02/13/2023
The creators of the Accelerati Trilogy reteam for this dynamic, Oregon-set series kickoff, whose wide-ranging adventure arc encompasses aliens, animalian hijinks, designer coffins, and Stonehenge. Fourteen-year-old Noah Prime has always had an uncanny knack for sports, but after his beloved motocross course is razed for development—closing just like the ice-skating rink he loved before it—he’s surprised to find that he has an affinity for not only motocross and hockey, but basketball, soccer, and wrestling, too. A strange collision with gymnast schoolmate Sahara raises questions about his background, as does a surprising physical reaction to an incident of bullying. With the help of Sahara, his autistic best friend Ogden, and his younger sister Andi, Noah seeks to find out more about himself and his apparent enemies. The group’s exploits, detailed in quick-moving chapters that alternate with additional perspectives from protagonists and antagonists alike, develop a world of depth and moral complexity. Though instances of the cast separating occasionally bog down the plot, often-ludicrous scenarios and pop culture punch lines deliver surprises and laughs throughout, ramping up to a smash-bang ending that leaves plenty unresolved for future volumes. Characters are not physically described. Ages 10–14. Agent (for Shusterman): Andrea Brown, Andrea Brown Literary. (Apr.)
*"Readers who fasten their tusks on this opener won't want to let go until the next one swims by."—Booklist, starred review
“Often-ludicrous scenarios and pop culture punch lines deliver surprises and laughs throughout, ramping up to a smash-bang ending.”—Publishers Weekly
"The sharp humor is effective and terrific, but it is likely Noah himself, a protagonist so worth rooting for as a loyal, earnest, and innocent victim of an interplanetary war, that will likely have readers eagerly anticipating the sequel." —BCCB
"Brisk pacing, zany humor, and endearingly quirky characters...Shusterman and Elfman (co-authors of the Accelerati trilogy) deliver the goods in this entertaining science fiction romp, leaving readers eager for the next installment."—The Horn Book
Praise for Tesla's Attic: *“Shusterman and Elfman have crafted a plot more devious, characters far quirkier, climaxes (yes, there are two) more breathless, and a narration much, much funnier than recent mad-science offerings. Sticking with a third-person narration frees the authors to be as wryly and sophisticatedly witty as they please without compromising the veracity of their middle-school cast, resulting in storytelling as delightful as the story being told.”—BCCB, starred review
“Lively, intelligent prose elevates this story of teenagers versus mad scientists, the third-person point of view offering a stage to various players in their play of galactic consequence. A wild tale in the spirit of Back to the Future, with a hint of Malamud's The Natural tossed in.”—Kirkus Reviews
“This collaboration between Shusterman and Elfman tempers the scarier elements of Nick's quest with deft, humorous writing and plenty of the ordinary adventures of a new kid in school finding his niche. Hand this one to fans of Rick Riordan's Kane Chronicles or Kenneth Oppel's Airborne.”—Booklist
05/05/2023
Gr 6 Up—The first book in this new series is too scattered to make its mark as a sci-fi adventure tale. Fourteen-year-old protagonist Noah Prime is outrageously athletic, but since his favorite sports keep getting canceled out of the blue, he rarely gets a chance to show off his talents. After a monkey-like display at a gymnastics tournament and spontaneously developing walrus blubber while trapped in a freezer, Noah discovers that his athletic aptitude is, in fact, superhuman: he can morph into any animal in the world to use its traits to his advantage. The book starts out quirky and witty as Noah and his friends test these abilities. Things start to go off the rails when Noah's house is attacked by aliens, who kidnap his parents and make him the target of an intergalactic manhunt. The plot begins to lose focus, splitting off into multiple, uninteresting perspectives that distract from what seems to be the book's main quest—Noah finding his parents and discovering the reason for his supernatural abilities. When the plots finally intersect, the conclusion is unsatisfying. A potential red flag for school collections—it's implied that a teacher is drinking alcohol while chaperoning a dance. VERDICT From time travel to aliens to shapeshifting to an apocalypse, this work proves there may be such a thing as too much science fiction in one book.—Maria Bohan
2023-01-25
A middle schooler must outrun a cadre of strange individuals while puzzling out the truth of what he is in this science-fiction offering.
Fourteen-year-old Noah Prime longs to live somewhere bigger than his small town of Arbuckle, Oregon, though he is happily involved in motocross—at least until he learns that the course is being torn down to make way for a condo development. This bad news coincides with some particularly strange happenings in Noah’s life, such as a literal (and very confusing) collision he has with Sahara, a girl that he comes to find very interesting. This is followed by his experiencing a brief and total paralysis while arguing with some bullies, which his friend Ogden, who is on the autism spectrum, insists is due to a psychological phenomenon called conversion disorder. The truth turns out to be much more complex, and it sends Noah, younger sister Andi, Ogden, and Sahara on a madcap quest involving aliens, time travel, an erupting volcano, and much more. The adventure is laced throughout with goofy, sarcastic humor, balancing the fantastical and somewhat confusing turns of events. While there is resolution at the story’s end, it also clearly sets the stage for a follow-up. The main characters read White by default.
A fun, if messy, thriller that’s not afraid to go straight over the top. (Science fiction. 10-14)
