Genius Camp

September 15, 2021
Grades 5-7 Working the same basic plot as The Smartest Kid in the Universe (2020), Grabenstein again tasks a trio of smart kids--two who were born that way and titular slacker Jake McQuade, who gobbled down an entire jar of intellect- and knowledge-enhancing jelly beans--with saving their school and, by extension, the world from an evil corporate takeover. As new wrinkles, Grabenstein trots in pleasant-voiced Lulu, a massive quantum computer with ominous abilities, and archvillain CEO Zane Zinkle, who, along with developing phone apps that turn people into zombified compulsive shoppers, is so chapped at being only the second smartest person in the world that he's testing special chocolate "Mushmellows" that turn everyone who eats them into fart-joke loving dummies. Along with plenty of helter-skelter action (and fart jokes), Grabenstein stirs in conversations about ethics, plus a handful of challenging visual and logical puzzles for Jake and readers to solve on the way to a tumultuous climax. A rousing sequel, if already a bit formulaic, that promises return engagements.

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October 15, 2021
The smartest kid in the universe fights against an evil technocrat. Jake McQuade, a White boy who has experienced an accidental rise from mediocrity, can't let anyone know that a jarful of jelly beans is responsible for his skyrocketing IQ. This second installment in the series quickly catches up readers who might have missed the inciting events and then clips along to a new setting. Immature, tantrum-throwing bazillionaire Zane Zinkle was the smartest kid in the universe--and he is not dealing gracefully with his usurpation despite being 29. He devises a plot to get Jake and an assortment of other brilliant children to the eponymous camp for a project ominously called Operation Brain Drain while using his zPhone to brainwash everyone else. Short chapters, fart jokes, and rapturous descriptions of marshmallows will hook reluctant readers, while vague critiques of capitalism and technocracy might nudge readers to think. Lightly developed diversity is present in the supporting cast: Jake's friends include Grace Garcia, a Spanish-speaking girl he has a crush on; Abia Sulayman, a hijabi girl who ensures the marshmallows are halal (some will remember her from the author's 2017 title, Mr. Lemoncello's Great Library Race); and Kojo Shelton, Jake's Black best friend who adores Kojak and has adopted one of his catchphrases. A light, fluffy marshmallow of a book. (puzzle) (Fiction. 9-13)

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