[KRI]≡ PDF Free The Mechanical Mind of John Coggin Elinor Teele 9780062345103 Books

The Mechanical Mind of John Coggin Elinor Teele 9780062345103 Books

Download As PDF : The Mechanical Mind of John Coggin Elinor Teele 9780062345103 Books

The Mechanical Mind of John Coggin Elinor Teele 9780062345103 Books

Lots of adventure and humor in this middle grade tale!


Tags : The Mechanical Mind of John Coggin [Elinor Teele] on Amazon.com. *FREE* shipping on qualifying offers. Roald Dahl meets <em>The Penderwicks</em> in this quirky, humorous, whimsical, and heartwarming middle grade debut about two siblings who run away from home to escape working in the family coffin business. John Coggin is no ordinary boy. He is devising an invention that nobody has ever seen before,Elinor Teele,The Mechanical Mind of John Coggin,Walden Pond Press,0062345109,Action & Adventure - General,Family - Siblings,Performing Arts - Circus,Brothers and sisters,Brothers and sisters;Fiction.,Circus,Engineering,Family-owned business enterprises,Great-aunts,Great-aunts;Fiction.,Orphans,Runaway children,Runaways,Runaways;Fiction.,Children's BooksAges 9-12 Fiction,Children: Grades 4-6,Juvenile Fiction,Juvenile Fiction Action & Adventure General,Juvenile Fiction Family Siblings,Juvenile Fiction Performing Arts Circus,Juvenile FictionAction & Adventure - General,Juvenile FictionPerforming Arts - Circus

The Mechanical Mind of John Coggin Elinor Teele 9780062345103 Books Reviews

A Smart, Funny, Adventurous Kids’ Book

I love reading kids’ books to keep my fantasy mind alive. I like to read about magic and no limitations. But sometimes those kids’ books get heavy. On the natural Hero’s Path of a child in a book, there is almost always already a loss of a parent or parents, and things often get worse from there. I had just returned a very angsty, scary young adult book to the library, when I stumbled upon this one.

In it, the kids go on great and varied adventures, but their stress never overwhelms the playful storytelling. Its playfulness is side by side with its intelligent language, often sending me to the dictionary and smiling at the trust the author has in the minds of the readers, no matter what age, to handle her word play.

I loved the book and believe it has the qualities to be a kids’ classic for the ages. Very creatively stimulating.
What I Thought- This was a rather interesting book. I want to say it takes place around the early 1900’s-ish, but it’s somewhat confusing. What’s even more confusing is that it is a good type of confusing – it gives the impression that the book could happen anywhere, and maybe even anytime. That was a nice touch. It is thrilling seeing John’s character develop from a cowardly wimp who is afraid of speaking up for himself into a strong, confident boy with an ingenuitive mind and a powerful voice. The characters he and Page encounter are wacky and loveable. There are illustrations throughout the book as well. I really enjoyed Ms. Teele’s narrative, and her distinct voice, as I read the book – I finished it in a short amount of time – not that it was “easy” but I found the words and story flowed.
*NOTE* I voluntarily read an advance reader copy of this book
I joined goodreads.com to explore some new authors. I was lucky enough to win this book in a giveaway. If I described this book in one word, it would be stupendous! I loved it! I have been looking for a book for my nephew; a book to trigger a life-long love of reading. My search is over! Elinor Teele has created a delightful story, full of adventure and hope. She has some great characters; some zany, some you love to love, and, some you love to dislike (okay, hate). Some of the verbiage caused me some pause early in the story. Although, as I read further, I realized it worked, it even added something wonderful to this novel story; children building coffins and making up the deceased. Who wouldn't want to run away and join a circus? What a delightful ending! Some people were born to write. Some people were born to tell stories, Elinor Teele does both masterfully.
THE MECHANICAL MIND OF JOHN COGGIN by Elinor Teele is a whimsical, middle grade fantasy adventure about siblings who runaway from their cruel aunt and the family coffin business.

John is a young inventor who dreams of something more than working for the family funeral business. Together with his sister, they run away from home and try to evade their mean aunt who is always just one step behind them. Along the way, the siblings meet an array of fascinating characters including a circus troupe.

Librarians will find that readers enjoy the mix of quirky humor and daring escapes. Fans of the turn-of-the-twentieth century time period and steampunk-like environments will also enjoy the adventure. John Coggin’s talent for engineering will be a draw for budding inventors.

Published by Walden Pond Press, an imprint of HarperCollins. ARC courtesy of the publisher.
This book falls squarely in the bright-resourceful-steadfast kids who avoid and outsmart evil adults category, but after Snicket, the Eddie Dickens series, and Mould's "Something Wickedly Weird" books, I am fine with that genre. Here, we have tween John and his younger sister Page, who seemed doomed to work forever for horrible Great-Aunt Beauregard and the family coffin business.

The book opens slowly, but that's not a fault. It's dry and deadpan and has an arch and oddly formal feel. But just as the movie version of "Wizard of Oz" switches from black and white to Technicolor when Dorothy lands in Oz, so this book opens up and takes off when John and Page resolve to run away and the manic Boz shows up to lead them, one word-mangling picaresque adventure at a time, to freedom.

We have a number of distinct adventures before John and Page and many of the characters we've met along the way all come together for the socko confrontation finish with Great-Aunt Beauregard. The first and wildest adventure is at the circus, and that is energetic and colorful enough to carry the balance of the book, although the later adventures stand on their own as well.

The upshot, for me, was that this sly, good-humored, and well written tale delivered adventure, colorful characters, a fast pace, and some nice subtle messages about freedom and self-reliance. An entertaining find.

(Please note that I received a free ecopy of this book without a review requirement, or any influence regarding review content should I choose to post a review. Apart from that I have no connection at all to either the author or the publisher of this book.)
Lots of adventure and humor in this middle grade tale!