U is for Unexpected bonuses #AtoZChallenge

Operation Awesome's #AtoZChallenge theme for 2018 is... 

OA to Z! We'll be correlating our usual posts with the challenge letters.

I was able to anticipate some of the benefits of blogging with Operation Awesome before I started. Others were Unexpected. One of those unexpected benefits has been sharing my love of books with my oldest child. Because of Operation Awesome, I was sent an ARC of Adrienne Kress' book The Explorers: The Door in the Alley last year, which I read out loud to my son. The sequel, The Reckless Rescue, comes out today, and we were sent another ARC. 

This time, my son read most of the book to himself. He's really grown as a reader over the past year, and we were both thrilled that he could read this book by himself. He's eight, in third grade, if that gives you an idea of his reading level. Here's his review:

Did you like the second Explorers book?

Yes! It was a great book.

Who would you recommend it to?

I already recommended it to (his teacher)! He said he'll have to read it.

Do you want to read the next one?

There's another one? Can I read it now?

What was your favorite part?

Escaping the bad guys with The Lost Boys.

Was there a part you didn't like?

No, I loved all of it.

Was it too hard to read by yourself?

It was a little hard, but not too hard. I liked it.

**********

About the Book

  *  The bad news: The boy (Sebastian) has been kidnapped by a trio of troublesome thugs.
  *  The good news: His new friend Evie has promised to rescue him!
  *  The bad news: Sebastian has been taken halfway around the world.
  *  The good news: Evie has famous explorer and former Filipendulous Five member Catherine Lind at her side!
  *  The bad news: There's still the whole matter of Evie's grandfather (and the leader of the Filipendulous Five) somewhere out there in grave danger.
  *  The good news: Pursuing Sebastian will lead Evie and Catherine to another member of the Filipendulous Five, who might be able to help!

This missive is a call to action and an invitation to join in mystery, bravery, and danger. There will be new people to meet, new places to see, and some dancing along the way. And one amazingly reckless rescue.

About the Author

Adrienne Kress is a writer and an actress born and raised in Toronto. She is the daughter of two high school English teachers, and credits them with inspiring her love of both writing and performing. She also has a cat named Atticus, who unfortunately despises teeny hats. She is the author of The Explorers: The Door in the Alley, The Explorers: The Reckless Rescue, and The Explorers: The Quest for the Kid. To find out more about Adrienne, visit AdrienneKress.com and follow @AdrienneKress on Twitter and Instagram.

Reading With My Kid: A review of THE DOOR IN THE ALLEY, by Adrienne Kress

A few months ago a publicist from Penguin Random House contacted the Operation Awesome team, inviting us to participate in a blog tour for The Explorers: The Door in the Alley. He also offered an ARC of the book, and while OA typically doesn't do book reviews, my son is a middle grade reader, and I couldn't pass up the chance to do something cool with him.

He was very excited when I told him we had an advanced copy of the book and got to read it before anyone else did. However, the art inside the book wasn't filled in for the ARC, and that disappointed him! I might have to buy him a finished copy for his birthday later this month...

My son is 7 years old, and just finished second grade. He is a pretty average reader for his age and grade level. I flipped through the book, and felt that the vocabulary was a little too advanced for him, so I read it to him. We did a couple of chapters every night, which was fun for both of us.

Hardly anything happens in the first chapter, and as a writer, that bugged me. The whole first chapter is carried by a strong narrative voice, similar to that of A Series of Unfortunate Events, but perhaps even more twee. When we finished the first chapter, I looked up at my son.
"What do you think so far?" I asked, afraid that he might be bored.
"I like it!" He nodded his head with enthusiasm and poked my leg with his foot. "Can we read one more chapter?"

And because this is a book written for children, not adults, I deferred to the child. Luckily for my sanity, the voice toned down a lot as the book went on, which I felt was a good thing. The action spoke for itself.

My son loved the bad guys, both of whom have unique physical features. He was captivated by the action sequences, and liked both the male and female main characters. One part in particular made him laugh out loud, and then he made me stop reading so he could reenact that part for his five-year-old brother. He did not like that the book ended on a cliffhanger, though. I have a feeling he'll be asking me when the next book comes out many times over the summer.

Both of us would recommend this book to any middle grade reader, especially if they like action and adventure more than high fantasy.