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HELP | |
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  $9.95 List price:
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More copies of this ISBN:This title in other formats:Other titles in the Heck series:Heck: Where the Bad Kids Goby Dale E. Basye
Staff Pick
In this fun read about a reform school where "darned" kids go until they turn 18, two great characters plan their escape from Bea "Elsa" Bubb, the Principal of Darkness. Tweens will love the clever wordplay and smattering of gross humor. Synopses & ReviewsPublisher Comments:When Milton and Marlo Fauster die in a marshmallow bear explosion, they get sent straight to Heck, an otherworldly reform school. Milton can understand why his kleptomaniac sister is here, but Milton is — or was — a model citizen.
Has a mistake been made? Not according to Bea "Elsa" Bubb, the Principal of Darkness. She doesn't make mistakes. She personally sees to it that Heck — whether it be home-ec class with Lizzie Borden, ethics with Richard Nixon, or gym with Blackbeard the Pirate — is especially, well, heckish for the Fausters. Will Milton and Marlo find a way to escape? Or are they stuck here for all eternity, or until they turn 18, whichever comes first? Review:"In his uproarious send-up of all things purgatorial, debut novelist Basye gives readers a new lease on afterlifes. Milton, a blameless 11-year-old bookworm, and his 'blue-haired, thirteen-going-on-thirty-year-old' sister, Marlo, are at the Mall of Generica (in Generica, Kans.), when they meet their demise in a ludicrous accident (Milton's nemesis plants a stick of dynamite in a 20-foot-tall statue made from marshmallow: 'Smoke, noise, and burning marshmallow fused together to create a sickeningly sweet moment, one that was both ridiculously tragic and tragically ridiculous'). Unfortunately, Marlo has been shoplifting and stashed her goods in Milton's gear, so both get sent to Heck — a hell for the under-18 demographic. Never mind that Milton is technically innocent: 'The devil's in the details,' snaps Heck's principal, Bea 'Elsa' Bubb. After a series of ill-fated yet deliciously documented attempts to escape, one sibling succeeds in returning from the Underworld, but the finale is almost beside the point. The author's umpteen clever allusions — characters' eternal fates are decided by standardized 'Soul Aptitude Tests'; Mr. R. Nixon teaches ethics to evildoers in room 1972 — make this book truly sparkle. Ages 9 — 12. (July)" Publishers Weekly (Starred Review) (Copyright Reed Business Information, Inc.) Review:"Humorous chapter titles, sly banter between characters and a richly imagined world ought to make this a hit for the intended audience. In tribute to old Blackbeard, who puts the 'scurvy dogs' to work in one scene, rate this 'Arrrrrgh.'" Kirkus Reviews Review:Starred Review, Publishers Weekly, June 30, 2008: "The author's umpteen clever allusions...make this book truly sparkle." Review, The Wall Street Journal, July 26-27, 2008: "Parents and readers . . . are in for a treat with Dale E. Basye's very funny debut novel." Synopsis:After Milton and Marlo Fauster die in a marshmallow bear explosion, they are sent straight to Heck, an otherworldly reform school. Milton can understand why his kleptomaniac sister is here, but Milton is — or was — a model citizen. Has a mistake been made? About the AuthorDale E. Basye lives with his wife and son in Portland, Oregon. What Our Readers Are SayingAdd a comment for a chance to win!
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