Middle Grade Monday: James Ponti Author Event

 

On Friday, I went to RJ Julia's to see James Ponti and Alyson Gerber.

I've seen James Ponti a few times before and he never disappoints. 

Read my recaps of each event:

Time 1

Time 2

Time 3

I reviewed EUROPA already, I adore this series.

The room was packed, which was nice to see.

Themes:

James writes four themes in his books:

1. Family Drama

2. Mystery

3. Action/Adventure

4. Humor 

* He writes about Family because of his own story.

Writing Advice:

1. Write something small and work up to a book - it's like training for a marathon, you don't go out and decide to run a marathon in one day. You have to build up to it. It's the same thing with writing. 

2. Read your world aloud. You will catch more mistakes that way - of even strangely worded scenes.

On Coming up with the concept for The Sherlock Society

There’s a lake near his house. There are nine benches around the lake. One day, he decided to walk about the lake to plot his book. At each bench, he would stop and ask a question. Each question would be harder than the last and he couldn’t leave the bench until he solved the answer to the question.

Example: The new book would be a mystery.

The kids would get around Florida thanks to their Grandfather.

Why would he be taking them around to solve mysteries? He had a vested interested as a former investigative journalist.

After two laps around the lake, he had the book figured out.

Book three: Art Attack comes out in September and I'm so looking forward to it!  

Why Europa is Dedicated to Suzanne:

When James was coming up with the idea for the Shakespeare Code, he remembered a conversation with former co-worker Suzanne Collins. He wrote her a quick note about it. She immediately called him up. They had the same conversation again and then spent time figuring out the code for this book. 

Our newest pictures:

Alyson was busy with other readers, so we didn't get a chance to talk, sadly. 

But what another fun night! 

Middle Grade Review: Europa

* Book 7 in the City Spies series * 

There's a chatter of a major attack coming. Tru asks her team to review the evidence. Her adult agents are looking at an attack on London, but the City Spies think it's happening in Paris. They have a way of looking at things a little bit differently. It helps that they're teenagers. Could this be the work of a threat they thought they contained?

My Thoughts: As this is book 7, I don't want to say too much. But I loved it! I loved the moments with Tru - and her puzzles, games, and history. I liked learning more about the history of spies in England. I even learned about art. I love books that make me research, and I did look up some of the art mentioned. This series is fantastic and honestly, I never want it to end. 

Cover Thoughts: Perfect

Source: Book sent for review

Library Recommendation: A must have series for your public and school library's collection. 

* this book comes out tomorrow

Review: Hurricane Heist

 

* Book 2 in the Sherlock Society * 

There's a hurricane coming. School is starting up soon and Alex is worried that it will be the end of the Sherlock Society. The storm brings back memories of Alex's grandfather from 1964. He was helping his father with the hardware store deliveries. They went to a hotel where his Grandfather was friends with the Bell Captain, Doc. 

A movie was being filmed at the hotel. After the storm passed through in 1964, Doc went missing along with several pieces of jewelry. The storm in the current day damage the hotel and a body is discovered. Alex's Grandfather's not surprised when it turns out to be Doc. He knew his friend never stole the jewelry and ran off. But years later, the trail is cold. Doc was the only suspect. Can the Sherlock Society figure out what really happened all those years ago?

My Thoughts: Another winner for James Ponti. This series is fresh and fun - with lots of action and danger. I enjoyed the dual timelines - and how they connected. I tore through this book. I didn't want it to end, but I also couldn't put it down. I love the way this team solves mysteries together - especially how they divide and conquer with research. I adored the new members and can't wait to read more about them. Have the announced book three yet? I hope many more books in this series are planned. 

Cover Thoughts: Fantastic

Source: ARC sent for review

Publication Date: September 2nd

Why I read this: I loved the first book. Plus I love the author's books

Library Recommendation: A must have middle grade series for your school and public library collections

Hand This To: Readers who like Thrillers

Author Event: James Ponti and Alyson Gerber

 

Last Friday, I attended a super fun book event:

James Ponti was at RJ Julia's with Alyson Gerber.

He was talking about the newest CITY SPIES book: London Calling

Read my review here. 

James is always funny; I laughed so many times.

He asked kids in the audience about their favorite middle grade authors - several mentioned were his friends. Then he texted them to see who would text back first (Sarah Mlynowski -Author of the Whatever After series - won)

Alyson asked really great questions.

My favorite was about research.

James talked about how he liked to travel to the places in his books but when he couldn't, he would use all the resources available to him. For example, for the Istanbul scenes, he talked with his Turkish book editor who had lived there all her life. He learned about some secret passageways from her. 

If he can't find someone to talk to, he uses videos for research. There's almost always a video online that will walk down roads and he can see everything.

Or he will talk to his neighbors about certain ideas.

On Naming Characters

Besides the main characters who are named after the city they lived in; the other characters are named for people in James's life: his mother, his editors, people who help with research....and in a funny tale he told, his sister the tour guide. 

There were jokes about other authors. 

On writing:

Both James and Alyson talked about how writing mysteries for kids is different than adults and honestly, I never put it together, but it makes sense. Most adult mysteries deal with solving a murder. But rarely in mystery books for kids does someone die - and if they do, it's off the page (like a cozy). The action and danger have to be there. The stakes have to be high. You can't have any boring moments, or the kids will put down the books. It's a different set of skills. 

Did you know that City Spies has been optioned for a movie? I really hope this happens!

It was great to meet Alyson.

She's a fashionista who grew up in New England.

Her childhood librarian was in the audience (how cool was that?)

She writes:

Read my review of The Liars Society here.

* Book 2 comes out in April and I can't wait! 

Look at the cover!!!! 

This was such a fun event! And I'm so glad I got to go!

No photos were taken this time because I was sick with a cold and didn't want to make anyone else sick. 

Here's one from our first meeting (this is now the third time we've met)

Middle Grade Review: London Calling

 

* Book 6 in the City Spy series * 

Cairo, the newest member of the City Spies, takes the lead when his sister disappears in Istanbul. Determined to save the family of one of their own, the team risks discovery as their search leads them to Rome. Meanwhile, there’s been intel that seems to threaten the royal wedding about to take place in Westminster, bringing the team back to the UK on an official case for MI6. With so much security all over the city, it’s harder than ever for the City Spies to go unnoticed. Will their skills be up to the task? - Summary from the Publisher.

My Thoughts: I don't want to say too much about this book because SPOILERS. But...

Questions are answered

 Stakes are Higher

All the Action

Family Drama

Royal Wedding

I LOVED it!

Here's my favorite line:

* Book sent for review

Author Interview: James Ponti

I'm thrilled to be chatting with James Ponti today!

About the Book:

In the tradition of Nancy Drew, four kids and one grandfather in Miami tackle a decades-old mystery in this first book in the action-packed and funny Sherlock Society middle grade series from New York Times bestselling, Edgar Award–winning author James Ponti! Siblings Alex and Zoe Sherlock take their last name as inspiration when choosing a summer job. After all, starting a detective agency has to be better than babysitting (boring), lawn mowing (sweaty), or cleaning out the attic (boring and sweaty). Their friends Lina, an avid bookworm, and Yadi, an aspiring cinematographer, join the enterprise, and Alex and Zoe’s retired reporter grandfather offers up his sweet aquamarine Cadillac convertible and storage unit full of cold cases. The group’s first target is the long-lost treasure supposedly hidden near their hometown Miami. Their investigation into the local doings of famed gangster Al Capone leads them to a remote island in the middle of the Everglades where they find alarming evidence hinting at corporate corruption. Together with Grandpa’s know-how and the kids’ intelligence—plus some really slick gadgets—can the Sherlock Society root out the conspiracy?

I was lucky enough to get an ARC. You can read my review here. 

(I loved it!)

And I got to meet James at a local(ish) bookstore for the City Spies tour. You can read about that meeting here. 

About the Author:

James Ponti is the New York Times bestselling author of four middle grade book series: The Sherlock Society following a group of young detectives; City Spies, about an unlikely squad of five kids from around the world who form an elite MI6 Spy Team; the Edgar Award–winning Framed! series, about a pair of tweens who solve mysteries in Washington, DC; and the Dead City trilogy, about a secret society that polices the undead living beneath Manhattan. His books have appeared on more than fifteen different state award lists, and he is the founder of a writers group known as the Renegades of Middle Grade. James is also an Emmy–nominated television writer and producer who has worked for many networks including Nickelodeon, Disney Channel, PBS, History, and Spike TV, as well as NBC Sports. He lives with his family in Orlando, Florida. 

Interview:

Did Al Capone really bury one million dollars somewhere in Florida?

 

My understanding is that he actually buried keys to safety deposit boxes. (I eliminated that step to make it just the money so that it would be more immediate.) I also made up the treasure map; but the rest of it is true including the niece having him hypnotized and digging up all the land on the estate. (Funny side note – I planned to include the Capone house as part of the story, but the day I went there to scout and research, it was literally being torn down. It was more than one hundred years old, but they picked that day to make me rewrite the plot. Instead, I have they come there as it’s being torn down)

 

What was your first summer job?

 

My very first one was selling food at Sea World. (I worked at the Snack Encounter, which was right next to the Shark Encounter.) But every summer after that, I worked at Walt Disney World on the Davy Crockett Explorer Canoes. I would stand in the front of a giant canoe, dressed a coonskin cap and tell bad jokes to guests paddling through the summer heat. (“You see that burning cabin over there? That’s where my girlfriend lives. Well, actually we broke up, so she’s just my old flame. She used to work her but she got fired. It burns me up to think about it.”) It was a great job that taught me a ton about comedy writing. I’m still friends with many of my fellow canoers and we greet each other with the call “Yip-yip-yow,” which played on a recorded loop in the back of the Rivers of America.

That's too funny. I love the "Dad" jokes.

 

What fun tidbits of research didn't make it into the book?

 

I hung out with a marine biologist at the University of Miami because the father in the book is a marine biologist at the University of Miami. Late one night, we were with his grad students at the nursery where they try to grow coral and they played Marvin Gaye over loudspeakers to get the coral “in the mood.” I could not figure out a way to work that into the plot.

 

There was another one that I couldn’t figure out, but have since added it to book two. The Bee Gees lived in Miami Beach and when they drove over the Tuttle Causeway, the sound of their tires going over the seams in the road created a rhythm that inspired the beat of the song Jive Talkin’. Originally, it was even title Drive Talkin’ because of where they first heard it.

 

I can't wait for book 2!

Do you have a favorite fictional detective/story?

 

So, so many. My first was Encyclopedia Brown, whose stories inspired me greatly. My favorite author is Michael Connelly and I love his main character, Harry Bosch. My wife and I are addicted to British mystery shows and my favorite detectives there are Christopher Foyle from Foyle’s War, Jimmy Perez from Shetland, and Vera Stanhope from Vera.

 

Which W would you choose to research?

 

I am fascinated by character and personality, so for me it would always be Who.

Thanks for chatting with me! I really loved the first book in The Sherlock Society and I'm looking forward to more. 

 

Middle Grade Review: Framed

* first book in a trilogy *

Florian has just moved to Washington D.C. and finds a new friend in the neighborhood. He teaches his new friend Margaret TOAST (The theory of all small things). They use this theory to impress the FBI when paintings go missing at a museum. Can they solve the case?

My Thoughts: I've been meaning to read this for years and my co-workers been pushing me to read it for just as long. James Ponti is a favorite author of mine. Our copy is frequently checked out of the library, but I grabbed it one day. And I'm so happy I did. I really enjoyed this book; I couldn't put it down. I love the friendship between Florian and Margaret. I love TOAST. I can't wait to read what happens next! 

Cover Thoughts: Fantastic

Source: My Library

Library Recommendation: A must have trilogy for your school and public library.

Middle Grade Review: The Sherlock Society

* First in the new series * 

Zoe and Alex, sister and brother, are supposed to get a job this summer. They veto baby-sitting, dog walking, and lawn mowing. Instead, they decide to open their own detective agency. Two friends of Alex's join them. As they'll need an adult to drive them places, they coerce their grandfather to help. 

Their grandfather worked for years as a reporter. They go through his old case files to discover a cold case to work on. They vote on the cold case of Al Capone and the missing million dollars. As they attempt to uncover the treasure, they stumble upon an illegal dump site of contaminated waste.

The team decides to switch gears and focus on who is dumping the waste. After getting stone-walled, they need to come up with a better way to uncover the truth. But can they root out this conspiracy?

My Thoughts: I'm a huge fan of the City Spies series so I was super happy to receive this ARC. I loved the sibling relationship. Zoe wasn't thrilled with her summer plans, but I think the summer turned out better than expected. I loved how the grandfather and his "old school" ways. I loved how they had to research everything before taking action. I admired their problem-solving skills. I really liked the lawyer mother in this one. She had a few tricks on her sleeve. I also enjoyed the nerdy moments. Lots of action and danger in that kept me turning the pages. This is a great start to a new series; I can't wait to see what happens next. 

Cover Thoughts: Love it

Source: ARC sent for review

Published Date: September 3rd

Library Recommendation: James Ponti is a favorite author at my library. This is a must have book for school and public libraries. 

James Ponti Author Event: Mission Manhattan

Last week I was lucky enough to attend an author event (my first one of the year) at RJ Julia's featuring James Ponti and Jake Burt. 

In the shop window:

The event was super fun - I cried with laugher several times. 

Jake Burt was a wonderful moderator. We all played a game plotter vs panser.

James Ponti is a panser - sort of. He knows the ending but not how we get there. He does like to plan three chapters ahead. 

He doesn't know how to play chess, so those scenes are hard to write. 

James talked about his love for indie bookstores and how he's proud to be a Kid Lit writer. 

One Easter Egg: He writes song lyrics into each book

Easter Egg #2 The head of MI6 is also in the Framed books (Which I still need to read)

He doesn't have a favorite character, because he doesn't want the books to become unbalanced. Each character has one of his qualities. But Kat is the closest to him. 

We heard a funny TOAST story.  

Here he is reading the first little bit of the book. 

Thanks to a goodreads review, he stats each book off with a bang. 

It was such a fun night. We didn't end up getting another picture together. This is from the last tour:

We talked a little bit about NYPL. I love the fun fact that is in the book. It's fascinating and no I'm not going to spoil it.

I was lucky enough to get an early copy of the book. I love this series - there's so much action, danger, and drama. You can read my review here.

Another great night! I was so happy I was able to attend. 

Outside the shop. How cute is that?

Middle Grade Review: Mission Manhattan

* Book 5 in the City Spies series * 

The City Spies travel to Venice to protect a young environmental activist. It's chaos on the streets on Venice. When Rio saves the target from a bomb in the canals, that's when things go sideways. They determine that the threat isn't going to stop since the girl, who didn't get to speak, is now invited to Washington D.C. to speak.

The City Spies follow, but it's hard to plan a mission on the fly. There are too many variables. Of course, everything goes sideways. Can they save Beatriz and themselves?

My Thoughts: I'm such a huge fan of this series. I was happy to be asked if I wanted a review copy. This is one of my favorite middle grade series - it has everything - spies, adventure, danger, travel, friendship, and family. This book has everything I love about the series - plus there's moments in NYPL. I loved how Brooklyn greeted the lions as though they were old friends. The mission focuses on a girl that reminds me of Greta Thunberg. The environmental concern shows a current issue, written in a meaningful way. Also, I love the Peanut, Butter, and Jelly names. I wish I was as clever as these characters. And that ending! I can't even!! I need the next book ASAP.

Cover Thoughts: Love it

Source: Book sent for review

Library Recommendation: A must have series for your public and school library collections! 

Oh, and did you see his unboxing video? Too funny! 

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A post shared by James Ponti (@jamespontibooks)

You're going to want to get your hands on this book ASAP. Luckily, it's not TOO long of a wait. It comes out February 6. 

And if you haven't read this series yet, there's still time to rush to your local library and get the books. Trust me, they are THAT good! 

Author Event: James Ponti

 I’m a huge fan of the series City Spies and was thrilled that James Ponti was coming to a local bookstore at RJ Julia's in Madison, CT

He was joined by Lauren Tarshis, a CT author (Westport) - who writes the I Survived series. There are 23 of these so far...

Fun Facts about James Ponti:

He used to work in television 

He was a reluctant reader as a child. 

Favorite book:

There's a funny story about how he discovered that the author lived in his hometown (Florida). 

For City Spies series:

The idea came from travel - he wanted to write books that would take place all over the world. And readers could travel the world through his books. 

Came up with the idea traveling to London and Paris

He liked the idea of middle schoolers as spies because they

1. disappear into the background

2. test out different identities

3. no one would ever think they are spies

Writing Points:

He likes to blend the old ideas with the new ideas (ancient Egypt but hacking creating the problem)

He conductions expert interviews: asking people "What do you hate about books or movies that gets them wrong?" 

He's mostly a pantser BUT he does know the ending. 

And we have Suzanne Collins (of the Hunger Games fame) to thank for his books. She persuaded him to start writing. They used to work together writing for TV shows. 

Also, the movie rights were sold! 

Here we are together. Because I'm awkward, I didn't get a picture with Laura. But this one came out nice. 

Blog Tour: City of the Dead

I am thrilled to be hosting a spot on the CITY SPIES: CITY OF THE DEAD by James Ponti Blog Tour hosted by Rockstar Book Tours. Check out my post and make sure to enter the giveaway!

 About The Book:

Title: CITY SPIES: CITY OF THE DEAD

Author: James Ponti

Pub. Date: February 7, 2023

Publisher: Aladdin

Formats: Hardcover, ebook, audiobook

Pages: 400

Find it: Goodreads, https://books2read.com/CITY-SPIES-CITY-OF-THE-DEAD 

In this fourth installment in the New York Times bestselling series from Edgar Award winner James Ponti, the young group of spies go codebreaking in Cairo in another international adventure perfect for fans of Spy School and Mrs. Smith’s Spy School for Girls.

Codename Kathmandu, better known as Kat, loves logic and order, has a favorite eight-digit number, and can spot a pattern from a mile away. So when a series of cyberattacks hits key locations in London while the spies are testing security for the British Museum, it’s clear that Kat’s skill for finding reason in what seems like randomness makes her the perfect candidate to lead the job.

And while the team follows the deciphered messages to Egypt and the ancient City of the Dead to discover who is behind the attacks and why, Kat soon realizes that there’s another layer to the mystery.

With more players, more clues, and involving higher levels of British Intelligence than ever before, this mission is one of the most complex that the group has faced to date. And it’s also going to bring about a change to the City Spies…

 

Grab the rest of the CITY SPIES BOOKS now!

 My Thoughts:

Ok, I love this series - for so many reasons. Check out my past reviews. The fourth book in the series was better than ever! I loved going to Egypt with the gang. I loved the addition to the family - although that ending freaking me out a bit. I loved seeing the team together again in action. Lots of action, danger, and plot twists here. I can't wait to see where this series goes next. This is one of my favorite middle grade series and I recommend it at the library a lot! 

Book Trailer:

About James:

JAMES PONTI (he/him/his) is the New York Times bestselling author of three middle grade book series: City Spies, about an unlikely squad of five kids from around the world who form an elite MI6 Spy Team; the Edgar Award–winning Framed! series, about a pair of tweens who solve mysteries in Washington, DC; and the Dead City trilogy, about a secret society that polices the undead living beneath Manhattan. His books have appeared on more than fifteen different state award lists and he is the founder of a writers group known as the Renegades of Middle Grade. James is also an Emmy– nominated television writer and producer who has worked for many networks including Nickelodeon, Disney Channel, PBS, History, and Spike TV, as well as NBC Sports. He lives with his family in Orlando, Florida. Find out more at JamesPonti.com.

Website | Twitter | Instagram | Facebook | Goodreads | Amazon

Giveaway Details:

1 lucky winner will receive a finished copy of CITY OF THE DEAD, US Only.

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Follow the Tour:

1/23/2023	Mythical Books	Excerpt/IG Post
1/23/2023	A Dream Within A Dream	Excerpt
1/24/2023	YA Books Central	Excerpt
1/24/2023	Kait Plus Books	Excerpt/IG Post
1/25/2023	Log Cabin Library	Excerpt
1/25/2023	Kim"s Book Reviews and Writing Aha's	Review/IG Post
1/26/2023	Blog Write. Read. Live	Excerpt/IG Post
1/26/2023	Lifestyle of Me	Review
1/27/2023	YA Book Nerd	Review/IG Post
1/27/2023	onemused	IG Post

 

James's Tour Schedule

 I'm super excited because he's making at stop at one of my favorite bookstore: RJ Julia's. I can't wait to meet him! I only wish I was moderating the event (if only!)