It's Classified

Let's suppose you wake up this morning expecting nothing to be out of the ordinary.  Every day of your thirteen years has been the same.  You live in one of the safest communities in the United States.   There is literally no crime.  There is also no poverty or homelessness.  Every family lives in a highly maintained home with a swimming pool and a tree house.  Most of the parents work in a factory, the largest manufacturer of orange traffic cones.

In the first book of Gordon Korman's new trilogy, Masterminds (Balzer + Bray, an imprint of HarperCollinsPublishers, February 3, 2015), the town of Serenity, New Mexico is wearing a mask to conceal its true purpose.  In a population totaling 185, some of the thirty children, most who have never left the city limits, are about to make a startling discovery.  It will cost them everything.

It's a one-in-a million shot, and we nail it.
Just not in the way we planned.

Eli Frieden and his best buddy, Randy Hardaway, have, in an attempt to perform an unprecedented feat, lodged a boomerang in the Hardaway pool filter.  Deciding to tell no one about this little problem leaves Eli feeling uncomfortable.  No one in Serenity lies or, in this case, fails to confess.

Randy is bored with the usual antics in which the two find themselves.  His suggestion to ride out of town to an abandoned hut to see an old sports car, an Alfa Romeo, he and his dad found while hiking, sounds great to Eli; something he might want to do but has been afraid to try.  When they ride past the Now Leaving Serenity---America's Ideal Community sign, Eli begins to get sick; not from worry but deathly ill.

As sudden as a finger snap, a military-style helicopter descends near the boys.  From inside come six Purple People Eaters, the children's name for the factory security force and town police.  They take the boys and their bikes away, Eli to the clinic, Randy to his home.

Within days for the first time in any child's memory, one of them is leaving Serenity for good.  Randy Hardaway is being sent to live with grandparents Eli barely knew he had.  His parting words to Eli,

I'll write. ... Think of it as our newest challenge. ...,

are the first pieces in an astounding puzzle.  Several weeks pass without Eli receiving so much as a syllable from Randy.  A mystery needs to be solved.  Clues need to be gathered.

In separate chapters other children in the community are introduced to readers.  We meet Amber Laska, a zealous supporter of all things Serenity (honesty, harmony and contentment), Malik Bruder, the doctor's son, anxious to leave Serenity as soon as he can, Hector Amani, small in stature but big in heart, shadow and friend to Malik and Tori Pritel, best friend of Amber, artistic, curious and outspoken.  We are privy to their thoughts about events in the town and conversations between parents and their children and between the main characters.  A skateboarding accident, a hidden letter, an electrical storm, and a passel of pills heighten the tension.   As the action accelerates, the five realize there is no one but themselves they can trust.  One thing becomes perfectly clear, in order to live, they must...


In using the younger characters as first person narrators, Gordon Korman hooks readers instantly and completely.  While the dialogue between the children is realistically accurate, what the adults are saying will give you the shivers.  The contrast Korman builds between perceptions and truth, chapter by chapter, will have you turning pages as fast as you can until you read the marvelous final sentence.

His descriptions of all the events, especially those done without adult knowledge, are detailed enough to make you a part of the action.  You will find yourself laughing, cheering and holding your breath.  The very setting will give you pause.  Could this happen today?  Is it already happening?  Here are some sample passages.

And then it comes to me.  I can picture the layout of things from all perspectives.  Obviously, it's connected to being an artist, but it's more than that.  I understand how things work---like I can envision the finished puzzle before anybody puts the pieces together.  It's not anything I do; I just know.

I follow, whispering, "Careful!" I can see what he can't---that he's back in view of the Hardaways' couch.  At least he's got the brains to keep low.  I duck behind a deck chair as he leans over the edge of the pool and reaches into the filter.  He digs around for a few seconds, his arm in the opening up to his shoulder.  I catch a glimpse of his prize in the moonlight---

Miracle of miracles, both my parents are dead to the world in twenty minutes of crawling into bed.  Go figure.  Those fans are so droning and monotonous that I almost drop off myself.  Wouldn't that be classic---to snooze through my own break-in?
I don't even have to tiptoe as I slip out of the house.  My folks wouldn't hear it if I left on horseback at the head of a brass band.


You are definitely going to want more than one copy of Masterminds written by Gordon Korman.  Guys and gals are going to read this in a flash, nearly wishing the second book into existence with their wanting to see what happens next.  Stunning unforeseen plot twists make this a book to remember.

 For more about Gordon Korman and his other titles please follow the link attached to his name to access his website.  Enjoy reading the first four plus chapters thanks to the publisher.

Minion by John David Anderson Blog Tour

Remember thirty years ago when Bonnie Tyler's voice rang out loud and clear singing the lyrics for Holding Out For A Hero?  She sang about what readers of mythology and folktales have always known; people throughout history seek a champion.  People want to believe goodness with always be triumphant over evil.

The line between right and wrong can get very fine; people who are basically honorable can make flawed choices and those thought to be bad can unexpectedly be downright respectable.  John David Anderson created the alternate world of Justicia in his novel, Sidekicked (Walden Pond Press, an imprint of HarperCollinsPublishers, June 2013); a world much like our own but populated with superheroes, supervillains and their sidekicks.  In the newly released companion volume, Minion (Walden Pond Press, an imprint of HarperCollinsPublishers) in another town, New Liberty, no superheroes or supervillains have chosen to make an appearance for years.  This does by no means equal the absence of good and evil.

I want you to know, right from the start, that I'm not evil.  I'm not saying I'm Captain Fantastic, either.  I just don't want you to misinterpret everything that I'm about to tell you.

Michael Marion Magdalene Morn has been raised by nuns at the St. Mary of the Woods School for Wayward Boys having been found as a baby abandoned in a White Castle restaurant.  When he had all but given up hope of ever being adopted a Professor Benjamin Edson shows up one day and three days later Michael is no longer a resident of St. Mary of the Woods School for Wayward Boys. His life with Professor Edson does not follow what people would call the straight and narrow.

First and foremost Michael has a gift, the ability to look people straight in the eyes and command them to do his bidding.  Secondly, Professor Edson, Dad, is a genius creating small black boxes of various sizes filled with technology capable of doing anything you can imagine...really.  This duo, son and adopted father, have made a life for themselves, carefully leaving no real trace of their existence except for a few carefully selected friends.  They have survived by crossing that fine line drifting into the criminal element.

For protection Michael is homeschooled studying year round.  His best friend, Zach, is a henchman for one of the local mob kings, Tony Romano.  Romano is also a business associate of his father.  After a trip to the local mall one afternoon, on their return home, Michael and Zach witness a crime the likes of which New Liberty has rarely seen.  What makes this event even more startling is the ear-shattering sonic boom which announces the return of a superhero, a streak of blue which drops from the sky and returns with equal speed, named by the media as the Comet. The game being played by Michael, his Dad, Zach and the controlling mobs in town is about to change in far-reaching and frightening ways.

Relationships will be tested, the meaning of family will be defined by the actions of Michael, his Dad, Zach and Tony Romano and a chance meeting with a girl named Viola adds a new dimension to Michael's musings about the direction his life will take.  Understand that woven into all the action of superheroes, supervillains, mobsters and the three teens (not to mention several plot twists and turns) is the constant weighing of choices balanced by intention.  Even the final sentence leaves readers wondering, albeit with a smile on their faces.


The writing style of John David Anderson in this title, as in Sidekicked, keeps you constantly on the edge of your seat, flipping through the pages as fast as you can to discover what happens next.  Chapter by chapter he builds his plot, fleshing out his players' personalities, through Michael's voice and character dialogue.  You have to remind yourself to breath during the descriptive battles between those for whom you are silently cheering and those you hope will lose.

To provide understanding to the reader about the relationship between Michael and his Dad Anderson skillfully employs a technique of flashback at the beginning of many chapters blending it with the present.  His perception of how teens think, act and speak is right on target.  You can't help but want the less than good guys but not quite bad guys to win.  What follows are a few samples of his writing from this book.

"Are you planning on taking over the world?" I asked.
"No," the man said.  "That was a joke.  Why? Are you interested in taking over the world?"
"Are you kidding?" I cringed.  "That's like asking to have everyone's problems dumped on you all at once."
Professor Benjamin Edson pounded on the table with hairy-knuckled fists, causing me to jump out of my seat.  "That's exactly what I keep telling them, but they never listen to me."
I said I didn't know who them was.  He said he didn't either.  This man was bizarre.  I kind of liked him.

Villains wear masks because it gives them courage to do something extraordinary, something they might not have the guts to do otherwise.  But heroes?  Heroes wear masks because deep down inside, I'm guessing, they just want the chance to be normal.  That's my theory, anyway.
Personally, I don't trust either of them.

Minion written by John David Anderson is one wild roller coaster of a read exploring what it means to be good and evil.  Even when the last page is read, you will be reluctant to leave New Liberty and the people you have come to know very well.  I, for one, certainly hope this series will continue.

To learn more about John David Anderson follow the link to his website embedded in his name.  To read an excerpt from this title follow this link to the publisher's website.

ABOUT JOHN DAVID ANDERSON

ABOUT THE AUTHOR, IN HIS OWN WORDS:

John David Anderson writes novels for young people and then, occasionally, gets them published. Besides Minion, he is the author of Sidekicked, and Standard Hero Behavior. He lives with his patient wife and brilliant twins in Indianapolis, Indiana, right next to a State park and a Walmart. He enjoys hiking, reading, chocolate, spending time with his family, playing the piano, chocolate, making board games, chocolate, not putting away his laundry, watching movies, and chocolate. Those aren't his real teeth.

To read other posts on this tour please visit:
June 23 Maria's Melange
June 24 The Library Fanatic
June 25 The Next Best Book
June 27 The Book Egg
June 28 Word Spelunking
June 30 Ms. Yingling Reads
July 1 The Book Monsters
July 2 The Book Monsters
July 3 Read Now, Sleep Later
July 7 The Haunting of Orchid Forsythia
July 8 Candace's Book Blog
July 9 Middle Grade Mafioso
July 10 Librarian's Quest
July 11 Unleashing Readers
July 12 Trisha Perry
July 14 This Kid Reviews Books
July 16 Charlotte's Library
July 17 Literacy Toolbox
July 18 Small Review