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Jake's Series
Jake's Concert Horror
A school concert sounds like fun. Jake could scamper across the stage in a monkey suit. He could CLASH swords with Jonah. Even being a prince might be okay – as long as princesses are kept well clear.
But Mrs Paul has other ideas. And Jake is going to have to kiss a girl – in front of the whole school! Is his teacher really trying to ruin his life?
But Mrs Paul has other ideas. And Jake is going to have to kiss a girl – in front of the whole school! Is his teacher really trying to ruin his life?
48 pages, Paperback
First published April 1, 2012
1 person is currently reading
23 people want to read
About the author
Ken Spillman
94 books10 followersKen Spillman grew up in Perth and has been a full-time professional writer for most of his adult life. He is the author of 20 books including Blue and Love is a UFO, both acclaimed novels for teenagers. He co-authored Magpie Mischief and Magwheel Mayhem, and is also the author of the forthcoming title Jake’s Gigantic List (for early readers). During 2008, Ken was a keynote speaker at the Asian Children’s Writers and Illustrators Conference and a guest of the Tasmanian Writers Centre, the Mussoorie International Writers’ Festival, and the Delhi Children’s Literature Festival. He was a keynote speaker at a conference on multiliteracies in Singapore earlier this year. Ken has compiled five collections of writing, and the major US reference work Contemporary Authors has compiled a detailed entry on his career.
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Displaying 1 - 6 of 6 reviews
October 15, 2015
Balanced Fun With An Upbeat Message
Lots of times "message" books like this one are either very heavy-handed, or the message is a bit off-key, if not downright bewildering. Well, not to worry here. This book has solid characters, a mild but normal crisis, an upbeat resolution, and a general air of optimistic good humor that keeps everything light and lively.
As you can tell, Jake is nervous about starring in the school play and is repulsed by the fact that he has to kiss classmate perfect-Stephanie near the end of the play. (He plays a prince and she's the little mermaid, and that's just what those characters do.) The book is mostly about Jake building up the confidence to perform, with the kissing angle providing some extra comic relief.
Mostly, though, I liked the book because it is cheerfully normal. Jake is a normal kid, without any magic or cutesy quirks. His guy pals are normal boys. The teacher is normal and reasonably under control. Dad is a regular guy in a father-knows-best kind of way. Nana is gung-ho in a grandmotherly way, but not over the top. Even Stephanie is O.K.. So, this ends up being a cheerful, amusing, understated but rather clever slice-of-kid-life sort of book, with a nice build up of tension/anticipation and a satisfying positive ending.
A nice, mellow find.
Please note that I received a free advance ecopy of this book in exchange for a candid review. Apart from that I have no connection at all to either the author or the publisher of this book.
Lots of times "message" books like this one are either very heavy-handed, or the message is a bit off-key, if not downright bewildering. Well, not to worry here. This book has solid characters, a mild but normal crisis, an upbeat resolution, and a general air of optimistic good humor that keeps everything light and lively.
As you can tell, Jake is nervous about starring in the school play and is repulsed by the fact that he has to kiss classmate perfect-Stephanie near the end of the play. (He plays a prince and she's the little mermaid, and that's just what those characters do.) The book is mostly about Jake building up the confidence to perform, with the kissing angle providing some extra comic relief.
Mostly, though, I liked the book because it is cheerfully normal. Jake is a normal kid, without any magic or cutesy quirks. His guy pals are normal boys. The teacher is normal and reasonably under control. Dad is a regular guy in a father-knows-best kind of way. Nana is gung-ho in a grandmotherly way, but not over the top. Even Stephanie is O.K.. So, this ends up being a cheerful, amusing, understated but rather clever slice-of-kid-life sort of book, with a nice build up of tension/anticipation and a satisfying positive ending.
A nice, mellow find.
Please note that I received a free advance ecopy of this book in exchange for a candid review. Apart from that I have no connection at all to either the author or the publisher of this book.
November 13, 2015
I did like this one the best out of the three Jake stories that I read (Great Game and Cooking Craze being the other two). Here, Jake gets cast as the Prince in his class play of The Little Mermaid. Mortified that he has to kiss Stephanie on stage, he gets horribly nervous and has nightmares. But when the big night comes, he does his best and ends up enjoying himself! I liked the themes of this one - everyone gets scared sometimes, but we just have to do our best and make everyone proud!
December 29, 2015
When Jake volunteers for a part in the school concert/play The Little Mermaid, he doesn't imagine he'll get the lead role of the prince! Jake is sure he is going to make a mistake and be humiliated. Some coaching from grandma and dad show Jake that he does have what it takes to give a good performance. A positive chapter book showing the sometimes you have to do what scares you anyway.
April 22, 2012
Fun little story about Jake not wanting to be part of the school concert....especially when he has to kiss a GIRL!
January 2, 2026
It was really adorable and nice for simple reading. Recommended for young readers!
Displaying 1 - 6 of 6 reviews