Max and the Millions: 1

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Max, a white boy who is the only deaf student and hearing-aid user in his English boarding school, loves building models, but his world changes when his brilliant mentor, Mr. Darrow, the school janitor, inexplicably disappears. Without his aids, Max believes that “he would have to rely on lip-reading alone from now on.” This, despite his explicit knowledge that signed languages exist, and the fact he can read and write fluently. He uses gesture and writing multiple times throughout, so he's not clueless or helpless. It's not too difficult to at least come up with a signed system (like a visual Morse code). The melodrama of this statement is, of course, childlike, but again, it becomes a non-issue in that Mr. Darrow is able to create magical hearing aids that practically dissolve all communication barriers. Author Guy Bass introduces SCRAP, about one robot who tried to protect the humans on his planet against an army of robots. Now the humans need his...

Max and the Millions – Book Club Buddies Max and the Millions – Book Club Buddies

In my opinions, this book would be highly effective as a discussion starter in PSHE, when looking at relationships and differences between each and every pupil. Max has few friends and rarely interacts with his peers at all, because it is too difficult to keep up with the speechreading. He's also not interested in sports activities, so he has even less interaction than many deaf children would have with hearing peers. His peers, all fellow kids, of course don't realize how fatiguing speechreading is, and the emotional and intellectual labor of repeatedly explaining this and asking for repeats is just as exhausting. This will make children think a lot about the size of things, the interpretations and different viewpoints in a situation. Max's size gives him a new stature to the Floor people, their world is seen as something tiny and insignificant by some full-size characters. Seeing how the ‘floor people’ inhabit the room and survive in it is highly creative, from the models and bins being used as homes and flies being used as war machines. The mythology that is developed in this world, such as the book of the floor, to the janitors clothes being seen like holy temple is also very engaging and adds depth to this world. Max doesn’t enjoy being the only orphan at St Goliath’s Boarding school. That and his hearing aids make him different to his classmates. The only person who he feels at ease with is Mr Darrow, the school caretaker. They both love modelling, but Mr Darrow has taken his a huge step further – he has tiny people in his models, and they are alive!Excellent premise, totally involving, and much more clever than the above would suggest. The historical documents of the Floor are great satire, the story of the warring factions and their place within Max's world gives a new perspective on his own problems. The day before summer vacation, Max’s closest friend at boarding school disappears, leaving behind his amazing model collection and a handful of sand on his bedroom floor. Like Max, the eccentric janitor Mr. Darrow is a genius at building tiny models. Eight weeks later, Max finds that the sand has magically transformed into a whole desert kingdom–filled with millions of tiny people! In my opinion, this novel is definitely an adventure novel, best suited for those looking from excitement and elements of humour from their reading.

Max and the Millions - Ross Montgomery

The ending, I wasn't sure about, but I did come to terms with Max's decisions and saw his reasoning. It fitted. Night Mayor Franklefink has vanished from the Transylvanian Express - and it's up to you to solve the case! Part of the Solve Your Own Mystery seri...As much of the story is about the tiny people and their inability to get along- with multiple threats of violence. Pupils will be able to relate their own experiences of not getting along to this novel. In the vein of The Borrowers and The Indian in the Cupboard, this is an imaginative, irresistible, and incredible exploration into what happens when one boy discovers a kingdom of tiny people. As this brief summary indicates, this is a totally off-the-wall story and is characteristic of the vivid imagination that we've come to associate with Ross Montgomery. The world building is superb, particularly when we first meet the miniature civilisation shimmering beneath the bulb light. Adults may notice a few inconsistencies. For example, at one point Luke is described as a tiny boy, no bigger than a raison and yet he can ride around on a flee. Similarly, I couldn't help wonder how the Floor Tribes acquired such a comprehensive knowledge of traditional English terminology. How do the Red Tribe know they live under the bed and how do the Green Tribe know what a bin or a banana is? This is, however, a petty point that is probably necessary for understanding the story and I'm confident child readers won't notice or care. Instead, they are likely to be swept away by the story. When a poison tide flowing across the ocean threatens their island, Roz works with the resident creatures to ensure that they will have clean water, but the destruction of vegetation and crowding of habitats jeopardize everyone’s survival. Brown’s tale of environmental depredation and turmoil is by turns poignant, graceful, endearing, and inspiring, with his (mostly) gentle robot protagonist at its heart. Though Roz is different from the creatures she lives with or encounters—including her son, Brightbill the goose, and his new mate, Glimmerwing—she makes connections through her versatile communication abilities and her desire to understand and help others. When Roz accidentally discovers that the replacement body given to her by Dr. Molovo is waterproof, she sets out to seek help and discovers the human-engineered source of the toxic tide. Brown’s rich descriptions of undersea landscapes, entertaining conversations between Roz and wild creatures, and concise yet powerful explanations of the effect of the poison tide on the ecology of the island are superb. Simple, spare illustrations offer just enough glimpses of Roz and her surroundings to spark the imagination. The climactic confrontation pits oceangoing mammals, seabirds, fish, and even zooplankton against hardware and technology in a nicely choreographed battle. But it is Roz’s heroism and peacemaking that save the day.