Synopsis
Uncle Jean did the one thing you're never supposed to do in a kayak. He leaned over hard, so that all his weight bore down on one side of the kayak. And Uncle Jean is big. We were about to capsize. Aunt Daisy's words rang in my head, like a song you can't forget, no matter how hard you try. "Three minutes until you lose sensation in your extremities." I wriggled my fingers and toes. While I still could. Pete likes to play pranks. It doesn't matter what it is as long as it gets a laugh. When he impersonates his vice-principal on a radio call-in show, he goes too far and is suspended from school. Pete's parents send him to spend the summer working with his uncle, a whale-watching guide in a tourist town far from the city. When a whale is injured by a reckless tour guide, Pete struggles to save the animal. Then Pete has to pull the most important prank of his life to bring the guide to justice. This is Monique Polak's first entry in the Orca Soundings series. She teaches writing and English literature.
Diane Emge - VOYA
The Canadian-based Orca Soundings series fulfills the wishes of countless librarians and teachers by providing well-written, relevant stories geared toward lower level readers. These slender books are an easy sell with their colorful, teen-savvy covers and edgy titles. A broad range of topics and viewpoints allow readers plenty of choices for individual reading preferences, as demonstrated by four recent additions. No More Pranks relates the story of mischievous Pete, who has just been suspended from school for calling a sex talk show and pretending to be one of his teachers. His punishment is to spend the summer living with his Uncle Jean, who runs a kayaking company in Tadoussac on the St. Lawrence River. The French Canadian wilderness is an especially satisfying setting for Pete's subsequent misadventures, culminating in a prank that might catch some bad guys-or get Pete killed. Lots of action here, combined with nice insights on the clash between tourism and the preservation of natural environments. There are eighteen previous books in the series. Most are suitable for middle school through high school readers. There are many reasons why teens find themselves uninterested in reading, but these books are great tools for luring them back. VOYA CODES: 4Q 3P M J S (Better than most, marred only by occasional lapses; Will appeal with pushing; Middle School, defined as grades 6 to 8; Junior High, defined as grades 7 to 9; Senior High, defined as grades 10 to 12). 2004, Orca, 100p., Trade pb. Ages 11 to 18.