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jbrooxd's review against another edition
4.0
Touching holiday story of redemption. Really enjoyed this one!
tami_provencher's review against another edition
3.0
Nickel Bay Nick is the newest contribution from Dean Pitchford--whose Captain Nobody has become a staple in my read-aloud repertoire with middle grade students. Sam Brattle lives with his dad in Nickel Bay, a town hit hard by the economic downturn. A former firefighter (and local hero) Sam's dad is now struggling to keep his small bakery open in a town where many other small businesses are closing and the larger ones are moving away.
Sam's mother left when he was small, right before he got so ill he required a heart transplant to live. Sam is awash in the misery of feeling alone and abandoned and not quite whole within himself. Teased at school, he has taken to hanging around with Jaxon, an older boy with a penchant for shoplifting and vandalism. As a result, Sam has developed a reputation in the small community as a troublemaker.
When an accident on Christmas night throws Sam into contact with his elderly next door neighbor, Mr. Wells, Sam doesn't immediately realize he has a chance to change his future by making some different choices in the NOW.
Nickel Bay Nick has a lot of good intentions. The problem is that none of those good intentions ever really blossom into a well-plotted story. Sam almost achieves the genuine voice I am used to hearing in Pitchford's main characters but not quite; he never really emerges from the pages in any three-dimensional form. The same can be said of the other characters in the story--Mr. Wells, Jaxon, even Sam's father; they are all more ideas of characters than actual functioning beings in the story.
Surprisingly, I had a hard time getting through this one; I was often bored. Nickel Bay Nick has some nice moments--like the scene where Sam first encounters Mr. Wells and the escapades in the Four Seasons Mall at the end--but overall it is just an okay read.
Sam's mother left when he was small, right before he got so ill he required a heart transplant to live. Sam is awash in the misery of feeling alone and abandoned and not quite whole within himself. Teased at school, he has taken to hanging around with Jaxon, an older boy with a penchant for shoplifting and vandalism. As a result, Sam has developed a reputation in the small community as a troublemaker.
When an accident on Christmas night throws Sam into contact with his elderly next door neighbor, Mr. Wells, Sam doesn't immediately realize he has a chance to change his future by making some different choices in the NOW.
Nickel Bay Nick has a lot of good intentions. The problem is that none of those good intentions ever really blossom into a well-plotted story. Sam almost achieves the genuine voice I am used to hearing in Pitchford's main characters but not quite; he never really emerges from the pages in any three-dimensional form. The same can be said of the other characters in the story--Mr. Wells, Jaxon, even Sam's father; they are all more ideas of characters than actual functioning beings in the story.
Surprisingly, I had a hard time getting through this one; I was often bored. Nickel Bay Nick has some nice moments--like the scene where Sam first encounters Mr. Wells and the escapades in the Four Seasons Mall at the end--but overall it is just an okay read.
debrichmond's review against another edition
5.0
Sweet story with lots of excitement, adventure, and some intrigue! My students will love this book.
backonthealex's review against another edition
4.0
Sam Brattle may only be 11, but he has had quite a life already. The recipient of a heart transplant as a baby, Sam's mother left and she has just remarried. Sam and his dad don't get along, and to make matters worse, Sam's best friends are older and wild. In fact, Sam has already acquired quite a list of offences. Luckily for him, the police are old friends of his dad and never press charges. But Sam's luck seems to run out on Christmas Day. After being chased by the police for breaking windows in the condemned railway station, Sam decides to lose them by climbing an evergreen tree in the yard of an unfriendly neighbor. But after the police passed him by, Sam slide down the tree after seeing a monstrous dog in a window, taking a lot of tree and Christmas decorations with him.
Now, Sam's life is about change. Mr. Wells, who lives in the house and is a bit of a recluse, makes Sam an offer he can't refuse - after all, he did cause a lot of expensive property damage. It seems that Nickel Bay is a pretty depressed town, with lots of closed businesses, even Sam's dad is having money trouble with his bakery. And this year, no one out hustling and bustling to get their Christmas shopping done. In the past, a Good Samaritan nicknamed Nickel Bay Nick had secretly left $100 for the town's residents just before Christmas, but this year there was not Nick.
It seems Mr. Wells was actually Nickel Bay Nick and he had broken his leg so he couldn't get around. His proposition to Sam: tell his father he is working off his debt by doing some filing for Mr. Wells. Meantime, Mr. Wells come up with the idea that for the 12 days of Christmas, between December 25th and January 6th, Sam with train and become that year's Nickel Bay Nick. Can such a preposterous idea really work? Maybe.
When I first started to read Nickel Bay Nick, I wasn't too sure I was going to like it. Sam seemed like a really unpleasant character and since the story is told in his voice, all the reader has is his perspective - not good with an unlikable character. But as I read along, I was pleasantly surprised to discover that this was really a fun book to read, after all, simply because things are not what they seem to be at first.
Sam is really not a bad kid, but is a misguided one. He has a lot to learn, but this is a coming of age novel, so, yes, he does learn the right lessons that change his life. But it is the process of coming of age that makes this such an interesting book. It is a well written book, with just the right balance of humor and poignancy, and in between that, there's plenty of excitement, especially when Sam goes out at night to deliver his envelopes of money.
As an adult reader, I found bits in this novel a little contrived, maybe there was just too much coincidence, and certainly, with all he has done wrong, there should have been consequences for Sam at some point regardless of past friendships but I know that as a kid reader I wouldn't have minded any of that, and I'm betting kids today won't either.
Nickel Bay Nick is a satisfying novel that not only entertains, but shows us the feel good benefits to helping others. After all, this is a book with a lot of heart - real hearts, transplanted hearts, kind hearts and misguided hearts.
This book is recommended for readers age 9+
This book was bought for my personal library
This review was originally posted on Randomly Reading
Now, Sam's life is about change. Mr. Wells, who lives in the house and is a bit of a recluse, makes Sam an offer he can't refuse - after all, he did cause a lot of expensive property damage. It seems that Nickel Bay is a pretty depressed town, with lots of closed businesses, even Sam's dad is having money trouble with his bakery. And this year, no one out hustling and bustling to get their Christmas shopping done. In the past, a Good Samaritan nicknamed Nickel Bay Nick had secretly left $100 for the town's residents just before Christmas, but this year there was not Nick.
It seems Mr. Wells was actually Nickel Bay Nick and he had broken his leg so he couldn't get around. His proposition to Sam: tell his father he is working off his debt by doing some filing for Mr. Wells. Meantime, Mr. Wells come up with the idea that for the 12 days of Christmas, between December 25th and January 6th, Sam with train and become that year's Nickel Bay Nick. Can such a preposterous idea really work? Maybe.
When I first started to read Nickel Bay Nick, I wasn't too sure I was going to like it. Sam seemed like a really unpleasant character and since the story is told in his voice, all the reader has is his perspective - not good with an unlikable character. But as I read along, I was pleasantly surprised to discover that this was really a fun book to read, after all, simply because things are not what they seem to be at first.
Sam is really not a bad kid, but is a misguided one. He has a lot to learn, but this is a coming of age novel, so, yes, he does learn the right lessons that change his life. But it is the process of coming of age that makes this such an interesting book. It is a well written book, with just the right balance of humor and poignancy, and in between that, there's plenty of excitement, especially when Sam goes out at night to deliver his envelopes of money.
As an adult reader, I found bits in this novel a little contrived, maybe there was just too much coincidence, and certainly, with all he has done wrong, there should have been consequences for Sam at some point regardless of past friendships but I know that as a kid reader I wouldn't have minded any of that, and I'm betting kids today won't either.
Nickel Bay Nick is a satisfying novel that not only entertains, but shows us the feel good benefits to helping others. After all, this is a book with a lot of heart - real hearts, transplanted hearts, kind hearts and misguided hearts.
This book is recommended for readers age 9+
This book was bought for my personal library
This review was originally posted on Randomly Reading
jillcd's review against another edition
5.0
I have been meaning to read this book for quite a while due to the reviews. I loved it! The characters are engaging and the plot is fun. Wide appeal to a variety of readers grades 4 and up.
adelefrechette's review against another edition
4.0
Clever and fun, Dean Pitchford will take you on an unforgettable ride.
4 1/2 stars
4 1/2 stars
hahamama's review against another edition
4.0
I have been a fan of [a:Dean Pitchford|392832|Dean Pitchford|https://d.gr-assets.com/authors/1309176181p2/392832.jpg] since I read his book [b:Captain Nobody|6987801|Captain Nobody|Dean Pitchford|https://d.gr-assets.com/books/1355837781s/6987801.jpg|6537811]. I laughed out loud when I read [b:The Big One-Oh|7942383|The Big One-Oh|Dean Pitchford|https://d.gr-assets.com/books/1355839254s/7942383.jpg|727404] and had to share the audiobook with my family. Discovering that [a:Dean Pitchford|392832|Dean Pitchford|https://d.gr-assets.com/authors/1309176181p2/392832.jpg] also wrote the movie Footloose and co-wrote the songs for the movie with songwriters Eric Carmen, Michael Gore, Sammy Hagar, Kenny Loggins, Tom Snow and Bill Wolfer - plus he wrote the song Fame among even more others - only endeared him to me more.
[a:Dean Pitchford|392832|Dean Pitchford|https://d.gr-assets.com/authors/1309176181p2/392832.jpg]'s latest book [b:Nickel Bay Nick|20821289|Nickel Bay Nick|Dean Pitchford|https://d.gr-assets.com/books/1407108212s/20821289.jpg|24362181] is an adventurous and fun coming of age story. The main character Sam gets through his worst Christmas in a down-on-its-luck town only to have an even worse December 26th. It doesn't help that a local hero from past Christmases fails to show up to bring hope, inspiration, and Christmas spirit to the little town. Sam must learn spy skills and a few secrets to help his town and bring his family closer together.
[a:Dean Pitchford|392832|Dean Pitchford|https://d.gr-assets.com/authors/1309176181p2/392832.jpg]'s latest book [b:Nickel Bay Nick|20821289|Nickel Bay Nick|Dean Pitchford|https://d.gr-assets.com/books/1407108212s/20821289.jpg|24362181] is an adventurous and fun coming of age story. The main character Sam gets through his worst Christmas in a down-on-its-luck town only to have an even worse December 26th. It doesn't help that a local hero from past Christmases fails to show up to bring hope, inspiration, and Christmas spirit to the little town. Sam must learn spy skills and a few secrets to help his town and bring his family closer together.
amdame1's review against another edition
4.0
I quite enjoyed this story of a troubled and quite delinquent 11 year old who turns his life around while helping out a grouchy neighbor with a surprising mission.
A perfect Christmas time read.
A perfect Christmas time read.
dmtcer's review
5.0
A sweet, sad story about Sam Brattle as he struggles to cope with growing up. Sam battles with his father and has a distant mother who has recently remarried and has a new family now. Sam turns more and more toward a life of crime and rebellion, until one night as he runs from the police, he winds up at his mysterious neighbors house causing chaos and major damage. In order to work off the debt of the damages he caused, he is forced into restitution over Christmas break. It turns out to be more than Sam bargained for, and in exchange, Sam learns that things are not always as they seem. I loved this book! Very reminiscent to me of Gary Schmidt's Okay for Now, and Louis Sachar's Holes; stories of boys teetering on the edge of making a choice in life from which there is no turning back.
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