Slob by Ellen Potter

RL: ages 9-12

Well- you know how much our family loves OREOS- how could I pass up on a book where the main character loves OREOS and obsesses about his 3/day limit?

That was what initially attracted me to this book/story but after the first page I was hooked and connected to Owen Birnbaum, the main character, his humor and ability to deal with issues of bullies and negotiating friendships and family life.

Statistically speaking: Owen Birnbaum might be fatter than the average twelve year old boy but he is also smarter. While he spends his days being teased by his classmates and tortured by his gym teacher, he finds himself trying to out-smart the new school psycho who has started stealing his oreo cookies from his lunch.

Before you judge this book to be too sad- Life isn't all bad. Something happened a few years ago and he's learning to deal with his past and current challenges with humor and relying on his family and friends. Plus he's a genius and can invent cool stuff like a new thief catching device--to help capture the Oreo snatcher and an invention that reflects the past that he hopes will help heal his heart.

IT IS SUCH A GREAT BOOK! Like Owen points out- most books start out with some kid's first day at a new school where everything is new and slightly scary.

"The thing is, when you are fatter and smarter than the national average, practically every day is like the first day at a new school."

SLOB is a great book to kick off our for Back-to-School Season!

Week #5 page 146-181

MY BAD! I don't know what I was thinking yesterday!!! I completely forgot to post! We'll give you all an extra day to comment. I'll pull winners on Sunday!

So Sorry!





Here's a picture of a Balalaika instrument. I have no idea if this is standard size or not...

Lake Bailkal

Sunrise at Tokyo Bay...

Tokyo city

Adam gets caught in a penalty and moved back one time zone to ....

Hong Kong

Questions:

1. What did you think about the group of "LORDS" ? What do you think of their "game"? The prizes and penalty?

2. Do you have a list of things you would like to learn? Share some of those things with us.

Your special assignment/challenge is for one day work galley duty in your house. Take over dish duty and report. Was it as bad as you anticipated? Could you imagine washing dishes for 13 days straight?

Next week: read to page 217.

Week #4 pages 110- 145

Adam and Meredith are really moving now! From bridges in Sweden

To a cottage in Finland.

With Stoppers on their heels... Meredith and Adam make their way to Russia! ( With the help of an old retired sailor, Shypoke Crisp.)

(Small fact: Russia is the largest country in the world in terms of area. Despite its size, much of the country lacks proper soils and climates (either too cold or too dry) for agriculture.)

(I think those Russian Buildings look so cool!- like Candy Land houses.)

Questions:

Palindromes are words that are spelled the same forward and backwards. Adam and Meredith pass time on the l-o-n-g train ride through Russia making up Palindromes.

1. What is your favorite palindrome?

2. Meredith and Adam are 180 degrees (half way around the world) from California. Adam's starting point. What country is 180 degrees away from you?

3. Predict: Will Adam regret trusting Meredith? What do you think will happen to their team: The Phileas Fogg Voyage Project?

FYI- Just because I was wondering....

What's Up with Saunas?
Seems a bit crazy for Adam to find himself in a Sauna with Shypoke Crisp. But Sauna's are actually very popular and here are a list of some of the reasons why people use them.

1.The warmer temperatures in Sauna's assist our bodies to rid itself of body toxins. We have 2 natural ways as humans to loose these body toxins through sleep and exercise .

2.The warmer temperatures in Sauna's force our bodies to sweat therefore cleaning our skin.

3. Some people feel Sauna's are a place to find peace and solace.

WARNING:

Don't use a Sauna without your parents permission because you're body can overheat faster and there are lots of HOT rocks and spots in saunas. (More information HERE)

Week #3 Europe pages 74-109

Adam makes it safely to England with no scary

mishaps on the Queen Mary 2- whew!

(Double-decker bus and Big Ben are famous sites in London, England.)


Adam takes a quick side stop to stand on the prime-meridian.

FUN FACTS:
The Prime Meridian is the meridian (line of longitude) which is defined to be 0°.

The Prime Meridian and the opposite 180th meridian (at 180° longitude), which the International Date Line generally follows, form a great circle that divides the Earth into the Eastern and Western Hemispheres.

Standing on the Prime Meridian is a popular touristy thing to do- if you find yourself in Greenwich, England.

On-to FRANCE!

Some sights of Paris :

Adam visited the Arc de Triomphe
The construction of the Arc de Triomphe in Paris was ordered in 1806 by Napoleon, the French Emperor.

Napoleon wanted to honor the Grande Armee, the name of the French army at that time.

The Grande Armee had conquered most of Europe and was then considered invisible. After his Austerlitz victory in 1805, Napoleon said to his soldiers : "You will return home through archs of triumph".

The construction of Arc de Triomphe was completed in 1836, long after Napoleon's death in 1821

Notre Dame Cathedral

Notre-Dame is a Catholic cathedral built during the Middle Ages. (And one of the main tourist attractions with it's breath taking stain-glass windows.)

Eiffel Tower
History behind the Eiffel Tower: It all started with a Design Competition hosted by the French Government in the 1889. They wanted to mark the the anniversary of the French Revolution, and held a design completion for a suitable monument. From over 7 hundred submissions, the proposal by the noted bridge engineer Gustave Eiffel was chosen unanimously. It called for an entirely open-lattice iron tower 984-feet [300-meters] tall.

It was sitting at the base of this grand structure that Adam learned the hard lesson once again: TRUST NO ONE.

Caught by trappers- all for the want of a crepe.

If you would like to taste a crepe {click here} to my personal blog where I share some of our favorite crepe recipes.

Kobenhavn, Denmark:

This Little Mermaid statue is one of the most famous tourist attractions. Created by Edward Eriksen in 1913 who was inspired by Hans Christian Andersen's fairytale.

This weeks questions:

Adam has had to deal with many trust issues this week. Who to trust? Who is trustworthy?

Mrs. J (His Pilot) had told him to trust no one.

What do you think about this advice? Now he has teamed up with Meredith... is that a smart move?

Prince Oh advises against Adam forming a team with Meredith... but he (Prince Oh) has lied to Adam too! Can Prince Oh be trusted?

And once someone has betrayed a trust... can you trust them in the future? What do you think?

MVP Book Club Give Away!

If you haven't gotten your copy of MVP yet don't fret! The publishers at Boyds Mill Press have offered to give 5 copies of MVP to our book club participants!!!

All you have to do to participate in our book club is:
(WITH YOUR PARENTS APPROVAL)

1. Comment on this post and tell us you're going to be traveling around the world with us!
( You need to be able to comment on our blog to participate- this summer we want to hear your thoughts as we read this fun and exciting book!)

2. Have your parents email me at Bookclub4boys@yahoo.com Subject: MVP Book Club and include an email address. (This way I can send out emails reminding you of upcoming book club opportunities to WIN FREE PRIZES!)

THAT'S IT! Do these two things by June 12th- and I'll pick 5 lucky comments from my box who will win a free copy of MVP!
So tell your friends and let them know.
We are going to have a great read this Summer!




Actual Book Club will start on Wednesday June 24th!
Read pages 1-39 by June 24th. I'll post a few questions and you'll have until Friday June 26th to answer them. Then Saturday- I'll choose one lucky comment to win the first prize in our weekly give-away!

Week 2: Salt Lake City pg 37-73

So much has happened to Adam this week! He made it across the United States and has learned he is not the only 12 year old trying to travel around the world this summer!

First let's review some sights ...

Second Stop: Salt Lake City!

A big city in the valley of mountains.
You might have watched the 2002 Winter Olympics held in Salt Lake. It is known for having the best snow in the world!

( If you like to ski or snowboard.)

Sears Tower in Chicago: Adam was able to see from it's Sky deck four states!

This famous skyscraper has 110 floors and a height of 1,450 ft (442 m). It was the world's tallest building at its completion in 1974 and remained so until 1996! (It was surpassed by the Petronas Towers (1,483 ft [452 m]) in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia)

And in New York this is Rockefeller Center and the ice-rink

And the majestic stone lions in front of the main public library in New York!

Then a voyage on the world famous Queen Mary 2~

If you want to learn more about the Queen Mary you can visit their official site here: http://www.queenmarycruises.com/

and see pictures of what it looks like on-board!

Answer the following questions in your comment:

1.Have you visited any of these places? What sites did you see? What was your favorite?

Adam has met another contestant and this trip is turning dangerous! Who can he trust?

2. What do you think about Prince Oh? Would you continue the race/game/trip? Why or why not?

Week 1 : San Fransisco pg 1-36

Our adventure begins with Adam Story in San Fransisco!

One major landmark in San Fransisco is the Golden Gate Bridge!

First stop is in Reno, Nevada!

Here's a fun fact you might not know:

"Nevada is the largest gold-producing state in the nation. It is second in the world behind South Africa."

(There are other fun facts about Nevada at http://www.50states.com/facts/nevada.htm)

To answer the following question you will have to read pages 1-39.

Questions: Answer questions in your comment.

Why is Adam a loner? Why doesn't he have many friends? Post a comment in our comment box with your thoughts.

Activity: Map out your own trip around the world. Name at least one country you would want to visit? And what you would hope to see along the way?

On page 35- Adam resupplies himself with travel treats. What would you bring along to snack and pass the time?

Book Club Tip:

The fun of this book club is going to be commenting in our comment box. So make your comment and answer the assigned questions- then come back and read other comments.

Comment again and again- responding to fellow book clubs members!

There is no limit to how many times you can comment- and the more you comment...the better chance you have to win a prize!

There are a few guidelines about comments.

1. (MOST IMPORTANT:) Have your parents permission. Even let them review your comment to make sure they are comfortable with the information you share on the internet.

2. Stay on topic or related to a comment. Know that I will remove any comment that is unrelated and off topic. Don't waste your time commenting about hockey games or your family vacation... unless you are connecting it to the story in some way.

Comments that are seriously off topic don't qualify for drawing for prizes.

3. There is no limit to how many times you can comment and respond to comments.

So let's say Hubinator comments he wants to travel through Egypt and see the Pyramids on his trip around the world. A fellow book club member might comment back " Me too! I've always wanted to see the Nile and Nile Crocodiles!"

4. Keep comments nice. There are no right or wrong answers and we all have different opinions. I will remove any comments that might make someone feel bad.

Forexample: Jay Jay says he thinks Adam is a loner because he studders and is shy. Alice reads the comment and thinks 'WHAT??? Adam doesn't studder!?!? Jay Jay you aren't even reading the book! '

Alice doesn't need to comment that. When she comments she could say, " I think Adam is a loner because....(give her reason)..... . Jay Jay what makes you think Adam studders? I didn't think that when I read chapter one."

Jay Jay can then respond and explain his comment. "There are parts in the book where he seems to stumble over his words, for example..(gives page number and example)......."

Sharing our different ideas and comments are what make book clubs fun! So you don't have to agree with everyone. Don't be afraid to share your own thoughts.

Diary of a Wimpy Kid Series

Diary of a Wimpy Kid is a series about a boy named Greg Hefley, and his struggle through middle school. Though it is more so pitched towards 5th-8th graders, my mom laughed aloud at it a tons of times. Another good thing about these books are that it has made a lot of kids who didn’t like to read read more often. It has a lot of cartoony pictures to add to the humor. One of my favorite parts is when he makes a haunted house but he runs out of time so it is really lame. If you read the first one (the red one) you can read the others in any order and it doesn't really matter. A good read, you’ll find yourself laughing aloud more times than you can count. (unless, of course, you hate laughing but who doesn’t like a good laugh?)

The Last Thing I Remember... by Andrew Klavan

Summary:

Charlie West, a typical teenager enjoying his senior year. He likes to instant message, while working on homework and watching re-runs of Star Trek all at the same time. He's a black belt in Karate but gets tongue tied when around girls. An over-all "good kid". He studies hard, trains hard, and always tries to do the right thing.
So how in the world does he end up strapped in a chair, tortured with someone outside the door ordering his death? Charlie panics as he asks himself, "WHAT IS THE LAST THING I REMEMBER?"

.....whoo.. hoo.. hoo
Really - good.
Really
If you fell in love with the Alex Ryder series You will love this book even more!

Such a page turner!

Intense and Suspenseful like Bourne Identity, the TV series 24. Yet this book was written with teenagers in mind. Teens who aren't ready for adult thrillers yet.

How to Train Your Dragon

How To Train Your Dragon by Cressida Cowell
The main character is named Hiccup. He is the chiefs son of a viking tribe. He has a pet dragon called Toothless. He has to train Toothless to play in a competition. Hiccups challenge is to prove himself a HERO and not be exiled. My favorite part is when the two dragons fight. There is a bunch of action.
I recommend this book to boys because it has alot of action. It has alot of dragons and I like dragons.

Reviewed by The Hubernator
This post is to add to the Book Club Round UP.