  | Nickel Bay Nick Author: Pitchford, Dean | |
| Price: $15.89 | ||
Summary:
When eleven-year-old Sam gets into trouble and is forced to work for his reclusive neighbor Mr. Wells, he soon finds out that his mysterious new acquaintance hides many secrets of his own--including one that will change Sam's life forever.
| Accelerated Reader Information: Interest Level: MG Reading Level: 4.90 Points: 8.0 Quiz: 162467 | Reading Counts Information: Interest Level: 3-5 Reading Level: 5.40 Points: 13.0 Quiz: 64329 | |
Reviews:
Kirkus Reviews (09/15/13)
School Library Journal (10/01/13)
The Bulletin of the Center for Children's Books (A) (12/13)
Full Text Reviews:
School Library Journal - 10/01/2013 Gr 4–7—Eleven-year-old Sam, puny after the one-two punch of a heart transplant and his mother's abandonment of the family, is one bad move away from juvie. He freely expresses his anger toward his father and the world with bitterness and vandalism. On Christmas night, he damages the house of a rich recluse, and, to avoid arrest, Sam and his father agree that he will work to pay for his destruction. It turns out that Mr. Wells, confined to a wheelchair by a broken leg, has been the anonymous benefactor of the depressed town of Nickel Bay, handing out $100 bills each Christmas. This year, the residents have sorely missed the visit of "Nickel Bay Nick" and it is Sam's mission to become his town's secret St. Nick. To succeed he must follow orders, see the world from others' perspective, and earn the respect of his new mentor. Told with wry humor, this fast-paced novel will appeal to fans of Louis Sachar's Holes (Farrar, 1998) and Gary D. Schmidt's Okay for Now (Clarion, 2011). In the best tradition of Christmas stories, it's a bit of a tearjerker as Sam discovers just why Mr. Wells cares so much about him and learns to forgive his own parents. This is a Christmas book that can be enjoyed year-round.—Anne Connor, formerly at Los Angeles Public Library - Copyright 2013 Publishers Weekly, Library Journal and/or School Library Journal used with permission.
Bulletin for the Center... - 12/01/2013 Every year around Christmastime in Nickel Bay, a mysterious philanthropist dubbed “Nickel Bay Nick” leaves forty-five $100 bills around town over the course of twelve days. This year, though, Nickel Bay Nick has failed to show up, so the whole town’s depressed, and fifth-grader Sam is concerned that the lackluster economy will bring down his dad’s bakery. When Sam-who’s always been a bit of a troublemaker-accidentally destroys an elderly neighbor’s Christmas decorations, he’s pushed into helping Mr. Wells around the house . . . only to discover that Mr. Wells is, in fact, Nickel Bay Nick. Sam’s rigorous training under the eyes of Mr. Wells’ friend Dr. Sakata prepares him to be the one to drop the money in the twelve days post-Christmas with ninja-like stealth-until Sam breaks Mr. Wells’ trust and leaves one of the bills for his father. Sam is realistically portrayed as a good guy who’s made a lot of serious mistakes, mostly from falling in with a couple of eighth-grader hooligans, and the facts that he has an absent mother and a transplanted heart are effectively woven into the text without becoming contrivances. However, the treatment of Sam’s delinquency-and the implicit lesson to dump “bad eggs”-gives the book a preachy tone overall, and the ending tips toward the maudlin and unbelievably tidy in its gasp-inducing reveals. Still, Sam’s antics as he preps for his espionage and plants the Benjamins are good fun, and readers just beginning to negotiate their independence will likely recognize themselves in Sam’s rebellion. Fans of cunning capers, celebrate: there’s finally a sentimental holiday novel for you. TA - Copyright 2013 The Board of Trustees of the University of Illinois.
