MMGM: The Pirates Eye by Gus Bass

Published: April 1, 2012

ISBN: 1847152287
Genre: fantasy, pirates, loyalty, friendship
Publisher: Simon and Schuster
Themes: middle school, fantasy, friends, family, magic
Add it on: Goodreads / Amazon / Barnes And Noble/ *Indie Bound*
About the Book: After the successful defence of Castle Grotteskew from the evil clutches of Fulbert Freakfinder, life returns to normal for Stitch Head, until his master, Mad Professor Erasmus, leaves the castle to accept the prestigious Lifetime of Mad Professoring Award ...and doesn't come back. At last, Stitch Head is free to start a new life, and decides to live his dream and set sail for an almost-life on the high seas...But all is not as it seems, and soon Stitch Head, the Creature and Arabella find themselves racing across the waves in an attempt to rescue the professor from the clutches of a mysterious enemy...

First Line: It was the night that everything changed.

What Other's Are Saying: "Bass brings his readers on such a fast, fun, funny journey that sometimes you forget to draw breath and the design of the book and the plays with typeface and font, add to the entertainment rather than distract from it.
     There is no doubt that Guy Bass and Pete Williamson make a great team with Williamson’s illustrations always just on the right side of humorously gross. A very enjoyable read." —Inis Magazine, Book 1

"The story appeals to readers of all ages. It is dark but humorously well written and has lovable monsters for characters. One of the most striking things about the Stitch Head books is their illustrations by Pete Williamson. The characters and settings are eerie but beautifully drawn nonetheless and really help to bring the story to life. The gothic theme continues throughout the book as each page is designed to look like the page of an old book with its shaded edges and pretend creases."— Press Gang Review

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What I Thought: I loved this fun off-beat adventure. It's about an under-dog character who learns courage. This is a wonderful fantasy full of outrageous over-the-top word play and humor mixed with a little harmless horror. The illustrations add depth and dimension pushes it close to a graphic novel. 

Illustrator: Pete Williamson
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Who: Pete Williamson is a London-based artist, animation designer, and creator of twelve children's books to date. This site provides a showcase for his extensive work in all these areas, as well as comprehensive art galleries, regular updates and exclusive previews on all Pete's upcoming projects and information on how to commission art and design work.

Author: Guy Bass
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Who: Guy Bass is an award winning writer, author, and stuff. In 2010 he won the Blue Peter Book Award for Most Fun Book With Pictures for Dinkin Dings and the Frightening Things and has twice won the Portsmouth Book Award (Shorter Novel) for his Dinkin Dings series. Guy grew up dreaming of being a superhero – he even had a Spider-Man costume. The costume doesn’t fit anymore, so Guy now contents himself with writing children’s books and drawing the occasional picture. He has written plays for both adults and children, including three series of children’s plays for The Stephen Joseph Theatre in Scarborough. He also created the MUNGLERS TRUMPS cards – and draws in almost every birthday card he sends.

In times past, Guy has been a theatre producer, a surly temp, and has acted his way out of several paper bags.

Guy lives in London with his wife and no dog, yet. Ask him questions, book him for an event, or just tell him how brilliant he is here – guy@guybass.com  —Website

Check Out The Other Books In The Series:

 

This made a great birthday gift for my grandson! We added an awesome brass spyglass and a book about real pirate stories. 

MMGM: The Fast And The Furriest by Andy Behrens

About The Book: Meet Kevin Pugh, 12-year-old couch potato. Now meet Cromwell, his part beagle, part potato chip dog. Kevin’s looking forward to spending his summer doing as little as possible. Unfortunately, Kevin’s father, former Chicago Bears star player/super-sports fanatic, Howie Pugh, feels differently. So does Cromwell, who has suddenly and mysteriously developed a fascination with agility competitions: running up seesaws, leaping over hurdles, soaring through hoops (sometimes). If he has to do anything, Kevin would rather do something for newly obsessed Cromwell, but dog agility lessons do not constitute a sport in his father’s mind, so football camp it is. Until some well-timed events collide, literally, and soon Kevin’s found a way for he and Cromwell to take classes, and the upstart Team Cromwell is born.

First Line: Twelve-year-old Kevin Pugh stood on the pitcher's mound.

What Others Are Saying: "In spite of a clichéd plot and caricaturelike secondary characters, Behrens's engaging style will appeal to children. Students will relate to likable Kevin's self-deprecating humor, and Cromwell's perseverance gives anyone with an unrealized dream a glimmer of hope."—Kim Dare on School Library Journal

"This semi-sports story reads like a Cinderella tale in which the protagonist rises above his own apathy, rather than nasty relatives, to achieve hero status. Secondary characters, such as Elka, the eccentric trainer at the dog school, and Kevin’s best friend, Zach, who has grand visions of sponsorship deals for Cromwell, are effective foils. Plot surprises are few, but the abundant humor makes this a satisfying underdog story in the tradition of Gordon Korman’s and David Lubar’s novels." —Kara Dean on Booklist

What I Thought: This was a fun quick read, perfect for the hard-to-please reluctant reader. The action is fast paced and there are some very funny scenes. I was a little disappointed with many of the  secondary characters. The Dad was just caricature. This is a good choice for  8-9 year old boys, older readers may find the plot fairly predictable. I liked the way Kevin finds something he enjoys that is physical and gets him off the couch. The dialogue is lively and Cromwell is incredibly lovable.

Check out this great agility video to get an idea of what Kevin and Cromwell were up to.

About The Author: 
Andy Behrens  
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Author Andy Behrens has written three young adult novels: The Fast and the Furriest, All the Way, and Beauty and the Bully. His first novel, All the Way, was the inspiration for the 2008 movie, Sex Drive.

Other than novel writing, Andy has written for the Chicago Reader, Flak magazine, and ESPN.com, amongst other publications. Currently, he works as the editor of Y! Sports’ Roto Arcadelives from his home in Chicago with his wife and daughter.