The Last Great Getaway of the Water Balloon Boys | TheBookSeekers

The Last Great Getaway of the Water Balloon Boys


School year: Lower 6th, Upper 6th, Year 10, Year 11, Year 8, Year 9

No. of pages 208

Published: 2010

Great for age 12-18 years

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While bullies are beating up Charlie, his exbestfriend Jake pulls up in a bright red 67 Mustangthe principals carand tells him to get in. Its a choice between a broken nose and the risk of a lifetime, and Charlie, a self-described straight-A student and grade-A geek, decides to take a chance. Now the two teens are on a mission to find Charlies absent father and avoid arrest for car theft. An eventful journey puts Charlie in the middle of a court case 1,000 miles from home. And in the courtroom, he will have to make the ultimate choice of his life.

 

 

This book is the winner of numerous awards

This book is aimed at children at US 7th grade+.

This book has been graded for interest at 12-18 years.

There are 208 pages in this book.

It is aimed at Young Adult readers. The term Young Adult (YA) is used for books which have the following characteristics: (1) aimed at ages 12-18 years, US grades 7-12, UK school years 8-15, (2) around 50-75k words long, (3) main character is aged 12-18 years, (4) topics include self-reflection, internal conflict vs external, analyzing life and its meaning, (5) point of view is often in the first person, and (6) swearing, violence, romance and sexuality are allowed.

This book was published in 2010 by Simon & Schuster .

Scott William Carter is the author of Wooden Bones and The Last Great Getaway of the Water Balloon Boys, which was hailed by Publishers Weekly as a "touching and impressive debut. " His short stories have appeared in dozens of popular magazines and anthologies, including Analog, Ellery Queen, Realms of Fantasy, and Weird Tales. He lives in Oregon with his wife and two children. Visit him at ScottWilliamCarter. com.

 

This book has been nominated for the following award:

Oregon Book Award - YA
This book was recognised in the YA category by the Oregon Book Award.

"In his touching and impressive debut novel, Carter tells the story of two teenagers coping with the fallout of broken families...Jake and Charlie come across as believable characters with interesting stories to tell."--Publishers Weekly

 

"Well-developed characters and twists and turns along the way reveal the complexity of friendship, the redemptive power of second chances, the importance of looking past preconceived notions, and the lasting effects of choices (major and "insignificant" alike) and the responsibility one takes for them. This is a good choice for reluctant readers."--School Library Journal

 

"There is surprising nuance in the shades of gray behind the good-kid/bad-kid duality that has pigeonholed Charlie and Jake...readers [will] appreciate the laugh-out-loud moments and the insights into the teen-guy sensibility, its camaraderie, and its codes of honor."--The Bulletin of the Center for Children's Books