Available:*
Library | Call Number | Status |
|---|---|---|
Searching... Stillwater Public Library | J FICTION KEH | Searching... Unknown |
Bound With These Titles
On Order
Summary
Summary
Vincent Shadow isn't particularly good at sports and is constantly being picked on by his classmates at Central Middle School. But it is Vincent's unusually creative mind that truly separates him from other kids his age.
Vincent's top secret attic lab is crammed with toy prototypes --from Liquid Superballs to Bullz-I Basketballs and Sonic Snorkelz--and he has a sketch book filled with drawings of toys he still wants to build. So when a chance encounter with an eccentric toy inventor offers him the opportunity to go from unknown weird kid to toy inventor extraordinaire, Vincent realizes that playtime is over: it's time to get serious about toys.
* Now retitled as Vincent Shadow: Toy Inventor in paperback!
Author Notes
Tim Kehoe was born on May 11, 1970. He was the author of the Vincent Shadow series and Furious Jones and the Assassin's Secret. He was also the inventor of numerous toy products, including the world's first colored bubbles Zubbles. In 2005, Zubbles was awarded the Popular Science Grand Prize for Innovation. He died unexpectedly on February 27, 2014 at the age of 43.
(Bowker Author Biography)
Reviews (4)
Publisher's Weekly Review
Kehoe's debut is a quick-reading, whimsical tale of a boy inventor, but reliance on the trope of the evil stepfamily undercuts much of the fun. Vincent used to have frequent blinding flashes of inspiration and invented all sorts of wonderful toys in the secret laboratory his late mother built with him. But when his mostly absentee father moves the family to Minnesota, he loses access to most of his inventions (and stops having visions). Forced to sleep in a cold basement laundry room by his stepmother, Vincent's only ray of hope is his eccentric new art teacher, who gets Vincent the opportunity to enter a contest sponsored by toy designer Howard G. Whiz. Unfortunately, Kehoe's characters never amount to much more than cartoons. Vincent's stereotypically nasty stepmother favors her biological children-packing gourmet meals for their lunches, while Vincent gets the dregs-and his oblivious father is absentminded to the point of neglect. Though Vincent gets his expected moment of glory in the end, his family's last-minute turnaround feels pat and halfhearted. Ages 8-12. (Nov.) (c) Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved
Booklist Review
Surrounded by annoying stepsisters, a vastly unlikable new stepmom, and a father too busy with his own work as the assistant director at the Met, boy inventor Vincent Shadow spends most of his time in his secret attic lab, tinkering with the toy prototypes that he dreams up in blinding visions similar to the ones experienced by his hero, Nikola Tesla. Things begin to converge for Vincent when he is allowed to poke around a recently discovered cache of Tesla inventions and is then invited to show one of his creations in a contest put on by the Willy Wonka-ish toy magnate, Howard G. Whiz. Some light skulduggery forces Vincent to flex all his creativity, smarts, and inspiration. The story is slight, but Vincent is immensely likable, and his imaginative inventions steal the show (a windless kite and bubbles that release sounds when popped feature most prominently in the plot). The final 50 or so pages are packed full of beyond-neato contraptions, which should placate readers who might find the ending rather abrupt. Gee-whiz fun for young tinkerers.--Chipman, Ian Copyright 2009 Booklist
School Library Journal Review
Gr 4-6-Eleven-year-old Vincent Shadow has a gift so unusual and problematic that he's always had to hide it. Much like his idol, eccentric inventor Nikola Tesla, his ideas come to him in the form of blinding, fully formed, and intricately detailed visions. Unlike Tesla's, Vincent's visions are all of fantastic toys: windless kites, everlasting squirt guns, and 3-D ink, among them. Being a boy genius was easy when Vincent's supportive mom helped him build a secret home laboratory, but following her death and his father's remarriage, things change. The family is about to move from New York to Minnesota, and Vincent's inspiration level is fading fast. Just as both his genius and morale seem to be bottoming out, he learns of a promising toy-invention contest sponsored by legendary toymaker Howard G. Whiz. If Vincent wins it, he'll earn an apprenticeship back in New York--a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to utilize his gift. As the contest nears, renewed inspiration comes from newly discovered Tesla artifacts and the surprising support of his stepsister. The question is, can Vincent overcome the last-minute sabotage by a rival in time to realize his dream? This is a solid, whimsically illustrated writing debut from a real-life toy inventor. It begs for a quick follow-up.-Jeffrey Hastings, Highlander Way Middle School, Howell, MI (c) Copyright 2010. Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
Kirkus Review
Eleven-year-old Vincent Shadow used to invent toys with his artist mother in a secret lab they built in his bedroom closet. After her death, he continued trying to bring the headache-inducing visions he has to life as prototypes. Now his museum-director father has remarried the stereotypically mean Vibs, and Vincent has to put up with three stepsisters. When his father moves the family from New York City to Vibs's hometown of Minneapolis, Vincent abandons inventing until an art teacher gets him to enter a toy contest, with predictable results. The first prize is a summer internship with reclusive toy maker Howard G. Whiz. A clichd, meandering story and undeveloped characters mar this tired riff on "Cinderella" and Charlie and the Chocolate Factory. Vincent's inventions are interesting, but the idea that he must steal the parts even when they are school assignments is silly and makes for a problematic protagonist. The 50 pages of Vincent's invention notebook tacked on at the end are the one high point, with gee-whiz cartoon illustrations by Wohnoutka (the spot art for the story is supplied by Francis). Easily skippable. (Fiction. 8-12) Copyright Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.
