Itch (ITCH, 1)

Product Information

The story begins with a "bang" (literally) when one of our young hero's science experiments (with phosphorus) blows up part of his parents' house -- and also burns off his eyebrows. But this is just our introduction to Itch's most recent obsession. Flowerdew and Itch are definitely my favourite parts. There's such haterid between them, and you never know what Flowerdew's going to say next. Simon Mayo is a mystery, young adult, and historical writer. He is also a well-known and loved radio presenter in Britain. Over the years, Mayo has been recognized enough time for his broadcasting prowess. What started as a small-time job in Hospital Radio grew into a successful career, and Mayo has worked as a Dj with BBC Radio 1 and BBC Radio 2. Itch is Mayo’s debut novel, and it was so well-received that he turned it into a series. So far, Mayo has eighteen published works to his name. He enjoys writing whenever he is not on the radio or engaged in other BBC tasks.

Mayo really outdid himself on this novel, improving on all of his flaws in the first book. The dialogue is great, realistic and nasty, which adds to the gripping story. Mayo introduces new characters which add new dimensions and dynamics whilst incorporating them into the protagonist's life creates new bonds and crazy conflicts. I loved the new story situation for Itch, it adds some action to the book as Itch can't act like a normal kid anymore and must sneak around as his every move is watched. I loved this book even more than the first because of the added characters and the new introduced conflict. You still present the Radio 2 Drivetime show, in which you also present the Radio 2 Book Club. What made you make the change from talking about books to actually writing them?

Publication Order of Standalone Novels

Basically, I think my problem was that ... I can really only "buy" so much at a time, and some of the events in this book kept crossing that line. There was just too much going on, too many things happening with these kids. For those who, like me, who know nothing whatsoever about science, the science parts are actually very interesting, if somewhat over my head! I do think chemistry teachers in secondary schools should try to drum up interest in their subject by recommending the Itch books to their students. I think that this book was mostly Fast paced and was exciting the whole way through and how real the characters are There are so many scary events and so much danger that the book needs its quiet and thoughtful moments.

this is the 3rd book of simon’s that I have read and I really liked them books so0 I had high hopes for this one He finds out that his class is required to go into the greenhouse and advised to bring water since it is so hot. Once they get in they are walking through it when the first person throws up, not because it is hot, but because it is also damp in the greenhouse and so the wallpaper is reacting. They all start to throw up and everyone is ushered out of the greenhouse. It is later concluded it was poisoning, however most of the characters in the book don’t find out it was Itch until MUCH later.You also said that the “magic in Itch is real.” How far did you go to ensure that Itch was factually correct and how well do you think you did with it?

As with the other books in this series, the action begins as soon as you start reading and doesn't let up until you finish the book. The characters have continued to grow and mature from the previous books. Where they would have run off and done something stupid like normal teenagers, they've learned from the trauma of previous experiences and now they are more cautious. He suffers guilt for many of the events that unfold during the books, not least the strain on his parents, whose marriage is falling apart before his eyes.Wow. Lets just take a moment to appreciate THAT cover! POW! Such an attractive design that will grab JF-YA readers of both genders. Their first question (and mine): What is an element hunter? My thoughts: This is definitely a picture book for older readers. Is it fiction? Is it nonfiction? Well, it's certainly based on real people, real events, real situations. But I think the author's imagination is at work to make one cohesive story. The end covers are worth paying close attention to. The end covers feature quotes: "Knowledge is power. You need it every hour. Read a book!" "Words. That's why people need our bookstore." "Don't get took! Read a book!" "Books will help him clear the weeds and plant the seeds so he'll succeed." "The House of Common Sense and the home of Proper Propaganda." As for the chemistry included, it's well measured, clear and undeniably fascinating; from learning how the household objects you own relate to the periodic table, to explanations of explosive reactions, there is enough here to justify Itch as an informative text without ever suffocating the exciting plot. I recently wrote a piece arguing that the Pokémon games successfully communicate biological principles to their target audience, and I think it's fair to say that Itch does the same for Chemistry. At the moment there are only 118 elements in the periodic table but new elements are being discovered. All of these new elements only exist for fractions of a second and are created in labs by scientists. However, there is a theory that revolves around the Island of Stability that indicates that some undiscovered elements may exist stably but they would be very radioactive. As an Element Hunter, discovering a new element would be the best thing you could hope for. As none of these elements are known to exist yet, I thought why not 126?