The Clockwork Mechanical

Mechanical #1

by Peter R. Stone

"A heartwarming story about a boy who learns the importance of respecting and befriending those disadvantaged by disabilities and handicaps."

Eleven-year-old Brad Millner's got a problem.

For starters, he's lost his memory. He can't even remember his own name. As if that wasn’t bad enough, he's stranded on a space station. A space station that’s going to crash into the earth in less than one hour and kill millions of people.

That means Brad’s got less than an hour to disable the space station’s force field so that it burns up when it enters the earth’s atmosphere. The only catch is that a terrible Clockwork Mechanical – the living machine that is behind the diabolical plan to destroy the world – is out to get him.

Join Brad on his frantic quest to disable the space station's force field generator and save the world. See him team up with some unlikely companions - a swarm of little clockwork butterflies, a mechanical spider, and a girl with ADHD - as he tries to outsmart the Clockwork Mechanical.

The Clockwork Mechanical is a children's chapter book for ages 7 to 11, and has 88 pages.

The Mechanicals Book 2 - The Ring of Fire is available now.

88 pages, Paperback

First published November 7, 2014

About the author

Peter Stone, an avid student of history, was reading books on Ancient Greece from the age of four. Periods of interest include the ancient world, medieval era, Napoleonic times, and the Second World War. He still mourns the untimely passing of King Leonidas of Sparta and Field Marshal Michel Ney of France.

A product of the Cold War Generation, Peter Stone studied the ramifications of a nuclear missile strike when he was in his senior year of high school, learning the effects of nuclear fallout and how to (hopefully) survive it. He has ever been drawn to post-apocalyptic and dystopian novels and films, and eagerly devoured The Day of the Triffids and John Christopher's Tripod Trilogy when he was a child. He is also an avid fan of science fiction, and his favorite books include the Lensmen Series by E.E.Doc.Smith, anything by Alastair Reynolds, and the Evergence trilogy by Sean Williams. He also enjoys J-pop (especially Ayumi Hamasaki trance remixes), K-pop, Korean movies, and K-drama.

Peter Stone graduated from Melbourne School of Ministries Bible College in 1988. He has been teaching Sunday School and playing the keyboard in church for over twenty-five years. His wife is from Japan and they have two wonderful children. He has worked in the same games company for over twenty years, but still does not comprehend why they expect him to work all day instead of playing games.

Reviews

[Jodi Woody · Rating 4 out of 5]

I was given a copy of "The Clockwork Mechanical" by the author, Peter R. Stone, in exchange for an honest review. I have read two of Mr. Stone's YA Dystopian books and am a fan of his work, so I jumped at the opportunity to read his first Children's book. I happen to like science fiction and steampunk so this book was a good match for me. It was fun, age appropriate and I think kids will enjoy it. Waking to find himself trapped on a space station with an evil mechanical, our young hero has to save the day. Throw in a quirky girl from his earth class and some cool mechanical creations and you get a great read. I can recommend for grades 3-6. If you like children's books (like I do) you would probably enjoy this one to. It does have a clear ending, but leaves us with an opening to another book. I give it 4 stars. I really liked it.

[Sadie Forsythe · Rating 2 out of 5]

Fairly simplistic, but passable as it is intended for elementary aged children. I'd have been more pleased with it if the gendered characterization of the characters wasn't so painfully cliched, the girl especially. I'd intended to pass this to my kids when I finished, but I'd rather they not have to read the reinforcement that girls are silly, unintelligent, distractible, talk too much, and need constant rescue from disasters of their own making. The larger cultural script this plays into is of course, "See boys, this is what happens when you let silly little women have too much independence. Thy just can't help themselves and it falls to you to rescue them in the end. Best to just keep them under thumb from the beginning." Ugh, we can do so much better. The boy of course, is honorable, smart beyond his years, heroic and brave.

[Indigo · Rating 5 out of 5]

A quick, run read.

[Ryno Bones · Rating 4 out of 5]

Definitely for younger kids - 3rd grade-ish. Cute story, but would be easily finished in one sitting.

[Roberta Frontini (Blogue FLAMES) · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was the first book I read from the author, and I loved it so much! I am sad I didn't read it as a child :p

I am not a fan of science fiction but the way the book was written made me like it. The adventure the 2 characters have is interesting and the author did not forget to talk about other important things like mental illness, for instance, or human kindness and stigmatization. I felt like I was one of the characters as if I was on the space myself.

I also believe that this book is age appropriate and I can say that English is not my first language and that I learn a lot reading it.

I had no hard time connecting with Brad or Megan. They were amazing and made me smile more than one time with their dialogues.

A book that I absolutely recommend.... read it your your child.. you won't regret it!

The book appeared on my November Book Haul in here - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RiaDH...

[John · Rating 5 out of 5]

Brilliant! My inner child is still cheering! This was a fun little read. Written for the 8 to 11 age-group, it keeps it simple and doesn't get bogged down, or try to swamp the reader with information.The main characters, Brad and Megan, actually act like the 11-year-olds they are, rather than junior superheroes, and I had a really easy time connecting with them. The story, while being a typical save-the-planet adventure becomes so much more than that in the author's skilled hands, and I loved the Clockwork Mechanical itself. I actually felt like I was along for the ride, and, even though it is written for children, adults that enjoy their adventures to be simple and fun will love it, too. I will be keeping an eye on this series.
 
Disclaimer:  I was given a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

[Samantha Cameron · Rating 4 out of 5]

I loved this story, I've read peter R stones last 3 dystopian books and loved them so naturally I am always keen to read more books by him.
This story was full of action, adventure and even makes a hint to real everyday events such as bullying. I found this book thoroughly enjoyable, however as it is a children's book and I felt that I should read it to my little sister so that the review of it is honest from the target audiences perspective.

She absolutely loved this story, as its a great plot and easy to read. She also has had great fun pretending with her friends to be the characters and making up what could happen in the next book.

So I would thoroughly recommend this book to anyone with young children.

[Tamara · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was an absolute delightful story! Very creative and totally different. I like that the orb wiped Brad's memory so that he could have a different perspective on Megan than the one he had in school. Kids these days can be really cruel to other kids that seem different, and this story really showed that there is a reason for everything and they should not be judgmental - if they just stop and give the 'different' kid a chance, they might just surprise you. At least, that is what I got out of it.....

This is a great start to what looks like will be a very good series that will appeal to both boys and girls, and I like the fact that is conveys a message within the story.

*I received a copy of this book from the author in exchange for an honest review.

[Devi · Rating 3 out of 5]

Children's books are always very interesting to read. The innocence of kids, their curiosity, the way they come up with solutions to problems in their own sweet manner is a nice thing about them
The Clockwork Mechanicals is also one such book. The wittiness and alertness of a 11 year old is shown in a children friendly way in the book

Read at The Clockwork Mechanical

[Dareen A. Star · Rating 5 out of 5]

I loved it can't wait for another adventure.

[Faith · Rating 5 out of 5]

It's an adventure story with sy-fy, and I totally recommend it! it makes you want to read the next one.