Attack of the Tagger
- Book Review,
by Wendelin Van Draanen
From School Library Journal
Grade 3-6–Nolan's life has not been the same since he invented Shredderman. Sure, he's still called "nerd," and he avoids running into bully Bubba Bixby, but now he's secretly a cyber-hero. As such, Nolan knows he's the man for the job when graffiti is spray-painted around Cedar Valley and the culprit cannot be caught. However, things do not go as planned as Shredderman is accused of being the tagger, and he is under the clock to see that truth and justice prevail before his true identity comes to light. Van Draanen delivers an entertaining sequel to Secret Identity (Knopf, 2004), packed with plenty of action and humor to keep kids, especially reluctant readers, turning the pages and rooting for Nolan. As in the first book, Biggs's black-and-white illustrations capture the humor and action of the straightforward plot.–Christine McGinty, Albany Public Library, NY Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.
From Booklist
Gr. 3-5. Armed with a digital camera and ever-increasing confidence, Nolan, the nerdy fifth-grader who moonlights as a cyber-superhero (Shredderman [BKL F 15 04]), is back. This time a graffiti artist has struck in Cedar Valley, spraying buildings, playground equipment, and even the van of Nolan's teacher-cum-sidekick, Mr. Green. In his quest to nab the delinquent, Shredderman becomes a suspect, and clearing his name requires hiding in a smelly trash bag, riding his bike farther than ever before, and, of course, posting muckraking photos and articles on shredderman.com. The hullabaloo stirred up by relatively tame vandalism seems a bit unconvincing, and it's disappointing to see Nolan gaining more adult accomplices at book's end rather than allowing his alter ego's successes to carry over into his relationships with his peers. Not as stellar as Shredderman's first soaring leap into cyberspace, but still balm for all those dweeby kids who will see themselves in Nolan and cheer him on, as well as any middle-grader wanting something fast, funny, and technologically up-to-the-minute. REVWR
Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved
From the Inside Flap
Nolan Byrd single-handedly saved his school from the bullydom of Alvin “Bubba” Bixby. He posted proof of Bubba’s exploits on the Web at Shredderman.com. Now Shredderman is the school hero! But since Shredderman’s identity is a secret, everyone still treats Nolan like . . . a nerd.
But inside this nerd beats a superhero’s heart—one dedicated to truth and justice. So when a vandal spray-paints graffiti around town—and even on his teacher’s van!—Nolan decides that tracking down the tagger is a job for Shredderman.
But while he’s trying to trap the tagger, the tagger is trying to pin the blame on Shredderman! Can Nolan turn the tables back around before his secret identity is revealed?
About the Author
Wendelin Van Draanen enjoys the “three Rs”: reading, running, and rock ’n’ roll. The author lives in central CA.
Brian Biggs is an illustrator, designer, graphic novelist, and accordion player. He lives in Philadelphia, PA.
Excerpt. © Reprinted by permission. All rights reserved.
Attack of the Tagger
CHAPTER I
Shreddin' Sidekick
My name's Nolan Byrd, but I have another name, too. A secret name.
Shredderman!
Everyone at school has been to shredderman.com, but no one knows that Shredderman is me. And maybe a lot of kids at school call me Nerd, but Shredderman they call cool.
Okay, not everyone thinks Shredderman is cool. Alvin "Bubba" Bixby hates Shredderman.
Bubba's the reason I built the Shredderman Web site. He's a big bully with killer breath and rocky knuckles. Bubba used to flip over lunch trays.
Steal stuff!
Pound money out of little kids!
And since Bubba's sly--and a really good liar--no one could ever prove anything.
Enter Shredderman!
I converted my backpack into a spy-pack.
I hid my digital camera inside it!
And I started catching Bubba in the act--on camera!
Which is how Bubba's Big Butt--and a lot of his other dirty deeds--got posted on the Web for the whole world to see.
Serves him right for underestimating underdogs!
And it sure got teachers--and even Dr. Voss, our principal--to watch Bubba's every move. Cedar Valley Elementary is a much safer place since Shredderman came to town!
There is one person who knows that I'm Shredderman.
My sidekick.
My sidekick isn't younger than me.
Or smaller than me.
Or weaker than me.
Actually, he's got a lot more power than I do.
He's my . . . shhhh . . . teacher!
Everyone calls Mr. Green a hippie because he has long hair and drives an old Volkswagen van with dolphins painted all over it.
Mr. Green also plays the guitar. He loves his guitar! He plays it like crazy for music and then for all sorts of other reasons during the day.
He "punctuates" his points.
"Interludes" his lessons.
"Segues" his subjects.
"Crescendos" his comments.
What he really does is make tons of noise! Man, you should see his fingers fly! When Mr. Green plays, even Bubba Bixby listens.
People may make fun of Mr. Green and call him the Happy Hippie, but I think he's the coolest teacher ever. He's funny and smart and nice. And while everyone else may think I'm nerdy or geeky or dweeby, Mr. Green thinks I shred.
Which is what gave me the idea--and the courage--to become a secret cyber-superhero.
Everything was going great, too! Shredderman had exposed Bubba for the bully he is and no one had a clue that I was Shredderman. Not even my mom or dad! Well, Mr. Green figured it out, but instead of turning me over to Dr. Voss, he begged to be my sidekick.
"I'm going to be the best sidekick ever, Nolan!" he said.
"But, Mr. Green..." It seemed too weird. Like I should be his sidekick.
"And I've come up with a great name, too!"
"A name?"
"Yeah! The Bouncer!"
"The Bouncer?" I asked him. "Why the Bouncer?"
"Don't mess with Shredderman, man, or the Bouncer'll getcha!"
"Oh," I said, trying to picture it. "So what do you look like? A big ball?"
"No, man!" he laughed. "I look like a bouncer! Like one of those big cats that stands at the door to keep troublemakers out? Big muscles. Thick neck. Like a pro wrestler with tattoos."
"The Bouncer has tattoos?"
He shook his head. "Skip the tattoos. But you've got the idea, right?"
"Right."
"You'd better draw me with short hair." He snapped his fingers. "Hey, why don't you make me bald all over." He grinned. "No one'll ever suspect it's me!"
I went with the strong urge to rub my chin. "But why does Shredderman need a bouncer? He's Shredderman!"
He leaned in close and whispered, "You need a bouncer, Nolan, and I'm your man."
I shrugged. "Whatever you say, Mr. Green."
"Hey! What if I come up with a theme song?"
"A theme song? But that'll give away that it's you, won't it?"
"Nah . . . I'll write something electric. Distort it . . . pitch-shift it . . . add special effects. . . . I promise-it'll be outtasight!" He eyed me. "You can load song clips on your computer, can't you?"
"Uh-huh . . ."
"So let me see what I can do. You're the boss, though. If you don't dig it, I'll trash the idea." He grinned at me. "Or write something better."
So that's how I got myself a sidekick.
And a theme song.
The song's only about fifteen seconds when you boot up shredderman.com, but I like it.
It shreds.
Mr. Green has also helped me do new things with the site. It used to be "All Bubba, All the Time," but now it's got other stuff, too. Like a new Mystery Student every week, and joke contests, and riddles, and crossword puzzles. I keep Bubba's Big Butt posted for insurance, and I told Bubba in a Shredderman e-mail that it stays there until he starts being nice to people.
Shredderman also gets e-mails from kids wanting me to add a joke to the Jokes link, or just asking, Who ARE you? Sometimes I even get messages from kids who want Shredderman to watch out for someone that's causing them trouble at school. Usually girls do this, which can get a little embarrassing.
They always sign off, LOVE.
So for a while everything was going great. Only kids from school knew about the site, which was fine with me. It kept me plenty busy, and besides, I didn't want all of Cedar Valley wondering who Shredderman was.
But then something happened. Something that cried out, "Shredderman, we need your help!" And in the name of truth and justice I couldn't just stand by and watch.
I had to do something!
Buy from Amazon
Compare Prices
|
|
Home
