Max Quick

June 1, 2011

Gr 4-7-Max Quick, a 12-year-old orphan with no memory of his past, is on the run from the Starland Home for Boys when time suddenly stops. Everything and everyone around him is frozen, but he is seemingly immune. He finds Casey, who is also unaffected, and together they witness a UFO-type object flying east. Max is convinced they may be the only ones who can discover what caused the Time-stop, and they set out to reverse it. Also able to move in "the Pocket" is Ian, who has theorized about the phenomenon and who joins Max and Casey on their journey. As they travel, they learn more about Max's past and it becomes clear that he may be the key to saving the world. This fast-paced adventure, though light on character development, will keep readers turning the pages. Occasionally dialogue is weak or overly expositional, but the story itself is engaging. What Max and his friends learn about those who caused the Time-stop raises philosophical and ethical questions about free will and even genetic engineering, though the latter isn't fully explored. The incorporation of figures from Sumerian mythology adds an interesting element that may appeal to fans of Rick Riordan's "Percy Jackson" series (Hyperion).-Amanda Raklovits, Champaign Public Library, IL

Copyright 2011 School Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

March 1, 2011
Grades 8-10 Max has no memory of his parents, or his background. All he knows is that he has a talent for thieving and pickpocketing that has landed him in a juvie home in California. He also knows he has to escape the sadistic attentions of the homes headmaster. In flight, Max reflects on what he knows of his life: Terrible luck, followed by wonderful luck. Followed by even more terrible luck. Not a bad plot description for this adventure novel, originally self-published in 2004, that bounces Max and his newfound ally, Casey, around like pool balls, positing them as the only humans not frozen in position after a solar eclipse hits. Jeffreys descriptions of how time has stopped, leaving people in midstride or gesture, planes suspended in the air, and ocean waves stuck at their peak, will stop readers in their own tracks. The plot, crowded with aliens, mythological beings, and creatures with weird abilities, has both internal logic and plenty of action-adventure appeal.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2011, American Library Association.)