on my to-read list.
This is the first writer/book that even comes close to measuring up to the greatness of Daniel Manus Pinkwater's writing. It contains some of the same elements: zaniness, surreality, odd and strange yet fascinating characters. I laughed quite a lot at this book. The author's asides for advice in-between chapters is great.
I hate comparing books/artistic works/artists to others, but this book seems like what would happen if A Series of Unfortunate Events was written by Pinkwater and Weird Al Yankovic.
I will be tagging along for the other two books, and those are moving up the priority list on my to-read list.
This book proves that the mania for the Lemony Snickett/"Mysterious Benedict Society" genre hasn't died. Filled with semi-humorous winks and advice to the reader, a plot that is semi-suspenseful and all too coincidence-filled and characters that have just enough quirks to make them enjoyable for the target reader, A Whole Nother Story is clearly keeping the world of unfortunate events alive. As is often the case with this genre, however, adults will find that their amusement quickly fades.
ARC provided by publisher.
ARC provided by publisher.
If anyone ever writes a paper about the legacy of Lemony Snicket, this book should be in Chapter 1. It was thoroughly enjoyable: light-hearted adventure, just enough snarkiness, and a sock puppet. The ending is open enough that I suspect there will be sequels, and I even think there's enough story left to support them.
It will be a great one to handsell once it's in paperback.
It will be a great one to handsell once it's in paperback.
I could not manage to enjoy this book. While I generally adore absurdist details and pell-mell plots - I count Andy Stanton, Douglas Adams, Terry Pratchett & Lemony Snicket among my favorite authors - I simply found this one to be lacking in sparkle. I even fell asleep a couple of times reading it.
I will, however, pass it along to middle-grade boy readers who enjoy funny and eschew fantasy. For them, this book will be grist for the mill.
I will, however, pass it along to middle-grade boy readers who enjoy funny and eschew fantasy. For them, this book will be grist for the mill.
The author's frequent forays into the middle of the story drove me bananas. Also...the children are too perfect.
We listened to this on some summer trips and laughed out loud. Cute story and the kids are anxious to listen to the second story on our next trip.
So much fun!! I found this in the FreeCycle pile in my apartment building and thought I would pass it along to my niece and nephew. They might enjoy it, but I know my BCinDC grown-up friends would have a ball with it, so I will take along to the next meet-up.
A scientist with a powerful and amazing invention he needs to protect until it is finished, that is being pursued by secret agents, superspies, and villains of all sorts. He is on the run with his three children who were "smart, pleasant, witty, attractive, polite, and relatively odor free." Also the family dog who, because of her habit of drinking out of the toilet, is now hairless and psychic. Oh, and a sock puppet named Steve. One character not fully acknowledged makes the book -- the narrator, Dr. Cuthbert Soup, who after a few poorly-executed similes and metaphors (The hot afternoon sun seemed to melt the horizon like a gooey grilled cheese sandwich . . .), provides descriptions such as "the moon hung in the sky like a rotating, reflective orb with an approximate diameter of 2,158 miles." The opposition in pursuit are also interesting, from the debate about whether the family should be smashed or crushed or pulverized or squished or . . ., to the minkey who is so fond of his fish that they go along on road trips, and the alphabet agents. Then there is cast of Captain's Jibby's Traveling Circus Sideshow and Buck Weston the cowboy poet. Truly this is a story like no other, and I had a great afternoon reading it.
A scientist with a powerful and amazing invention he needs to protect until it is finished, that is being pursued by secret agents, superspies, and villains of all sorts. He is on the run with his three children who were "smart, pleasant, witty, attractive, polite, and relatively odor free." Also the family dog who, because of her habit of drinking out of the toilet, is now hairless and psychic. Oh, and a sock puppet named Steve. One character not fully acknowledged makes the book -- the narrator, Dr. Cuthbert Soup, who after a few poorly-executed similes and metaphors (The hot afternoon sun seemed to melt the horizon like a gooey grilled cheese sandwich . . .), provides descriptions such as "the moon hung in the sky like a rotating, reflective orb with an approximate diameter of 2,158 miles." The opposition in pursuit are also interesting, from the debate about whether the family should be smashed or crushed or pulverized or squished or . . ., to the minkey who is so fond of his fish that they go along on road trips, and the alphabet agents. Then there is cast of Captain's Jibby's Traveling Circus Sideshow and Buck Weston the cowboy poet. Truly this is a story like no other, and I had a great afternoon reading it.
This book was hilarious! A father creates an astounding invention and immediately becomes the victim for the CIA and several other agencies. The whole family is on the run for it. It's totally not your typical wild goose chase.
A great read aloud! Super funny, I will always laugh every time I think of Tibetan Yaks.
This story revolves around a time machine that is only used in the last few pages, and off-stage at that. (perhaps a sequel??) However, there's plenty of suspense as the Cheeseman family tries to elude spies and industrial baddies, who are all after the aforemetioned time machine. What I found really strong in this book is the sense of family--they help each other through the trials of moving from town to town, and protect each other, and their reason for getting the time machine working is to go back to the time before their mother was killed by the baddies. Somehow, the book manages to be silly and suspenseful at the same time. The asides of "Unsolcited Advice" from the author, "Dr. Cuthbert Soup", are hilarious. Snicket fans rejoice!