Mac Saves the World

Mac B., Kid Spy #6

by Mac Barnett, Mike Lowery (contributor)

Mac B. is on another secret mission in this totally true kid spy adventure from New York Times bestselling author, Mac Barnett!

The Queen of England calls on her trusty spy, Mac B., once again. This time, Mac must navigate secret tunnels beneath the Berlin Wall in order to retrieve cheat codes from a Soviet scientist. Floppy disk in hand, our hero finds himself trapped in East Germany, stuck between the wall and the Stasi. How will he escape? Well it is 1989, and walls do fall down.

Genres: Middle Grade, Childrens, Humor, Fiction, Adventure, Chapter Books, Audiobook

Audio CD

Published June 28, 2021

About the author

Born to non-farmers in a California farming community, Mac Barnett now lives near San Francisco. He's on the board of directors of 826LA, a nonprofit writing center for students in Los Angeles, and he founded the Echo Park Time Travel Mart, a convenience store for time travelers.

Reviews

[Darla]

Consider this latest edition of the Mac B., Kid Spy series to be a 1989 time capsule featuring floppy disks (to shake or not to shake), the Iron Curtain, the Berlin Wall, and Freddie the Corgi. Once again Queen Elizabeth gives Mac a call and gives him a mission to complete. This series never fails to give me a laugh or two and a trip down memory lane. If the 80's are your jam, check out this series and share it with a kid you know.

[Bobby]

The Queen of England has sent Mack on a mission to Berlin in 1989. Mac is a spy which is kind of funny. It’s not a very funny kid spy novel, but I think it’s the most interesting because it has many many historical things, like he goes across the Berlin Wall.

[Kerry]

I love this series.

[Ms. Yingling]

Library copy

[Florence Carrier]

Trouvaille de boîte à livre, ce livre m’a bien fait rire. J’adore le style d’écriture léger et les références historiques. Les illustrations apportent un gros + à l’histoire d’espion 😎

[Ashley]

The kids LOVED this series. We are sad it is over

[Mikey Golczynski]

Irreverence at its best. Mac Barnett is the master of quirky, multi-generational humor. There's silliness here for kids to laugh at there are clever jokes (mom and dad-watching TV-with the door close) for parents to get a chuckle out of. Oh yeah, there's also plenty of fun factoids laced throughout (it's true. You can look it up). All of the Mac B. books include facts about places, cultures, people, etc...but the 6th entry is placed in the most real-world setting, that being East/West Germany before the fall of the Berlin wall. And it places Mac at a critical point in our modern history. But most importantly, this book is hilarious. If you can get a kid laughing, you can get them reading. There are many gags throughout with invisible ink, loooooooooooooooooong loading times and multiple chapters where nothing happens except a change in expression on Mac's face. I still don't think I like this series as much as The Terrible Two, but it's right up there in quality. Highly Recommended.

[Laura]

I’m not quite sure who’s more eager to read these books when they come out…my 8-Year-old or me.

[Laila]

I hope Barnett writes more of these! They are great fun for kids and adults.

[heather]

This one was fine. Not as good as the previous titles.. These are fun comfort reads for my kid and I. I learned some new German words.

[Nikki]

Still loving this series with my kiddo. A little formulaic, but I don’t think kids mind. And I like that the author weaves in interesting facts and history. I’ve actually learned a handful of interesting facts from reading this books.

[Kathryn Williams]

2023 Re read on audio. This is one of the funniest read alouds and listening to Mac Barnett narrate them is great. “Psych your mind!”

2021 Read aloud to my boys and nephew on a family trip. “To the max!”

[Samuel]

I really like this whole series about Mac Barnett that Could or could not be true I really don't know.

[Owen]

This series' recipe includes some bits of interesting history from Germany, Russia, Italy, or England, the Queen of England offering Mac a mission, a Corgi sidekick, usually an ex-KGB spy or thief, and Mac has to skip school and solve a crime. It's also a blast back to the '80s with Gameboys, floppy disks, walkmans, and cassette tapes. This time around Mac is the spy who needs to steal code-breaking software for the Queen's huge computer to decipher Cold War messages between Russia and Germany. It's a fun, funny series that students love.

[Matt Ruel]

Mac B kid spy books are great!

(This review is composed by my 7 year old twins and transcribed by dad). The Mac B books all have the KGB Man in them, and even when Mac fails his adventures are awesome. We love it when Mac says “Aw man,” that always makes us laugh. We like Freddie the dog and think it’s funny when he always licks stuff. (There you have it, two seven year old budding literary critics). Really great series, kept the kids engaged and lots of sneaky historical and geographical education mixed in. A+ from dad.

[Alyson]

This series has been a riot from the start, and I'm completely sad that "Mac Saves the World" looks like the last one! Still, ending with the fall of the Berlin Wall feel like a solid move. My son enjoys these, but parents who were kids in the 80s should enjoy them just as much. (And sure, this was probably a 4.5, but still.)

[Levy]

This series is so good. The books are really funny and creative. The best part is there’s a ton of 80’s nostalgia which goes completely over Alonzo’s head but it’s fun for me…In reality the story itself isn’t always great but the story telling is so well executed that it doesn’t really matter.

[Chloe Athanasiou]

I read this as soon as it arrived (as I have read all the others and loved them) and was not disappointed! I was laughing out loud the whole time! I would highly recommend this to everybody!

[Just JBK]

I love reading this series with my son. We act out the characters’ accents, crack up at the 80s references, and enjoy learning historical tidbits. Looking forward to book 7!

[Professor]

Surprisingly engaging for my 5 year old daughter, this weaves in some actual history with a lot of silliness.

[Sibyl]

Love this series and the historical facts

[Graham Bates]

A fitting end to the Mac B., Kid Spy series. I'm sad Mac did not have the best childhood but everyone has benefited from the imagination that grew from it.

[Angel]

surprisingly, i liked it.

[Jessica Wilhoite]

Really love this series and hope more are on the way...

[Diana]

I am not sure if this is the last book of the series, but we loved every single one and we will be happy if there is more.

[Anvay]

"Mac Saves the World" raises the stakes as Mac B. must thwart a global threat in his latest spy adventure. The story is filled with high-octane action and humor, though it struggles to maintain the same level of engagement as the series' earlier books.

The cover hints at the epic scope of the adventure, and the plot delivers plenty of thrills. However, the narrative occasionally feels rushed, and some of the humor doesn't land as effectively. Despite these minor flaws, the book is still an enjoyable read, with Mac's wit and bravery shining through as he takes on his biggest challenge yet.