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Summary
Summary
When ten-year-old Newton dresses up as an unusual superhero for Halloween, he decides to keep wearing the costume after the holiday to help save townspeople and eventually his injured brother.
Reviews (4)
School Library Journal Review
Gr 3-7-Newt Newman's life is overshadowed by his older brother Chris's gridiron glory. When Chris is seriously injured in a game, Newt's parents become so preoccupied with hospital visits that the younger boy is left to fend for himself. With Halloween around the corner, Newt's best friends help him create a costume out of Chris's old gym clothes. Thus the superhero Captain Nobody is born. The costume gives him the confidence he never had before, and Newt finds himself helping others well beyond Halloween. Dean Pitchford narrates his novel (Putnam, 2009), and his straightforward, unaffected delivery perfectly captures Newt's personality. His voice modulations and changes of pace effectively convey Newt's fluctuating moods, and he uses these techniques to create distinct personalities for other characters. This technique does raise a potential concern in the character of Cecil Butterworth. Cecil is African American (he has an Afro), but his use of "yo'" for "your" and "heah" for "here" reflects a stereotype about black diction. Librarians who are willing to openly discuss this issue with children may want to add this to their collections. Young listeners will relate to Newt, and the audio format makes this a good choice for reluctant readers.-Mary Landrum, Lexington Public Library, KY (c) Copyright 2010. Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
Publisher's Weekly Review
Tired of being ignored by classmates, Newt and his two best friends decide to create Halloween costumes that will make them stand out and let them discover their "inner other.... who we would be if we didn't have to be us." But before Halloween arrives, 10-year-old Newt's world shatters: his football star brother, Chris, is knocked unconscious in the season's final game and lies comatose in the hospital. At the last minute, Newt fashions a superhero Halloween costume from Chris's old clothes and dubs himself Captain Nobody. Wearing this outfit during the ensuing days, Newt ushers home a lost man with dementia, foils a jewelry-store robbery and inadvertently brings traffic to a standstill, clearing the freeway just in time for a plane's emergency landing. Despite his spotlight-grabbing heroics, the frustrated boy laments, "I can't even save my own brother." Though Pitchford (The Big One-Oh) builds suspense adeptly, the novel takes some improbable turns. Yet the young narrator's earnest voice-and his raw sense of helplessness-are real and affecting. Ages 8-12. (July) (c) Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved
Kirkus Review
Ten-year-old Newton Newman's big brother Chris is the town football star, and Newt tends to be forgotten in the glare of the spotlights on his beloved brother. After Chris is badly injured at the most important game of the season, Newt is left to deal with his fear and worry for Chris. He gets by with the help of his best friends JJ (a fantastic fiction fan) and Cecil (a wannabe drummer), who talk him into going trick-or-treating, challenging each to dress as their hero. Out of desperation and a bit of luck, Newt dresses as "Captain Nobody." He decides to wear the outfit all the time and begins to be noticed. After inadvertently foiling a robbery attempt, saving the class ferret and averting an airplane tragedy, Newt is able to hang up the superhero suit. Opening with a cliffhanger, this novel will speak to those kids who feel left out, not part of the "in-crowd." The whole premise is entirely implausible, but the humor and compassion are sure to appeal to reluctant readers. (Fiction. 9-12) Copyright Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.
Booklist Review
Ten-year-old Newt is accustomed to living in the shadow of his older brother Chris, the local high-school football hero. When the Big Game ends with Chris in a coma, Newt begins to emerge from his usual anonymity. In the days that follow, he wears the cape and mask of his made-up Halloween persona, Captain Nobody, and he seems to magically grow into the heroic role: foiling a jewelry store robbery, clearing a landing path for a plane in distress, and climbing a water tower to save another boy. Readers will enjoy watching this Everyboy protagonist cast off his customary timidity and try on a different approach to problems. Though Newt's heroic achievements are as improbable as the story's outcome is predictable, he is a sympathetic character and his wry, first-person narrative shows that he doesn't take his newfound renown too seriously. The intriguing jacket art will draw readers.--Phelan, Carolyn Copyright 2009 Booklist