Sheila's Books Read

Sheila's bookshelf: read

The Best Intentions
Scotland's Melody
The Secret Society of Salzburg
Secret of the Sonnets
20-40-60-Minute Dinners: Meals to Match the Time You Have
Through the Wilderness: My Journey of Redemption and Healing in the American Wild
Secret Santa Claus Club: A Tool to Help Parents Unwrap the Secret of Santa
Mr. Pudgins
Revenge Never Rests
The Best Mistake
Meriden Park
More Inspirational Stories for Young Women
The Great Tree: A Christmas Fable
To Capture His Heart
The Call of the Sea
Esperance
Livvy and the Enchanted Woodland
Come, Gentle Night
The Bad Boy Theory
Guide To Smart Wedding Planning: What You want to know and everything you haven't thought of yet.


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2024 Goodreads Reading Challenge

2024 Reading Challenge

2024 Reading Challenge
Sheila has read 4 books toward her goal of 100 books.
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Friday, January 5, 2024

Graysen Foxx and the Curse of the Illuminerdy: Volume 2 By J. Scott Savage-Children's Adventure Book Review


 Book Summary

Graysen Foxx must use his extraordinary detective skills to solve the strange, mind-bending clues of the Illuminerdy--a secret society of school nerds who guard a powerful treasure.

Graysen Foxx is no stranger to the mysteries hidden in Ordinary Elementary--the bat-filled tunnels, the secret passageways, the underground chambers, and the sticky spiderwebs--and he's on the hunt for a creepy old painting that will guarantee his victory in the school's Halloween room contest. But finding and claiming the painting is only the beginning of a wild adventure filled with puzzles that will put Graysen's treasure-hunting skills to the test.

When Graysen finds a mysterious symbol on the back of a dusty spelling bee medal, the discovery spreads like creamy peanut butter, and fifth grader "Let's Make a Deal" Larry immediately offers to trade for it. But before Graysen can learn who Larry is working for, a masked second grader steals the medal.

Who wants the medal and why? Was it Graysen's nemesis, Raven? The second-grade spy network? Or the Doodler, the sixth-grade boss who blames a lost spelling bee for ruining his life?

While researching what the symbol might mean, Graysen and the twins, Maya and Jack, cross paths with a secret society of super-smart nerds and techies who call themselves the Illuminerdy. Ringing an ancient gong reveals a treasure so powerful, it could change the world of education forever. Now, Graysen and Raven must work together to outwit the secret society by uncovering a bone-rattling secret that the Illuminerdy will do anything to protect.


Book Details

  • Publisher ‏ : ‎ Shadow Mountain (January 2, 2024)
  • Genre: Children's Adventure
  • Language ‏ : ‎ English
  • Hardcover ‏ : ‎ 256 pages
  • ISBN-10 ‏ : ‎ 1639931708
  • ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-1639931705
  • Reading age ‏ : ‎ 8 - 12 years
  • ****I received a complimentary book from publishers, publicists, NetGalley, book tours, and or authors.  A review was not required and all opinions and ideas expressed are my own.****

My Review

"A treasure greater than any you can imagine." This was the message that started it all.

It was great to be back in the fun and crazy world of Graysen Foxx. This young Indiana Jones-like detective is once again on a mysterious treasure hunt. Graysen makes going to school at Ordinary Elementary a true adventure He's on the hunt for a creepy old picture to win a Halloween contest. Graysen is looking for clues about a secret society of super-smart kids called "The Illuminerdy".Yes, the name of this group made me giggle. In his search, he finds a spelling bee medal, and from here the chaos begins. 

There is always so much humor in this series. J. Scott Savage keeps the laughs coming the whole book. Here's an example, "This isn't Star Wars and we aren't inside a trash compactor." 

Another funny chapter tickled my teacher's funny bone and this part really made me LOL! Raven says, "You don't want to know how many abandoned rooms there are in this place. I think I found the mummified remains of a substitute teacher next to a jammed copy machine waiting for her word search sheets to finish printing." 



One aspect that I loved about this second book is how teamwork helped to solve the mystery. I like how Savage puts ways for kids (and adults) to learn new things and readers don't even realize it. They enjoy the ride so much they forget they are gaining new information they'd normally learn in school. Readers will also see that every person has unique and valuable talents. Graysen and his friends learn to appreciate each other as each person had a gift to help in the treasure hunt. One was good at Math and another was really good at building things.  

This book and series are so much fun. It would be a great class read-aloud and also a great book to read with your children or grandchildren. Savage has such a gift for writing for this age group. As an older person, I'm so pleased to be able to read about Graysen Foxx's adventures and be taken away in childhood fun for a few hours.


****Meet Author J. Scott Savage****



Author J. Scott Savage is the author of 20 published novels. He has been a teacher and presenter at writing conferences for adults and youth, and has developed Common Core-aligned projects for elementary school writing curricula. He has presented at more than 3000 schools across the country, inspiring students to read, write, embrace their own creativity, and change the world. He is represented by Michael Bourret of Dystal, Goderich, and Bourret.

Scott is the author of Graysen Foxx and the Treasure of Principal Redbeard and The Lost Wonderland Diaries series, published by Shadow Mountain, the Case File 13 middle-grade series published by Harper-Collins, and the FarWorld and Mysteries of Cove middle-grade fantasy series, both published by Shadow Mountain.

Please see the News and Events Page for Scott’s latest publishing news.

Case File 13: Zombie Kid received a starred Kirkus review, was a Junior Library Guild Select Book, and was nominated for the Louisiana Young Readers Choice Award. It has also been named by The School Library Journal and Horror Writers of America as one of three middle-grade Summer Scares titles for 2020. The first book in the Mysteries of Cove series, Fires of Invention, is a nominee for the 2017-18 Young Hoosiers Award, and the second book in the series, Gears of Revolution, has been nominated for a Cybils Award. The third book, Embers of Destruction, received an Honorable Mention in the 2018 Foreword Magazine Indie Book Awards. 

Scott lives in Utah with his wife of 35 years, Jennifer. He has four amazing children and nine perfect grandchildren. He enjoys reading, watching movies, camping, traveling, and spending time with his family.


~*~*~*~*Purchase Graysen Foxx and the Curse~*~*~*~*

of the Illuminerdy

-Hardback:https://amzn.to/48GsMwf

-Kindle:https://amzn.to/41KKWL0

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