Synopses & Reviews
andlt;b andgt;Reinventing yourself takes humor, heart, and a TON of footnotes!andlt;/bandgt;andlt;BRandgt;andlt;BRandgt;Max is a good kidand#8212;but you wouldnand#8217;t know that if you met him at the boring family camp his parents dragged him to over the summer. There, for a few exciting weeks, Max reinvents himself as and#8220;Mad Maxand#8221; and gains a bad-boy reputation for being daring, cool, and fearless.andlt;BRandgt;andnbsp;andnbsp;andnbsp;andnbsp; But when Max returns home, he finds itand#8217;s easier to be fearless with strangers than it is among friends, and he is not particularly proud of the way his behavior over the summer hurt people. Can he find away to merge his adventurous alter ego with his true identity as a good guy?andlt;BRandgt;andnbsp;andnbsp;andnbsp;andnbsp; Peppered with humorous handwritten footnotes and doodles throughout, andlt;i andgt;Anyway*andlt;/iandgt; perfectly captures the viewpoint of a young teen doing his best to find his place in the worldand#8212;and an ideal balance between wise guy and wimp.
Review
"In Max, Salm has created a likable everykid whoand#8217;s shy and caring, but who also possesses flashes of petulance, goofiness, self-doubt, andand#8212;yesand#8212;questionable decision making that make him very real. The 138 footnotes, set in a font that resembles hand-lettering, are smoothly integrated into the story and contribute to its easygoing, memoirlike pace."--andlt;iandgt;Publishers Weeklyandlt;/iandgt;
Review
"Conveys with keen perception the revelations that persona can be a choice and that people tend to take us as we offer ourselves; itand#8217;s also sympathetically realistic about the need to calibrate that choice a little in the face of its consequences...The affable yet thoughtful treatment of shifting adolescent identity will ring true with kids thinking about changing their own reps, and itand#8217;ll gratify readers that the nice guy definitely doesnand#8217;t finish last."--andlt;iandgt;BCCBandlt;/iandgt;
Review
"Everything about this book screams summer fun."--andlt;Iandgt;The Washington Postandlt;/Iandgt;
Review
...Salm has penned a deeply innovative tale that takes risks with the genre and succeeds wildly.
Review
andlt;divandgt;"Everything about this book screams summer fun."--andlt;Iandgt;The Washington Postandlt;/Iandgt;andlt;/divandgt;
Review
"Pitch-perfect description and dialogue. . . A rousing adventure with double the heart."
—Kirkus, starred review
"Tapia's first book for younger readers creates a tapestry rich with characters whose language is as unique as the townspeople themselves. . . A story that children will find delightfully engaging."
—School Library Journal
"Tapia creates a smart and hilarious story likely to engage a wide range of middle-grade readers."
—Booklist Online
Synopsis
Reinventing yourself takes humor, heart, and a TON of footnotes
Max is a good kid--but you wouldn't know that if you met him at the boring family camp his parents dragged him to over the summer. There, for a few exciting weeks, Max reinvents himself as "Mad Max" and gains a bad-boy reputation for being daring, cool, and fearless.
But when Max returns home, he finds it's easier to be fearless with strangers than it is among friends, and he is not particularly proud of the way his behavior over the summer hurt people. Can he find away to merge his adventurous alter ego with his true identity as a good guy?
Peppered with humorous handwritten footnotes and doodles throughout, Anyway* perfectly captures the viewpoint of a young teen doing his best to find his place in the world--and an ideal balance between wise guy and wimp.
Synopsis
Max is a good kid- except when he doesn’t want to be. When his parents take him to a boring family camp for a few weeks over the summer, he takes the opportunity to reinvent himself as “Mad Max”—daring, cool, and fearless. But when he gets back home and finds himself among his old friends, he finds that being fearless is much harder with friends than with strangers. And besides, he really hurt people as Mad Max. Can he stay fearless without being bad?
Synopsis
A hilarious, eccentric young middle-grade novel narrated by twins Jimmy and Stella about their campaign to save the town of Wymore (pop. 49) by restoring the amazing Hippomobile. Comic flourishes include far-out diner slang, with explanatory footnotes.
Synopsis
There are many stories about kid crusaders who save something, but none like this one. With steampunk, tall tale, and just plain silly elements, the story of how ten-year-old twins Jimmy and Stella found out about the unique vehicle called the hippomobile, learned its history, and then used it to rescue their beloved town of Wymore is an original variant on a tried and true theme. A cast of wildly eccentric characters, most of whom are the twins' forty-seven grandmas and grandpas; a liberal sprinkling of diner slang and odd colloquial phrases, many explained in footnotes; and a sense that the events described never took place but could have are among the surprising ingredients of this unconventional creation. The fact that there really was a hippomobile with its own history doesn't interfere with the fun.
About the Author
Arthur Salm is a former book review editor and columnist for the San Diego Union-Tribune. He lives in San Diego, California, with his wife, daughter, dog, and two cats.