Friday, August 15, 2014

Maddy West and the Tongue Taker by Brian Falkner


Since Maddy can speak Japanese when she hasn't been taught, her mother takes her to the doctor.  She thinks she needs to be fixed.  The doctor tells her no, Maddy just has a valuable skill.  When Mom hears valuable, she's off to call a TV talk show to capitalize on it.  Mom can smell money...

Capstone and Net Galley allowed me to read this book for review (thank you).  It's been published, so grab yourself a copy now.

This is a fun story with a creepy witch, a monkey, a wrestler and a would-be ninja warrior who happens to be Maddy's upstairs neighbor friend.  It turns out Maddy is a tongue talker.  Once she hears a language, she can speak it.  That sounds far-fetched, but my grandfather could speak five languages.  He lived in Czechoslovakia and had learned all the neighboring languages.  So I could see a young one have a similar talent although Mr. Falkner enhances Maddy's abilities for this story.

A university professor comes to visit and wants to take Maddy to Bulgaria so she can decipher an ancient scroll.  When she offers enough money, Maddy's parents say yes.

Maddy finds herself in a foreign country with a monkey as a companion.  The professor is not what she pretended to be.  The good news is her ninja friend came along as a stowaway.  The bad news is now she has another person to worry about.

Maddy's really put to the test when she's kidnapped.  Will she manage to escape and save her friends too?  It's a battle to the end...

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