The Quirks in Circus Quirkus

by Erin Soderberg

Overview

Ladies and Gentleman, Boys and Girls, Children of All Ages... Just as the Quirk family was settling into Normal... Ta da! The circus comes to town! At school, Molly, Penelope, and Finn are all learning circus skills in gym class. At home, they are putting similar skills to good use; it takes fancy footwork and stellar detective work to keep their nosy neighbor from snooping around and uncovering the Quirk family secrets. Each day in their new town makes one thing very clear: Life in Normal is a high-flying adventure!

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781619631571
Publisher:	Bloomsbury Publishing
Publication date:	02/04/2014
Series:	The Quirks
Sold by:	Barnes & Noble
Format:	eBook
Pages:	176
File size:	6 MB

About the Author

ERIN SODERBERG has written numerous books for children, but THE QUIRKS is her first middle-grade series. Before turning to writing full-time, Erin worked as a children's book editor and marketer, cookie taster, and brand manager for Nickelodeon. She lives in Minneapolis, Minnesota with her delightfully quirky family.
www.erinsoderberg.com
Erin Soderberg has written numerous books for children, including The Quirks series: Welcome to Normal, Circus Quirkus, and Quirkalicious Birthday. Before turning to writing full-time, Erin worked as a children's book editor and marketer, and a brand manager for Nickelodeon. She lives in Minneapolis, Minnesota with her delightfully quirky family.

www.erinsoderberg.com
@ErinDowning
Facebook/TheQuirksBooks

Editorial Reviews

05/01/2014
Gr 2–4—In this follow-up to Welcome to Normal (Bloomsbury, 2013), Penelope, Molly, and Finn are still struggling not just to fit in but also to hide their family's secret quirks. Finn, for example, can only be seen by others when he is chewing bubble gum. Nervous Penelope lets her overactive imagination come to life, literally, at times, and their Mom has superpowers of persuasion. Grandpa Quirk can rewind time, and Gran flits in and out as a tiny fairy. Only Molly seems to have no special quirk of her own, although she is immune to her families' unique traits. When the circus comes to town and challenges the local students to a participation contest, everyone is thrilled except Molly and Penelope. They are afraid that their cranky next door neighbor, Mrs. DeVille, is spying on them while they practice circus stunts in the backyard. Has she discovered their secret quirks? Molly is determined to figure out a way to prevent the woman from learning the truth about her family, because she doesn't want to move again. The Quirks have lived in 27 different towns in just under 10 years, thanks to people discovering their unique "talents." Molly and Penelope's desire to fit in rings true, especially in their fourth-grade class. The story develops easily and quickly as readers get to know the characters. Black-and-white illustrations scattered throughout lend comical flair. Fans of Mary Pope Osborne's "Magic Tree House" series (Random) who are ready for longer texts might appreciate the quirkiness of the Quirks.—Lisa Kropp, Suffolk Cooperative Library System, Bellport, NY

School Library Journal

Molly and Penelope's desire to fit in rings true, especially in their fourth-grade class. The story develops easily and quickly as readers get to know the characters. Black-and-white illustrations scattered throughout lend comical flair.” —School Library Journal

“Super-fun, super-cute and super-hilarious. I wish I were a Quirk!” —Sarah Mlynowski, bestselling author of the Whatever After series, on The Quirks: Welcome to Normal

“I sped through this book—I couldn't put it down! I'm anxiously awaiting the next book in this great new series.” —Jack & Jill Read, US Kids Magazine, on The Quirks: Welcome to Normal

“I was surprised and delighted by this book . . . really creative, full of heart, and not sickly sweet. I have been waiting to find a book for 3rd graders that doesn't give me cavities, but will also be adored by the students. I think this is the one!” —Kiss the Book blog on The Quirks: Welcome to Normal

“Like the characters in Ingrid Law's Savvy and Scrumble, [the Quirks] struggle to maintain and control the things that make them special while still leading meaningful lives in the wider world.” —School Library Journal on The Quirks: Welcome to Normal

“A fun, inventive story that inspires laughter and reflection on one's definition of normal.” —Library Media Connection on The Quirks: Welcome to Normal

From the Publisher

2013-11-02
A family with diverse magical powers gains a surprise ally in this sequel to Welcome to Normal (2013). Though Soderberg continues to play the Quirks' plight as a sitcom, readers are less likely to chuckle than wince at their behavior. Forced to move 26 times for fear of exposure in the nearly 10 years since twins Molly and Penelope were born, the family's efforts to settle quietly in Normal are complicated both by an obsessively snoopy neighbor, Mrs. DeVille, and by their own strong tendency to abuse their powers. Five-year-old bad boy Finn, for instance, takes advantage of his selective invisibility to play annoying pranks and to steal from Mrs. DeVille, while scatterbrained mother Bree keeps her job as a waitress by controlling customers' minds. Fortunately and as before, the supposedly ungifted Molly works her own brand of magic: She cleverly reins Finn in, keeps her neurotic sister (whose every mental image becomes real, willy-nilly) distracted and even convinces a TV news crew that there is nothing more notable about the Quirks than their backyard circus. And, rather than being the villain she seems, Mrs. DeVille turns out to be the sort who (literally) winks at the Quirks'…quirks. More episodic catastrophes without lasting consequences, in a tale that shares a premise with, but bears only a superficial resemblance to, Ingrid Law's brilliant Savvy (2008). (illustrations not seen) (Light fantasy. 8-10)

Kirkus Reviews