Reviews

The Genius Files: Mission Unstoppable by Dan Gutman

onceuponacarm's review

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3.0

Good for a lot of kids--funny, adventurous, exciting. But not my cup of tea.

the_enobee's review

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4.0

I started this with my son a few months ago, and once we hit the half-way point he took off on his own and left me the in the dust. That's a testament to what a fun read The Genius Files is. Perfect for 9-12 and maybe even older. I love the emphasis this book places on Americana as the family embarks on a non-traditional trip across the country. And the interactive aspects of encouraging the reader to look things up online is really cool too. Awesome cloak and dagger happenings as well make this an irresistible read and I'm looking forward to the sequel myself.

sparklingreader's review

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4.0

The Genius Files: Mission Unstoppable is a fun read for boys and girls.
Not only is it full of adventure, but also fun facts about the US as we
follow the two main characters across the US.

In eight days, twins Coke and Pepsi (or Pep) are very smart children. From
the very beginning of the book there is a lot of action as Coke and Pep go
on the run from people who are trying to kill them. Later in the book,
they learn that they are part of a group called The Genius Files but they
didn't know this. Some people don't like The Genius Files and want to
destroy it so they are trying to kill the kids who are involved.

Since it's the end of the school year, their parents have planned a cross
country trip from California to their Aunts wedding in Washington DC. The
readers get to go along to all sorts of places like the Pez museum, The
National Yo-yo museum, visit the singing sand dunes, the biggest ball of
twine and more. (Note: their mother runs an online site called "Amazing
But True" and is very much interested in oddball places).

While the adventure part is pretty predictable, it's still a fun read kids
will enjoy and they can then check out the very real places being visited
by the twins and discover all sorts of odd facts themselves.
Fans of Dan Gutman will quickly become fans of Coke and Pep as they thwart
the killers. It's adventure. It's fun. And it's full of interesting facts
all rolled into one book.

brendalovesbooks's review

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3.0

Why I read it: received e-copy from Netgalley for review
The Plot: Two twins named Coke and Pepsi find that they are targets of assassins. As the plot unfolds, they find out that they are part of a secret group called The Genius Files. All of this happens as they finish up the school year and head on a cross country trip in an RV with their parents. Obviously the whole plot was fairly unbelievable, but the target audience should find it fun.
The Characters: Besides having quite possibly the most ridiculous names I've ever seen for characters, Coke and Pepsi are your regular almost teenagers (they turn 13 during the story). Except that they are both exceptionally smart. It comes off somewhat in the story, but they're not annoyingly smart, if that makes sense. Kids should be able to relate to these characters, mostly.
The Setting: This was the fun part of the story. The family sets off on a cross country trip, leaving from San Francisco and ending up in Washington D.C. (although they don't make it all the way in this book). Throughout the book the author interjects cities you can plug into google maps to follow along with them on their trip. There are also pictures throughout of the places they visited. And if that's not enough, since both Coke and his mom are lovers of useless facts, we learn a lot of things about different spots in the U.S.
Who Should Read This? This is a great book for the middle grade audience. Parents who like to read to their younger children might like this one as well, just for its silliness and fun.
Final Thoughts: I'll be honest here. If I was judging this book purely on it's entertainment level for me, I wouldn't rate it very high. It was very silly and very young, especially the humor. That being said, this book wasn't written for my age group. It was written for kids, and I think they'll really like it. So while it may not go on any favorite lists of mine, it's great for what it was meant to be: a fun adventure tale for middle grade readers.
Grade: B
Cover Thoughts: The cover has a cute, cartoonish look that will definitely appeal to kids.

aaubrey829's review

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adventurous funny lighthearted mysterious tense fast-paced

4.0

This was a book my son and I read before bed for the last few weeks. It was an exciting and funny story. It was also cool to see some weird  and interesting sites that actually exist in the USA. The storyline was far-fetched, but it definitely holds kids interest throughout the whole book.

slaskin1's review

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5.0

I’m going through Area 51 so I thought of this staple of my childhood.

dogtrax's review

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3.0

I'm reading this in class, as my students are doing their own independent reading

britneygulb's review

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adventurous lighthearted mysterious medium-paced

2.75

jcarsrud's review

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4.0

This was a fun read aloud to the kids. Kind of silly, but they liked that. We need to go to House on the Rock and some of the other odd places in the US because the book made them sound so interesting!

jscollon's review

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4.0

Logan liked it a lot. I thought it was rather dry.