Friday, October 7, 2016

Election Season "Must Read": Clayton Stone Facing Off

Clayton Stone, Facing Off
by Ena Jones
224 pages; ages 8 - 12
Holiday House, 2016

Just in time for this year's elections: a book of political intrigue, dirty tricks, and lacrosse. Thirteen-year-old Clayton Stone is busy prepping for the lacrosse play-offs. His school, Master's Academy, stands a chance - if they can beat Sydney Brown.

Then he's recruited to go undercover to protect the President's son. At Sydney Brown school. That means working his way onto the team so he can stay close to POTUS JR. And that means playing against his own team on the play-offs.

No sooner does he show up at Sydney Brown, than the school is put on lock down. It's a regular drill, but how's the new kid to know? Now he's on the "watch out for" list... and the President's son makes a point to avoid him.

Not only that, it's election season, and the students are voting for next year's student leaders. The school presidential debate is coming up (yes!) and someone is stealing voters. A plucky school reporter is hot on the story and wrangles Clayton into helping. The plot thickens when a senator's son (who is an overbearing bully) engages in dirty tricks and Clayton suspects the dastardly deeds at school extend all the way to Capital Hill.

As Clayton prepares for the lacrosse play-offs he tries to determine the end-game. A fun read - perfect for this season of debates. Check out this awesome interview with Ena Jones over at the Mixed Up Files.   

 We'll be hanging out on Marvelous Middle Grade Monday with other  bloggers over at Shannon Messenger's blog. Hop over to see what other people are reading.
Review copy provided by the publisher.

10 comments:

  1. This is a MUCH better cover than the first book. I'll have to take a look!

    ReplyDelete
  2. This sounds like an awful lot of fun. I will definitely be checking this one out. Thanks for the review.

    ReplyDelete
  3. I read both books in the series back to back. They have intriguing characters and fun plots. I'm looking forward to more.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. yes - this kid has potential! Reminds me of the spy school series.

      Delete
  4. A book with the element of lacrosse ... I'm in!

    ReplyDelete
  5. Sounds timely--thanks for sharing.

    ReplyDelete
  6. Considering that the last book I read about an election was Dan Gutman's THE KID WHO RAN FOR PRESIDENT, it's been a while since I read a new book on the subject. Thanks for sharing!

    ReplyDelete
  7. What a great story for election year -- especially with student elections at school. I like the humor.

    ReplyDelete
  8. This sounds perfect for this time of year. Love the humor and the premise. Thanks for featuring this!

    ReplyDelete
  9. Have you nominated for the Cybils award? Only two days left! http://www.cybils.com/2016/10/and-go-cybils-nominations-are-open.html

    ReplyDelete