Reviews

Zoomy is growing with his grandparents in a small town in Michigan. He has quite a few personality quirks which he calls "jittery splats", and he's legally blind. Zoomy spends the summer in this book researching a man called Gas, solving a mystery, and befriending a girl with her own quirks.

theartolater's review against another edition

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3.0

I went into this assuming it was in the same series as the Calder/Vermeer/Wright books, and it wasn't - it was more like a kid-friendly Curious Incident of the Dog in the Nighttime with a few odd parts interspersed in it. It wasn't awesome, but it wasn't bad, either - a bit of a historical mystery with some commentary scattered about. Very well written, overall, but still lacking in ways the other books were not.

taralorraine's review against another edition

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informative mysterious medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? It's complicated
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? No

3.5

The interesting information about "Gas" was fun to learn and I enjoyed the main character.

mbrevesz's review against another edition

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5.0

I think this is my favorite of Balliett's books. The main character Zoomy Chamberlain, is so interesting and detailed. The first several chapters are exposition, but I didn't mind because his voice is so fascinating and his descriptions are so vivid. Also, the mystery kept my interest. All in all, a very good book!

jennyraec9's review against another edition

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4.0

I loved Zoomy so much. Blue does a great job of connecting the reader with the character, and has done that throughout all of her books. Charles Darwin is so fascinating. Balliett is so creative, I never know what to expect!
This was probably my second favorite book of hers, coming right behind The Wright 3.
SO GOOD! 5/5 stars.

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