Another of James Patterson’s Best Selling Middle Grade Books

Another Best Selling Middle Grade Book from James Patterson

Laugh Out Loud is growing to be one of this year’s best selling middle grade books. Two famous authors and a noted illustrator teamed up to come out with this fun tale. The team includes American author James Patterson, equally popular children’s book author Chris Grabenstein, and well-regarded illustrator Jeffrey Ebbeler. The book is about the adventures of a boy who chases his dream of putting up his own book company. The story takes place in San Jose, California, where the Silicon Valley entrepreneurial spirit is strongest. It teaches the values of dreaming big, and perseverance in its pursuit. Interestingly, it may also serve as an introductory lesson on entrepreneurship.

 

Synopsis

Best Selling Middle Grade BookJimmy loves to read books. He loves books so much, that he decides to start his own book company. And it’s not just any ordinary book company that he plans to put up. He dreams of book company for kids and run by kids with an awesome factory that has a Ferris wheel instead of freight elevators, a bowling alley, Ping-Pong and foosball tables, and a bouncy house. Of course, it’s a big dream for a twelve-year-old boy. Fortunately, he is not alone in his dream. He soon gets his friends to join him in his obsession. Chris volunteers to do the writing, Rafe enlists himself as an illustrator, and other friends contributed zany ideas.

But they still need the help of adults to really make their dream come true. So Jimmy talks to his parents. But they are too busy with their own lives to pay much attention to his dream. He explains his idea to his teachers at school, but only one of them encourages him; the rest shoot down his idea. He then presents his case to a bookstore owner and a banker. They both give him negative feedback. To make matters worse, a rare downpour of rain in sunny San Jose further foils his plans, affecting his inventory. Most kids, even adults, would have given up by then. But Jimmy does not give up easily. With the help of his friend Hailey, he gets in touch with the wealthy Yingerlingers. He successfully persuades them to provide funding and help him make his dream come true.

A Children’s Middlegrade Book Bestseller

This book is shaping up to be one of this year’s best selling middle grade books in Patterson’s line of novels for children. Readers who have previously visited Jimmy’s world will find it greatly amusing to meet familiar characters. Others may find this too self-serving or downright annoying. For first-time readers, the parade of diverse characters will simply leave them confused. A chapter at the end of the book thoughtfully compiles references to Patterson’s other works. Obviously, this is for the reader’s shopping convenience.

There is an overabundance of book recommendations all throughout the book. Readers will find titles such as Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, A Wrinkle in Time, The War of the Worlds, and To Kill a Mockingbird mentioned in the book. In fact, the book name-drops a total of thirty-eight titles. It certainly encourages the reader to hunt down and line up these books for a next read.

Jeff Ebbeler’s illustrations render a pleasant combination of goofy and sophisticated, which is just right for the target age group. Jeff injects a lot of fun details in the pictures. He also expertly captures the personalities of a wide range of characters.

Formats

The book is available in various formats including traditional hardcover, ebook, and audio CD. It can also be enjoyed in a convenient audio streaming format from Audible.

Reception – One of This Year’s Best Selling Middle Grade Books from James Patterson

As of this writing (September 16, 2017) the book placed number 1 on Amazon’s list of Hot New Releases in the Children’s Classics category. It joined the New York Times Bestseller list in the Children’s Middle Grade category barely one week after release. Indeed, it is fast shaping up as one of this year’s best selling middle grade books.

Preview

The first three chapters of the book are available for preview below.

Promotional YouTube Video

On July 20, 2017, James Patterson uploaded a promotional video of the book to his YouTube channel. The video can be viewed here.

[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ghkIbUpmZX4]

 

Best Selling Middle Grade BookAbout the Authors

James Patterson first became famous as a successful writer of mystery-suspense novels. He so far has produced a total of sixty-seven #1 The New York Times bestsellers — a Times, as well as a Guinness World Record. According to an interview with Barnes and Noble Kids Blog, Patterson started writing books for children when his son, Jack, was young. His son was a reluctant reader. He encouraged him to read books that he himself wrote.

Best Selling Middle Grade BooksChris Grabenstein is an American author who writes novels for adults and children.

He graduated from the University of Tennessee in 1977 with a degree from the College of Communication and Information. In 1984, he started writing professionally, when he wrote advertisement copy for James Patterson. He published his first novel in 2005. He frequently collaborates with James Patterson to produce children’s book bestsellers. Chris has won the Agatha Award for Best Children’s/Young Adult Novel four times already. He has also won the Anthony Award twice.

 

 

Best Selling Middle Grade Books

This image is from Jeff Ebbeler’s website.

Jeff Ebbeler has been creating award-winning art for children for over a decade. He has illustrated more than 40 picture books. According to his website, “Jeffrey gives many lectures and demonstrations in grade-schools, colleges, and museums about the process of bringing words to life through pictures. He and his wife Eileen both attended the Art Academy of Cincinnati. They currently live in Cincinnati with their twin daughters Olivia and Isabel.”

 



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