sherming's review against another edition
3.0
Jack picks up his semi-autobiographical tale where "Dead End in Norvelt" left off. One last Old Norvelt Lady has been killed, and Mrs. Volker enlists underage Jack to be her travelling companion as they hunt down the killer. It's a bit more bizarre than the first book and has a quick ending that gets Jack to the next segment of his life. I wonder if he'll have another book that fills in the blanks in southern Florida.
katrina_daquin's review against another edition
adventurous
funny
mysterious
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
4.5
beecheralyson's review against another edition
4.0
Jack Gantos does a great job narrating the audiobook for his newest book which is the follow-up to Dead End in Norvelt. On some level, I think this one is even better than the first one.
kallbri's review against another edition
2.0
I raved about Dead End in Norvelt for months. Even today, I am still suggesting it to many people. I was very excited when I heard Gantos had a sequel, despite my general discontent with series books. Well, unfortunately that was not turned around. The book often felt like train-of-thought writing. One moment Spizz was the murderer, and the next it was a bunch of others. I will still highly recommend Jack Gantos, but I may only mention there is a sequel, as opposed to my glowing recommendations of his other books.
kmc3050's review against another edition
3.0
3. This book is so stupid (in a good way). It's perfect for adventurous girls and boys. I enjoyed the history bits and references to classic literature.
Jack Gantos does a fine job reading his story.
Jack Gantos does a fine job reading his story.
pkrawr's review against another edition
2.0
A bizarre bit of lunacy that somehow manages to consistently fall short of being funny. I think this book fell into the sequel trap of trying to hard and failing, therefore managing to undermine fond memories of the original. Gantos takes too far a leap into the fictional, making his cast of memorable characters from Dead End in Norvelt behave in ways that no one, regardless of the circumstances, would ever do. It makes all of them unsympathetic, and the increasingly unbelievable plot careens along like an inevitable train wreck. One additional star granted for interesting history tidbits sprinkled throughout.
pomo's review against another edition
funny
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
celestelee's review against another edition
3.0
His books are reminiscent of the early Fannie Flagg, laugh out loud, funny books.
federo999's review against another edition
4.0
I think I liked this book better because it was more of a mystery and an adventure. It kept me interested.
libraryleo's review against another edition
3.0
Not quite as loaded with laughs as the first Norvelt book, but I love the characters. The twist at the end was a surprise. And it left a couple loose ends, indicating there will be another book down the road, literally. :-) I like how Gantos fits in bits of history and literature into his books. Even the most history resistant student will be intrigued to look up bits and pieces that are just touched upon in the book. And maybe those who veer away from the classics will take Jack's path with Classics Illustrated and later, check out the "real" books.