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Elvis and the Underdogs

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Elvis and the Underdogs

Hardcover

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Hardcover
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Overview

From Jenny Lee, writer on the Disney Channel show Shake It Up!, the number-one-rated kids' show in the country, this feel-good middle-grade novel is about a sickly boy whose life is turned upside down when he gets a therapy dog . . . who can talk!

Benji Wendell Barnsworth is a small ten-year-old boy with a big personality. Born premature, Benji is sickly, accident-prone, and at the hospital so often he even has his own punch card. So when Benji wakes up one day from a particularly bad spell, his doctors take the radical step of suggesting he get a therapy dog. But when a massive crate arrives at Benji's house, out walks a two-hundred-pound Newfoundland who can talk! And boy, is he bossy.

In this hilarious and heartwarming friendship story in the tradition of bestselling authors Gordon Korman and Carl Hiaasen, Elvis brings out the dog lover in the most surprising people and shows Benji that making new friends may not be as scary as he once thought.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780062235541
Publisher:	HarperCollins
Publication date:	05/14/2013
Series:	Elvis and the Underdogs , #1
Pages:	300
Product dimensions:	5.80(w) x 8.30(h) x 1.20(d)
Lexile:	760L (what's this?)
Age Range:	8 - 12 Years

About the Author

Jenny Lee is a writer and producer on the new ABC Family sitcom Young & Hungry. She was also a writer and producer of the TBS sitcom Ground Floor and the Disney Channel's number-one-rated kids' show Shake It Up for all three seasons. The author of four humor essay books, Jenny is also the author of Elvis and the Underdogs. She lives in Los Angeles with her 110-pound Newfoundland, Doozy (and yes, it's a toss-up on who's walking whom every day).

Kelly Light is an author and illustrator who now lives in New York but grew up down the shore in New Jersey surrounded by giant pink dinosaurs, cotton candy colors, and Skee-Ball sounds. She was schooled on Saturday-morning cartoons and Sunday funny pages. She picked up a pencil, started drawing, and never stopped. She has illustrated two chapter book series: Elvis and the Underdogs by Jenny Lee, and the Quirks by Erin Soderberg. She is the author-illustrator of Louise Loves Art and Louise and Andie.

Find her online at www.kellylight.com.

What People are Saying About This

Emily Jenkins

“That Elvis is a dog of dogs: the smartest, the bravest, the funniest. Also, the biggest. No wonder Benji’s adventures with him are hilarious and action-packed! Such a very fun read.”

Chris Rylander

“It’s impossible not to fall in love with Elvis and Benji. And here I thought I was the only person who actually had conversations with his dog…”

From the B&N Reads Blog

Page 1 of

Editorial Reviews

Ten-year-old Benji Wendell Barns-worth is constantly in and out of the hospital with a smattering of illnesses and allergies; he faints often, and he recently had an epileptic seizure. Getting a therapy dog—a gigantic, talking, Doritos-eating Newfoundland named Parker Elvis Pembroke IV—spares Benji the humiliation of wearing a safety helmet at all times. Elvis, as Benji dubs him, is confident and very well-spoken, and his influence helps Benji assert himself around his well-meaning but suffocating mother, as well as seek adventure with his new friends: Taisy, the pressured daughter of a celebrity athlete, and Alexander, a new student with a “total recall brain.” This children’s book debut from Lee, a writer and producer on Disney’s Shake It Up sitcom (and clearly a dog lover), is suffused with optimism, despite Benji’s many health problems. Benji comes across as down-to-earth and sympathetic—without being pitiable—and the underlying theme about strength found in companionship gives the story just enough gravity. Light contributes b&w digital spot cartoons, not all seen by PW. Ages 8–12. Author’s agent: Sally Woffard-Girand, Union Literary. Illustrator’s agent: Elizabeth Harding, Curtis Brown. (May)

Publishers Weekly

A funny, unabashedly feel-good boy-and-dog story. . . . This crowd-pleasing debut is definitely ready for prime time.

Booklist (starred review)

Lee's debut novel, a quirky if formulaic take on bullying and friendship, falls short in its description of the partnership between Benji, the narrator, and Elvis, his talking service dog. Benji Barnsworth suffers from a host of ailments and faints under stress--which happens often, since he's Billy Thompson's favorite bullying target. When Benji has a seizure, he trades his new helmet for a service dog: a huge Newfoundland with a smart mouth. Elvis isn't exactly man's best friend, but his presence allows Benji to befriend Taisy, an overwhelmed athlete with an ex–football pro father, and Alexander, a "human GPS" with a photographic memory. Benji's witty, slightly cynical voice and close family support are the most believable aspects of an otherwise implausible book. His friends are caring but stereotypical; Asian-American Alexander's intellect borders on caricature, and Taisy's relationship with her father follows sitcom formula. The service-dog aspect reads like an afterthought. Even Benji's doctor uses "service dog" and "therapy dog" interchangeably despite their different functions, and Benji is unable to say what training Elvis received, which seems remarkably incurious, given their relationship. Elvis' job is so unclear that he could just as easily be an ordinary dog dispensing tough love. Ultimately, the thin plot is far-fetched, even for a story about a talking dog, and readers aware of the true role of service animals will be annoyed by the inaccurate portrayal. (Fiction. 8-12)

Kirkus Reviews

A lighthearted enjoyable read.” — School Library Journal (starred review)
“A funny, unabashedly feel-good boy-and-dog story. . . . This crowd-pleasing debut is definitely ready for prime time.” — Booklist (starred review)
“This children’s book debut from Lee, a writer and producer on Disney’s ‘Shake It Up’ sitcom (and clearly a dog lover), is suffused with optimism.” — Publishers Weekly
“That Elvis is a dog of dogs: the smartest, the bravest, the funniest. Also, the biggest. No wonder Benji’s adventures with him are hilarious and action-packed! Such a very fun read.” — Emily Jenkins, author of INVISIBLE INKLING and TOYS GO OUT
“It’s impossible not to fall in love with Elvis and Benji. And here I thought I was the only person who actually had conversations with his dog…” — Chris Rylander, author of THE FOURTH STALL

From the Publisher

That Elvis is a dog of dogs: the smartest, the bravest, the funniest. Also, the biggest. No wonder Benji’s adventures with him are hilarious and action-packed! Such a very fun read.

Emily Jenkins

It’s impossible not to fall in love with Elvis and Benji. And here I thought I was the only person who actually had conversations with his dog…

Chris Rylander