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Title details for Stealing Air by Trent Reedy - Available

Stealing Air

by Trent Reedy
Ramón de Ocampo
Audiobook
1 of 1 copy available
Borrow Listen to a sample Listen to a sample
1 of 1 copy available
You can't just ask for the chance to fly . . .

When his dad announced they were moving to Iowa, Brian looked forward to making some new friends. But on his first day there he makes an enemy instead — Frankie Heller, the meanest kid in town. Brian needs to hang out with someone cool to get back on track. . . .Alex has always been the coolest guy around, and good with money, just like his dad. But now the family is struggling, and he needs to make some cash to keep up appearances. Then an opportunity falls in his lap . . . .Max is a scientific genius, but his parents are always busy with their own work. Building an actual plane should get their attention — if only he wasn't scared of heights . . . The answer to all three boys' problems starts with Max's secret flyer. But Frankie and the laws of popularity and physics stand in their way. Can they work together in time to get their plan AND their plane off the ground?

  • Creators

  • Publisher

  • Awards

  • Release date

    August 1, 2017

  • Formats

    • OverDrive Listen audiobook

      • ISBN: 9781338269925
      • File size: 196228 KB
      • Duration: 06:48:48

  • Languages

    • English

  • Levels

    • ATOS Level: 4.2
    • Lexile® Measure: 650
    • Interest Level: 4-8(MG)
    • Text Difficulty: 2-3

  • Reviews

    • Publisher's Weekly

      December 3, 2012
      Reedy (Words in the Dust) delivers a light story about friendship that wavers between fantasy and small-town realism. Brian has reluctantly left Seattle because his parents have teamed up with an Iowa professor to manufacture an ultra-light polymer dubbed "Plastisteel" under their company name, Synthtech. Showing off on his skateboard, Brian draws unwelcome attention from a bully and is rescued by the son (nicknamed Mad Max) of his parents' business partners. After the theft of Plastisteel samples lands Synthtech on shaky financial ground, Mad Max includes Brian in a top-secret venture of his own: the construction of an experimental flier (with exactly zero safety features) that they believe will convince an investor to sink millions into Synthtech. While Brian and Mad Max's attempts at flight should thrill readers who fantasize about amateur aviation, Reedy strikes some false notes: the boys' preferred diversions of The Beatles and Star Trek are outdated, and a romantic subplot is extraneous. The farfetched premise that a risky flight by two sixth-graders can rescue a high-tech startup doesn't quite earn the necessary suspension of disbelief to achieve liftoff. Ages 8â12. Agent: Ammi-Joan Paquette, Erin Murphy Literary Agency.

    • AudioFile Magazine
      Ramon de Ocampo gives an energetic and compelling performance in this warm and spirited children's story. Brian, a sixth-grader who has moved to Iowa, falls prey to the school bully and must decide whether or not cool friends make loyal friends. De Ocampo's dynamic changes in pitch and volume make it easy to distinguish between the characters: Brian himself, who struggles to fit in; his father, who is anxious about work; Alex, who is laid-back but undependable; and Max, who is geeky and speaks deliberately. De Ocampo's enthusiasm, clear enunciation, and skillful pacing dramatize the exhilaration of a common goal as Brian and his friends leave behind the pressures of school by escaping into the air in a homemade airplane. M.F. Winner of AudioFile Earphones Award © AudioFile 2012, Portland, Maine

Formats

  • OverDrive Listen audiobook

subjects

Languages

  • English

Levels

  • ATOS Level:4.2
  • Lexile® Measure:650
  • Interest Level:4-8(MG)
  • Text Difficulty:2-3

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