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miriamrje 's review for:
The Inventor's Secret
by Chad Morris
Cragbridge Hall ranks up there with Hogwarts in 'Schools I'd Like To Attend'- it really does! And what's even better is Cragbridge Hall is a lot more realistic. All of the technology Morris invents feels like it really could (and probably will) be invented. (The only thing that is maybe pushing the limits is the time-traveling. More on that later.)
The book takes place in 2074. Twins Abby and Derick Cragbridge are the grandchildren of famous scientist and inventor Oscar Cragbridge, for whom the school was named. The academy is the best junior high in the world, and the kids who attend are all crazy talented and smart (think entrepreneurs, TV stars, published authors, etc.)
Derick is pretty much a genius (or so it's said; I didn't see a whole lot in the book that made me think that...but we don't see a lot of academics anyway, so maybe he is a whiz at math and stuff.)
However, Abby isn't a supergenius, or a valedictorian, or a champion athlete, or a prodigy musician. She's average. And what I like about Abby is she really is ordinary, not like Harry Potter where he feels like he doesn't fit in- but that's because he's The Chosen One. She's not like most main characters, where they have special powers, or are really smart, or something.
Anyway, the other thing I really liked is the time-traveling. And not just the actual going back in time (but that was pretty cool.) The scientist characters actually had real debates on the ethics of time travel in the book. Their stances seemed pretty legit, and I have to say I agree with Grandpa Cragbridge. His whole point was 'If we go and change things in the past, there's no telling what effect it might have on the future.' And the 'bad guy' (Charles Muns) was countering with, 'If we change the past, millions of lives will be saved.' And so on.
The characters also have to do a sort of scavenger hunt through time, you might say, and I learned some things about history. So, definitely a worthwhile book, if you're into science fiction, I would say. But even if it's not your genre- it might surprise you.
The book takes place in 2074. Twins Abby and Derick Cragbridge are the grandchildren of famous scientist and inventor Oscar Cragbridge, for whom the school was named. The academy is the best junior high in the world, and the kids who attend are all crazy talented and smart (think entrepreneurs, TV stars, published authors, etc.)
Derick is pretty much a genius (or so it's said; I didn't see a whole lot in the book that made me think that...but we don't see a lot of academics anyway, so maybe he is a whiz at math and stuff.)
However, Abby isn't a supergenius, or a valedictorian, or a champion athlete, or a prodigy musician. She's average. And what I like about Abby is she really is ordinary, not like Harry Potter where he feels like he doesn't fit in- but that's because he's The Chosen One. She's not like most main characters, where they have special powers, or are really smart, or something.
Anyway, the other thing I really liked is the time-traveling. And not just the actual going back in time (but that was pretty cool.) The scientist characters actually had real debates on the ethics of time travel in the book. Their stances seemed pretty legit, and I have to say I agree with Grandpa Cragbridge. His whole point was 'If we go and change things in the past, there's no telling what effect it might have on the future.' And the 'bad guy' (Charles Muns) was countering with, 'If we change the past, millions of lives will be saved.' And so on.
The characters also have to do a sort of scavenger hunt through time, you might say, and I learned some things about history. So, definitely a worthwhile book, if you're into science fiction, I would say. But even if it's not your genre- it might surprise you.