Blend equal parts
Harry Potter, Cornelia Funke's
Inkheart, and
Ghostbusters and add a healthy dose of withering satire on the U.S. education system, and you have Edward Bloor's clever new novel,
Story Time. When eighth grader Kate and her Uncle George (who is two years younger than her) receive letters inviting them to attend the Whittaker Magnet School, home of nasty protein shakes and the freakish "Test-Based Curriculum," their reactions are mixed. George, somewhat of a genius, is pleased, while Kate is horrified. Still, as a search on-line reveals, their house is suddenly in the Whittaker school district, so off they go. It's not long, before they discover something very strange is afoot at their new school. For one thing, the Whittaker-Austin family has rather alarming delusions of grandeur. For another, it seems a number of people have died at the school under mysterious circumstances. Then there's the librarian called Pogo, who speaks only in Mother Goose rhymes. With the President of the United States on his way for a tour of the school, the Whittaker-Austins want to make sure everything goes as smoothly as possible--meaning no dead bodies in the soft drink cooler, no shenanigans from the mushroom-pale zombie students, and definitely no unscheduled visits from the resident demon.
As in his previous young adult novels, Tangerine and Crusader, Bloor's characters sparkle with life (or glow with unearthly non-life…). Story Time is hilarious, biting, and tremendously fun to read. (Ages 11 and older) --Emilie Coulter
