Description
From School Library Journal Gr 4–7—Prez Mellows is a list expert. He's been making lists for years on sticky notes to help his granddad remember important life facts, such as "Prez is your grandson" and "Do not go out without trousers." His lists help save the planet when a space-traveling alien, Sputnik, shows up on Earth and enlists Prez's help to come up with 10 reasons Earth should be spared; otherwise, it will be shrunk to oblivion. To Prez, Sputnik looks like a boy wearing a kilt, a leather helmet, and flying goggles, but to everyone else, he looks like a dog. Selectively mute, Prez is trying to come to grips with being in a "temporary" foster home with a raucous family, while mistakenly thinking his granddad was taken away to prison rather than a nursing home. Cottrell Boyce (Millions; The Astounding Broccoli Boy) invites readers to suspend belief while going on a physics-defying, mind-bending adventure that's sure to appeal to a wide audience. When a motorized scooter becomes a getaway vehicle, Prez and Sputnik try to help Granddad retrieve lost memories, establish reasons why Earth should be saved, and, along the way, discover where they really belong and what is most important. VERDICT Begging to be read aloud and full of escapades, humor, and spunk, this is a stand-alone gem. For all middle grade shelves.—Michele Shaw, Quail Run Elementary School, San Ramon, CA ★ “Cottrell Boyce invites readers to suspend belief while going on a physics-defying, mind-bending adventure that’s sure to appeal to a wide audience. Begging to be read aloud and full of escapades, humor, and spunk, this is a stand-alone gem.” — School Library Journal (starred review) ★xa0“A raucous adventure with a heart of gold.” — Kirkus Reviews (starred review) “A funny and touching story about a boy who, through a transformative summer, learns to expand his definitions of family and home.” — Publishers Weekly Frank Cottrell Boyce is the author of Sputnik's Guide to Life on Earth , The Astounding Broccoli Boy , Cosmic , Framed , and Millions , the last of which was a New York Times bestseller and was made into a movie by Oscar-winning director Danny Boyle. His books have won or been nominated for numerous awards, including the Carnegie Medal, the Guardian Children's Fiction Prize, and the Whitbread Children's Book Award. Frank is also a screenwriter, having penned the scripts for a number of feature films as well as the opening ceremony of the 2012 London Olympics. He lives in Liverpool with his family. Read more
Features & Highlights
- A one-of-a-kind story of heart, humor, and finding one’s place in the universe.
- Prez knows that the best way to keep track of things is to make a list. That's important when you have a grandfather who is constantly forgetting. And it's even more important when your grandfather can't care for you anymore and you have to go live with a foster family out in the country.Prez is still learning to fit in at his new home when he answers the door to meet Sputnik—a kid who is more than a little strange. First, he can hear what Prez is thinking. Second, he looks like a dog to everyone except Prez. Third, he can manipulate the laws of space and time. Sputnik, it turns out is an alien, and he's got a mission that requires Prez's help: the Earth has been marked for destruction, and the only way they can stop it is to come up with ten reasons why the planet should be saved.
- Thus begins one of the most fun and eventful summers of Prez's life, as he and Sputnik set out on a journey to compile the most important list Prez has ever made—and discover just what makes our world so remarkable.
