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Hobie Hanson #4
Double Dog Dare
"I dare you." It starts with a dare to toss a black rubber spider at an unsuspecting friend. Just because that gag goes wrong is no reason for Hobie not to accept the ultimate challenge: the Double Dog Dare! How average Hobie finds his own way to shine makes for a story that will delight his fans, old and new -- and leave them doubled over with laughter.
144 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 1988
19 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 2 of 2 reviews
June 30, 2017
Summer fun is over, and Hobie Hanson and his friends are entering fifth grade. The months since the end of fourth grade have been adventurous for their group: Nick went to Mighty Byte Computer Camp, where he met a genius kid named Roger. Lisa advanced past Molly and many, many others to the finals of the Miss Pre-Teen Personality pageant, where she'll face off on national television against kids from ten other states for the grand prize. Hobie feels as though he's the only one who did nothing special over summer, and carries some resentment into the new school year because of it. Molly and Nick qualify for two of only three spots in class for the Talented and Gifted (TAG) program, and that makes Hobie feel Stupid and Dumb (SAD). He might not be a genius or super-talented, but Hobie isn't dumb, and he doesn't want people to think he is.
Amber is the new girl, a smart, shy redhead with a proclivity for long words and advanced science. Though she's hardly met Lisa, Amber (along with everyone else in class) is invited to an ice-skating party celebrating Lisa's success in the Miss Pre-Teen Personality contest. Having moved to town from hot, arid Arizona, Amber never learned to skate, but Hobie's mother offers to carpool her to the party, and Hobie grudgingly agrees to help Amber gain her feet on the rink. Hobie isn't keen on attending Lisa's party until the car ride over, when Amber shows him a cool science trick with Wint O Green breath mints. If Hobie is clever, he can use the trick to convince his friends he's a genius after all, way smarter than the baseline to qualify for TAG. This could be an amusing party if it goes as Hobie plans, but even if it does, he might learn a surprising lesson about the way smarts work, how intelligence manifests itself in a variety of equally valid ways. Fifth grade promises to be an interesting year when you're in a class with Nick, Lisa, Molly, Amber, and of course, Hobie Hanson.
I like Jamie Gilson's storytelling. What we're supposed to get out of Double Dog Dare isn't clear, but that's how fifth grade is in real life: full of happenings that signify only what each person involved takes them to mean. Jamie Gilson is almost invisible as architect of the story, and that's a positive. This is a funny book with endearing, realistic characters, and I'd give it one and a half stars. Double Dog Dare didn't greatly impress me, but I want to read the other Hobie Hanson novels, and that says something. I'd like to spend more time with Hobie and his friends. See you there!
Amber is the new girl, a smart, shy redhead with a proclivity for long words and advanced science. Though she's hardly met Lisa, Amber (along with everyone else in class) is invited to an ice-skating party celebrating Lisa's success in the Miss Pre-Teen Personality contest. Having moved to town from hot, arid Arizona, Amber never learned to skate, but Hobie's mother offers to carpool her to the party, and Hobie grudgingly agrees to help Amber gain her feet on the rink. Hobie isn't keen on attending Lisa's party until the car ride over, when Amber shows him a cool science trick with Wint O Green breath mints. If Hobie is clever, he can use the trick to convince his friends he's a genius after all, way smarter than the baseline to qualify for TAG. This could be an amusing party if it goes as Hobie plans, but even if it does, he might learn a surprising lesson about the way smarts work, how intelligence manifests itself in a variety of equally valid ways. Fifth grade promises to be an interesting year when you're in a class with Nick, Lisa, Molly, Amber, and of course, Hobie Hanson.
I like Jamie Gilson's storytelling. What we're supposed to get out of Double Dog Dare isn't clear, but that's how fifth grade is in real life: full of happenings that signify only what each person involved takes them to mean. Jamie Gilson is almost invisible as architect of the story, and that's a positive. This is a funny book with endearing, realistic characters, and I'd give it one and a half stars. Double Dog Dare didn't greatly impress me, but I want to read the other Hobie Hanson novels, and that says something. I'd like to spend more time with Hobie and his friends. See you there!
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October 24, 2016It is a great book if you love fiction. Also it is great if you love to read something that includes drama
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