turtledragon's review
2.0
Interesting idea but just okay. Also I liked the side characters better than the main character
rice83's review
adventurous
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
2.0
ryanjamesburt's review
4.0
1) Rating: 4 out of 5 stars
2) Genre: Middle Grade / Fantasy
3) Synopsis: You wouldn't know it unless you can see them but there are creatures in every grade school sucking on the brains of our children. The only thing between our children and stupidity is our Janitors.
4) Feelings: I admit I struggled with this book at the beginning. Not because it is a hard read but because I was expecting something else. Once I connected that it was a middle grade novel I enjoyed it much better. My wife read it and liked it and when I talked to her, she said, "I read it because 5th graders were skipping recess to read it." Anything worth skipping recess is worth reading.
5) Final recommendation: Fun middle grade read. Interesting story with some parts that were extra funny because my wife is a teacher.
Ryan James Burt
Husband, Father, and Writer
www.RyanJamesBurt.com
2) Genre: Middle Grade / Fantasy
3) Synopsis: You wouldn't know it unless you can see them but there are creatures in every grade school sucking on the brains of our children. The only thing between our children and stupidity is our Janitors.
4) Feelings: I admit I struggled with this book at the beginning. Not because it is a hard read but because I was expecting something else. Once I connected that it was a middle grade novel I enjoyed it much better. My wife read it and liked it and when I talked to her, she said, "I read it because 5th graders were skipping recess to read it." Anything worth skipping recess is worth reading.
5) Final recommendation: Fun middle grade read. Interesting story with some parts that were extra funny because my wife is a teacher.
Ryan James Burt
Husband, Father, and Writer
www.RyanJamesBurt.com
embingham's review
3.0
I'm trying to be unbiased in my evaluation because I know the author of the book, and I currently teach at the school that he was a janitor at, so here goes... I really enjoyed this quick easy read. It has a lot of similarities to Fablehaven, so people who enjoyed FH might want to check out this book. It did seem like it was intended for a younger audience. The writing style was a bit more basic, and the main characters are in gradeschool. There are some really good moral lessons that are taught (although they can be a bit blatant.) I felt like the writing really picked up toward the end of the book, and the ending definitely left me excited for book 2.
kokoro's review
3.0
Eso de que en una escuela primaria haya monstruos (llamados Toxites) que hagan fallar a los alumnos y sean los conserjes los encargados de su erradicación pues me gusta la idea, la cual me recordó un poco al manga QQ Sweeper de Motomi Kyousuke aunque la novela fue primero, sin embargo el protagonista, Spencer, no me convence es más no me agrada del todo, no sé si sea irónico que sea medio misofobico lo cual me parece raro pues un adulto seguro pero un niño? Al menos en mis tiempos no había problema (salvo los gritos y regaños de las madres) al ensuciarnos, pero el señorito es tan tiquismiquis con la suciedad, desorden, gérmenes y monstruos que muchas veces pensaba “en serio?” Aunado a su interacción que me pareció muy irreal con un compañero que le gusta hacerles la vida miserable a los demás, de igual manera la compañera de aventuras de Spencer, Daisy, me pareció poco interesante.
No obstante algunos personajes secundarios, entre ellos el conserje Marv (ilustrado en portada) me gustaron mucho, siguen siendo un poco planos pero al menos tienen formas de ser más interesantes que el prota.
La historia inicia lenta y algo aburrida, supongo por mi desagrado por Spencer, y lo bueno (léase la acción en si) inicia casi hasta la mitad del libro. Aunque hay ciertas decisiones tanto de niños como adultos que no entiendo por qué las toman (no te queremos involucrar pero ayúdanos o nunca te presto atención pero te medio creo ahora).
El final de este primer libro puede ser calificado como triste, pero existen cuatro libros más que completan la serie.
“Imagine a future without education. No one can do math […] No one understands science and industry […] No one can read. Laws are forgotten but weapons are not […] Terror and chaos reign. Disease, invasion, war.” ... errr alguien XD
No obstante algunos personajes secundarios, entre ellos el conserje Marv (ilustrado en portada) me gustaron mucho, siguen siendo un poco planos pero al menos tienen formas de ser más interesantes que el prota.
La historia inicia lenta y algo aburrida, supongo por mi desagrado por Spencer, y lo bueno (léase la acción en si) inicia casi hasta la mitad del libro. Aunque hay ciertas decisiones tanto de niños como adultos que no entiendo por qué las toman (no te queremos involucrar pero ayúdanos o nunca te presto atención pero te medio creo ahora).
El final de este primer libro puede ser calificado como triste, pero existen cuatro libros más que completan la serie.
“Imagine a future without education. No one can do math […] No one understands science and industry […] No one can read. Laws are forgotten but weapons are not […] Terror and chaos reign. Disease, invasion, war.” ... errr alguien XD
the_fabric_of_words's review
5.0
My son enjoyed this book. He discovered it on a recent summer "library-run," where we comb the shelves for interesting covers. My kiddos sometimes pick up books I would never think are their "thing" and this was one of them.
Something's sucking the smarts and life out of students at Welcher Elementary, and it's up to Spencer and Daisy to figure out if the secret society of janitor sorcerers is responsible -- or some other dark magic is preying on their fellow students.
The story features magic, is action packed, and takes some neat plot twists and turns along the way.
Visit my blog for more great middle grade book recommendations, free teaching materials and fiction writing tips: https://amb.mystrikingly.com/
Something's sucking the smarts and life out of students at Welcher Elementary, and it's up to Spencer and Daisy to figure out if the secret society of janitor sorcerers is responsible -- or some other dark magic is preying on their fellow students.
The story features magic, is action packed, and takes some neat plot twists and turns along the way.
Visit my blog for more great middle grade book recommendations, free teaching materials and fiction writing tips: https://amb.mystrikingly.com/
bookswithbets's review
adventurous
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
ralhiza29's review
2.0
I was excited to get my hand on this book. The book cover seems really interesting but found myself bored after reading the first half of it. Will I read book 2? I will probably skim through it but it will take some time to go back reading the series
stinalee's review
2.0
I couldn't even truly finish this book. I read a little over half and just got really annoyed with the plot, so skimmed a bit and then read the last chapter.
onemanbookclub's review
3.0
Check out my Booklikes Blog, Dan Grover: Cover to Cover
The Value of a Star: Ratings Explained
Still looking for a middle grade author who doesn't underestimate their target audience...
The story is simple, the idea is original and fun. G rated through out. I'm sure many 8-to-12-year-olds will enjoy it.
I'm still on the lookout for awesome middle grade writing, though. Brandon Mull and Rick Riordan are pretty good, but every one else seems to feel the need to talk down to their audience. It kind of drives me crazy, actually.
I'm not going to continue with the series, but if my kids want to I'd be happy to keep them supplied.
The Value of a Star: Ratings Explained
Still looking for a middle grade author who doesn't underestimate their target audience...
The story is simple, the idea is original and fun. G rated through out. I'm sure many 8-to-12-year-olds will enjoy it.
I'm still on the lookout for awesome middle grade writing, though. Brandon Mull and Rick Riordan are pretty good, but every one else seems to feel the need to talk down to their audience. It kind of drives me crazy, actually.
I'm not going to continue with the series, but if my kids want to I'd be happy to keep them supplied.