[I received a free electronic review copy of this book from Netgalley and HarperCollins in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own.]
Summary
It was a normal Monday, and Milton remembered it was his job to feed the class pet. Noah the ferret was a pretty low key animal, except he liked to get out of his cage. Like when Milton forgot to latch it on this otherwise normal Monday.
But when Noah escaped, it stopped being a normal day. Mrs. Baltman, the teacher, pretended to be sick. And when the sub arrived, it was Milton’s mom. And to make things even stranger, Milton discovers his mom is some sort of agent tasked with catching Noah the ferret before he can carry out his evil plot for world domination.
Review
This is book 1 in the Society of Substitutes series, part of the Harper Chapters line of early chapter books. Book 2, The Zoo of Switcheroo, is also out now. This is an illustrated story (the pictures are great!) with some chapter end notes and some questions at the end of the book. I had envisioned this being a cross between the Super Turbo and Lunch Lady series, but I was disappointed. The premise is good, but it didn’t live up to its potential.
At first, the issues were small things that could have been (might have been?) tightened up with just a couple additions. For example, twice in the book the kids, second graders, are sent outside for recess early in the day. Milton mentions several times how unusual it is to go outside before they had really done any school work. But neither time does the book mention who is supervising the kids outside while the teacher is in the building. This could have been passed off to a sleepy custodian or aide or someone who wouldn’t ask questions – or even someone who takes the kids with a wink like they know exactly what is going on.
Another example is the helmet Milton’s mom wears to get her instructions for the case. Why would a full helmet have a speaker that an outsider, like Milton, could hear rather than be a full, soundproof headset? If we need the sub to get the mission briefing and need Milton to overhear it, have it come through a smart watch or a tablet. Later, Milton seems to know names for the weapons being thrown around. I know it makes the story easier to tell if the writer doesn’t have to keep explaining them. But, again, it’s a little detail that could be tightened up with a few sentences – maybe Milton names them himself in his glee at watching this secret mission unfold in front of him. That could be funny.
My biggest issue, though, was with the big reveal in the middle of the book. Milton is overhearing this mission briefing. The reader could have “listened” along and also gotten Milton’s inner monologue about what he is hearing, his disbelief, his questions about his mom’s involvement. Instead, Milton summarizes what he hears and the action moves forward. It felt like a missed opportunity to draw the reader into the action of the story, to revel in the reveal with Milton, and then chase down the action from there. It was more “telling” than “showing.” And as the reader, it really tripped up my momentum with the story.
Some kids will not catch any of these things and will enjoy this series launch. Others will catch them and not care. But it would be easier for me to recommend this one if these pieces were tightened up.
Rating: ♥♥½*
*♥♥½ = Mostly solid to solid; okay overall, but there are some issues