Masters of Disaster - Hardcover

Paulsen, Gary

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 0385739974 ISBN 13: 9780385739979

Publisher: Wendy Lamb Books, 2010

Synopsis

“Let’s face facts: We may be the most boring twelve-year-olds on the planet.”
 
Henry Mosley decides that he and his pals Riley and Reed have got to liven things up. They need to go on some earth-shaking adventures and make a name for themselves. Henry is the mastermind; Riley’s the cautious researcher who’s prepared for anything. And somehow fearful Reed always ends up with the scariest, craziest assignments.
            Roped into wacky attempts to break world records, reenact scenes from books, solve a hundred-year-old murder, and carry out Henry’s other inspired ideas, Riley and Reed follow their fearless leader everywhere: into the wilderness (truly terrifying), inside a bull-riding ring, into a haunted house, off the neighbors’ roof, and into a cataclysmic collision with explosive life-forms. Gary Paulsen brings all his trademark humor to this fast-paced novel of fun and disaster.

About this title

About the Author

Gary Paulsen is the distinguished author of many critically acclaimed books for young people, including three Newbery Honor books: The Winter Room, Hatchet, and Dogsong. He won the Margaret A. Edwards Award given by the ALA for his lifetime achievement in young adult literature. Among his Random House books are Woods Runner; Lawn Boy; Lawn Boy Returns; Notes from the Dog; Mudshark; The Legend of Bass Reeves; The Amazing Life of Birds; The Time Hackers; Molly McGinty Has a Really Good Day; The Quilt (a companion to Alida’s Song and The Cookcamp); How Angel Peterson Got His Name; Guts: The True Stories Behind Hatchet and the Brian Books; The Beet Fields; Soldier’s Heart; Brian’s Return, Brian’s Winter, and Brian’s Hunt (companions to Hatchet); Father Water, Mother Woods; and five books about Francis Tucket’s adventures in the Old West. Gary Paulsen has also published fiction and nonfiction for adults. His wife, Ruth Wright Paulsen, is an artist who has illustrated several of his books. He divides his time between his home in Alaska, his ranch in New Mexico, and his sailboat on the Pacific Ocean. You can visit him on the Web at GaryPaulsen.com.

Reviews

Gr 5-7–Henry Mosley is concerned that his everyday life lacks the excitement experienced by the young heroes of his favorite novels. “We may be the most boring twelve-year-olds on the planet,” he tells his friends Riley and Reed. Henry proposes that they undertake a series of projects, thus “Becoming Men of Action and Daring” who “Alter the Course of History” and, with luck, “Impress Girls.” While the dialogue and setting are modern, this is an affectionate and spot-on homage to the “boy chums” adventures of yesteryear. Each self-contained chapter details one of Henry's wild plans–from driving a bicycle off a roof to searching for bodies in a haunted house to spending the night in a Dumpster. The friends fill familiar roles–Henry the mastermind; Riley the scientific planner and loyal sidekick; and cautious, nervous Reed, who generally ends up right in the thick of the calamity du jour. Henry's schemes often involve serious danger, but the guys come through with only a few bumps and nicks–and some lingering bad smells. There is even a bully antagonist, although the brutish Dwight stays mostly on the fringes of the action–until the trio's spectacular last-chapter revenge. Middle school boys will be attracted by the zany stunts and frequent gross-out encounters with garbage, mud, slime, and “doody.”–Elaine E. Knight, Lincoln Elementary Schools, ILα(c) Copyright 2010. Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.

Henry convinces his best friends, Riley and Reed, that the three 12-year-olds should prove their manhood by undertaking a series of daring exploits. The first, in which Reed rides a bicycle off a third-story roof, sets the pattern: Henry, the creative force, comes up with one hare-brained scheme after another; Riley, the observer, records the disastrous consequences; and Reed, the reluctant adventurer, puts his life on the line and ends up not just battered but slimed by disgusting, odiferous ooze. Although the pattern quickly grows predictable, that will only make the story funnier for readers drawn to the broad humor of exploding science experiments and upended portable toilets. Three of the episodic chapters are based on short stories Paulsen wrote for Boys’ Life magazine from 2001 to 2004. Certain plot points strain credibility, but readers willing to suspend disbelief and follow the boys’ over-the-top exploits will enjoy plenty of laughs along the way. Grades 4-6. --Carolyn Phelan

Edition details

• Publisher: Wendy Lamb Books
• Publication date: 2010
• Language: English
• ISBN 10: 0385739974
• ISBN 13: 9780385739979
• Binding: Hardcover
• Edition number: 1
• Number of pages: 112