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The League of Unexceptional Children #1
The League of Unexceptional Children
Are you average? Normal? Forgettable? If so, the League of Unexceptional Children is for you! This first book in a hilarious new adventure series is for anyone who's struggled to be noticed in a sea of above-average overachievers.
What is the League of Unexceptional Children? I'm glad you asked. You didn't ask? Well, you would have eventually and I hate to waste time. The League of Unexceptional Children is a covert network that uses the nation's most average, normal, and utterly unexceptional children as spies. Why the average kids? Why not the brainiacs? Or the beauty queens? Or the jocks? It's People remember them. But not the unexceptionals. They are the forgotten ones. Until now!
What is the League of Unexceptional Children? I'm glad you asked. You didn't ask? Well, you would have eventually and I hate to waste time. The League of Unexceptional Children is a covert network that uses the nation's most average, normal, and utterly unexceptional children as spies. Why the average kids? Why not the brainiacs? Or the beauty queens? Or the jocks? It's People remember them. But not the unexceptionals. They are the forgotten ones. Until now!
240 pages, Hardcover
First published October 20, 2015
46 people are currently reading
529 people want to read
About the author
Gitty Daneshvari
36 books206 followersGitty Daneshvari was born in Los Angeles to an Iranian father and an American mother. As a child she talked incessantly, feeling the need to comment on everything around her. While at first charmed by her verbose nature, her family soon tired of the constant commenting. This is how she found writing — it was better than talking since she didn't even need anyone else to do it with.
She currently lives in New York City and yes she still talks too much.
She currently lives in New York City and yes she still talks too much.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 171 reviews
November 8, 2015
This was an OK book. It wasn't as exciting as I expected it to be, given the title and premise. I felt like the author, although having tried, did a poor job in creating this spectacular world where "unexceptional" (i.e. very ordinary, average) children were being recruited and trained to go on really important missions. It was a quick, easy read, but not great.
Two kids are recruited and given very little background with very little explanation and very little time to train before they are off on a mission to save the Vice President of the United States, who was kidnapped earlier.
The thing is, although these kids are unexceptional and the whole premise of the book is based on unexceptional children, as a reader, you need something a little extra to make us want to read about those boring, average characters and become invested in their journey and mission. Daneshvari tried to give us that for sure, and perhaps succeeded on some level, enough to make me read through the book really quickly and like it well enough, but not enough to make me want to read any of her other books ever again.
I felt like a lot of it was an attempt at copying Lemony Snicket's style of writing. The quirkiness, and over explaining things, the peculiar characters, and the portrayal of the mysteries and how they went about solving them were all very similar to Snicket's style, and that put me off quite a bit.
An OK read. No more, no less.
An unexceptional book about unexceptional children.
Two kids are recruited and given very little background with very little explanation and very little time to train before they are off on a mission to save the Vice President of the United States, who was kidnapped earlier.
The thing is, although these kids are unexceptional and the whole premise of the book is based on unexceptional children, as a reader, you need something a little extra to make us want to read about those boring, average characters and become invested in their journey and mission. Daneshvari tried to give us that for sure, and perhaps succeeded on some level, enough to make me read through the book really quickly and like it well enough, but not enough to make me want to read any of her other books ever again.
I felt like a lot of it was an attempt at copying Lemony Snicket's style of writing. The quirkiness, and over explaining things, the peculiar characters, and the portrayal of the mysteries and how they went about solving them were all very similar to Snicket's style, and that put me off quite a bit.
An OK read. No more, no less.
An unexceptional book about unexceptional children.
October 24, 2015
Unexceptional, But It Has Its Moments
The basic premise here is popping up more and more. Two kids are so average and blandly invisible they are recruited by the League of Unexceptional Children to operate as spies. The running joke is that no one ever notices or remembers them so they are functionally undercover even when they're out in the open. That premise allows the narrator and the characters to take a lot of pot shots at our supposed succeed-at-all-costs culture. Putting aside whether you think that culture is as pervasive or as meretricious as assumed, how does this book work as an entertainment?
Well, a lot of the book is repetitious. We go on and on about the heroes' averageness, we have little chapter heading quotes from average kids, all of the adults only ever talk about the heroes' averageness, and the heroes only ever think about their averageness. Pretty early on one gets the idea. And of course the whole project is tricky - if the heroes are supposed to be bland and dull, then why do we want to read about them or follow their adventures? Either the kids have to be secretly, internally interesting or the author has to be remarkably clever and quick-witted in describing them and what happens to them.
Here, we get a little bit of both approaches. Sometimes the kids offer a funny insight or bit of dialogue that stands out. Sometimes the narrator tosses off a funny throwaway line. Sometimes there's a bit of business among the characters that has a twist and a bit of humorous bite. (At one point the kids enter the League's secret lair through a hidden door in the back of a hot dog stand's walk-in refrigerator. Our heroine muses that "[i]t's kind of like Narnia, only with a lot of pork products,...". I think that's witty and just a touch edgy. It's bits like that that got me through the book.) There is an effort to include quirky secondary characters to punch up the narrative, but most of them are in equal parts amusing, over broad, and annoying, so I'm not sure where that gets you.
I guess the upshot here is that this ended up being a perfectly fine and readable book, with a few high points and an occasional edge but an awful lot of fill. I would expect that fans of the author's "School of Fear" series will like the book, as would many other early middle graders looking for a light read. It's just that for me the book didn't stand out from the crowd.
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.
The basic premise here is popping up more and more. Two kids are so average and blandly invisible they are recruited by the League of Unexceptional Children to operate as spies. The running joke is that no one ever notices or remembers them so they are functionally undercover even when they're out in the open. That premise allows the narrator and the characters to take a lot of pot shots at our supposed succeed-at-all-costs culture. Putting aside whether you think that culture is as pervasive or as meretricious as assumed, how does this book work as an entertainment?
Well, a lot of the book is repetitious. We go on and on about the heroes' averageness, we have little chapter heading quotes from average kids, all of the adults only ever talk about the heroes' averageness, and the heroes only ever think about their averageness. Pretty early on one gets the idea. And of course the whole project is tricky - if the heroes are supposed to be bland and dull, then why do we want to read about them or follow their adventures? Either the kids have to be secretly, internally interesting or the author has to be remarkably clever and quick-witted in describing them and what happens to them.
Here, we get a little bit of both approaches. Sometimes the kids offer a funny insight or bit of dialogue that stands out. Sometimes the narrator tosses off a funny throwaway line. Sometimes there's a bit of business among the characters that has a twist and a bit of humorous bite. (At one point the kids enter the League's secret lair through a hidden door in the back of a hot dog stand's walk-in refrigerator. Our heroine muses that "[i]t's kind of like Narnia, only with a lot of pork products,...". I think that's witty and just a touch edgy. It's bits like that that got me through the book.) There is an effort to include quirky secondary characters to punch up the narrative, but most of them are in equal parts amusing, over broad, and annoying, so I'm not sure where that gets you.
I guess the upshot here is that this ended up being a perfectly fine and readable book, with a few high points and an occasional edge but an awful lot of fill. I would expect that fans of the author's "School of Fear" series will like the book, as would many other early middle graders looking for a light read. It's just that for me the book didn't stand out from the crowd.
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.
May 21, 2016
The League of Unexceptional Children by Gitty Daneshvari The League of Unexceptional Children by Gitty Daneshvari is published by Little, Brown Books for Young Readers. I gave it two stars. I wanted to like it. I tried to like it. I just didn't. I had to force myself to finish reading it.
Two unexceptional children are conscripted by the government to save the country. They are easily forgettable.
I received a complimentary kindle copy from NetGalley. That did not change my opinion review.
Two unexceptional children are conscripted by the government to save the country. They are easily forgettable.
I received a complimentary kindle copy from NetGalley. That did not change my opinion review.
June 11, 2015
Tristan does his first live book review for our blog. He has wanted to review books for awhile and I finally said yes when we got a bunch of middle grade books from Book Expo America. The League of Unexceptional Children was the first book he picked out of the stack and he just breezed through it. This book comes out in October. Tristan is 9 and loved it!
March 15, 2019
To be an ordinary, normal, average, unexceptional child in a world that celebrates first place, the best, top of the class, and so on is tantamount to being invisible
Be it reality or books, the only characters which stick in the minds of people, are those who have made it big in life. But do we ever remember the ones who haven't? Being an 'average'/ run of the mill backbencher, I often found myself feeling invisible to the eyes of the people around me.
So, when I read these lines, I gripped the book tighter and closer to my face to follow the sentences that followed it. After reading/hearing stories about people glorifying the 'achievers', I was pleasantly surprised to come across a book which tried to do the reverse.
Shelly and Jonathan, they are the kind of persons who would've walked past you a 1000 times and still would've remained unnoticed. Because we tend to notice only the person who is hogging the limelight but never the hundreds of souls who stand around him in the darkness.
When the 'League of Unexceptional children' approaches them for help, they knew that their lives would never be 'normal' again. They are inducted into the league as 'Spies' and are tasked with the important job of saving the Vice President of the United States from the grasps of the criminals.
They find themselves absolutely baffled by the rapid turn of events. For someone who could barely get their names correct on the first try, it was a pretty big pill to digest.
Are they competent enough to carry out their tasks and save the country from obliteration Or will they squander/mess up them? It's for you readers to find out.
I loved the core concept of the book. The first few chapters were enough to convince me to sit for the whole ride. I found a lot of myself in Shelly and Jonathan. It was so relatable and I started to root for the characters way before the plot even started to develop. I loved Shelly's character a lot and the sort of dialogues/retorts they passed against each other evoked a great deal of laughter. When things started to go downhill for them, I felt so bad for the state they were in. I got that sort of connection with them. I hastily read the chapters which followed that portion until I found themselves back in the game, all smiling and excited.
I can't fathom why people seem to have rated this book very low. Oh yes. I get it. They MUST be the 'Nerds/Geeks' who always cringe at the 'incompetent' ones.
I got sad news for you fellas, being unexceptional ALSO has its own perks. *winks*
Be it reality or books, the only characters which stick in the minds of people, are those who have made it big in life. But do we ever remember the ones who haven't? Being an 'average'/ run of the mill backbencher, I often found myself feeling invisible to the eyes of the people around me.
So, when I read these lines, I gripped the book tighter and closer to my face to follow the sentences that followed it. After reading/hearing stories about people glorifying the 'achievers', I was pleasantly surprised to come across a book which tried to do the reverse.
Shelly and Jonathan, they are the kind of persons who would've walked past you a 1000 times and still would've remained unnoticed. Because we tend to notice only the person who is hogging the limelight but never the hundreds of souls who stand around him in the darkness.
When the 'League of Unexceptional children' approaches them for help, they knew that their lives would never be 'normal' again. They are inducted into the league as 'Spies' and are tasked with the important job of saving the Vice President of the United States from the grasps of the criminals.
They find themselves absolutely baffled by the rapid turn of events. For someone who could barely get their names correct on the first try, it was a pretty big pill to digest.
Are they competent enough to carry out their tasks and save the country from obliteration Or will they squander/mess up them? It's for you readers to find out.
I loved the core concept of the book. The first few chapters were enough to convince me to sit for the whole ride. I found a lot of myself in Shelly and Jonathan. It was so relatable and I started to root for the characters way before the plot even started to develop. I loved Shelly's character a lot and the sort of dialogues/retorts they passed against each other evoked a great deal of laughter. When things started to go downhill for them, I felt so bad for the state they were in. I got that sort of connection with them. I hastily read the chapters which followed that portion until I found themselves back in the game, all smiling and excited.
I can't fathom why people seem to have rated this book very low. Oh yes. I get it. They MUST be the 'Nerds/Geeks' who always cringe at the 'incompetent' ones.
I got sad news for you fellas, being unexceptional ALSO has its own perks. *winks*
June 24, 2018
We love this author! The stories are always so engaging, we want to finish the story asap! The author also has a way of making ALL children feel good about themselves, which is a definite plus in this world today.
November 22, 2022
super cute
April 14, 2024
This seemed right up my alley, but in the end I think I wanted to love it more than I actually loved it.
June 21, 2017
This was a bit too silly for my taste, but I get why the students who recommended it enjoyed it so much.
November 10, 2015
Gitty Daneshvari, author of the School of Fear series, is back with the first in a new series: THE LEAGUE OF UNEXCEPTIONAL CHILDREN. While I love the premise, I think this will be the only book in this series I try.
THE LEAGUE OF UNEXCEPTIONAL CHILDREN posits that children who are unremarkable, forgettable, utterly average make the best spies. Very few notice them in the first place, and no one remembers them. (The book promptly deflates its own premise by having the children accompanied by an adult, because there are many places where unaccompanied twelve year olds are quite noticeable.)
The issue for me was that Daneshvari never convinced me that Shelly and Jonathan are completely average. Shelley's wacky outfits are described in detail, as is her habit of just making up sayings and otherwise saying nutty stuff and trying to take it back. She's funny, and quirky. She has an easily recognizable schtick. She's more Stargirl than Jane Doe. Jonathan seems a bit more uninteresting on the surface, although surely a kid wearing khakis isn't an identifiable trait with the current school dress codes. Daneshvari makes it clear that unexceptional kids are not losers, yet doesn't support it well with the text. Most people (that is, the average) are at least kinda good at one thing. Shelley and Jonathan seem to have no talents aside from being easily overlooked.
The plot centers around a kidnapped Vice President. The current league members might be compromised, so Shelley and Jonathan are recruited. They fail their training, but are sent out into the field anyway. However, they aren't alone: they're teamed up with a pair of exceptionals from Britain.
I like the central message of THE LEAGUE OF UNEXCEPTIONAL CHILDREN: everyone has something to offer. The book is lightly humorous. Maybe I'm overthinking it, but I just don't think it hangs together. I'll always love books about kid spies, but this one is a miss for me.
THE LEAGUE OF UNEXCEPTIONAL CHILDREN posits that children who are unremarkable, forgettable, utterly average make the best spies. Very few notice them in the first place, and no one remembers them. (The book promptly deflates its own premise by having the children accompanied by an adult, because there are many places where unaccompanied twelve year olds are quite noticeable.)
The issue for me was that Daneshvari never convinced me that Shelly and Jonathan are completely average. Shelley's wacky outfits are described in detail, as is her habit of just making up sayings and otherwise saying nutty stuff and trying to take it back. She's funny, and quirky. She has an easily recognizable schtick. She's more Stargirl than Jane Doe. Jonathan seems a bit more uninteresting on the surface, although surely a kid wearing khakis isn't an identifiable trait with the current school dress codes. Daneshvari makes it clear that unexceptional kids are not losers, yet doesn't support it well with the text. Most people (that is, the average) are at least kinda good at one thing. Shelley and Jonathan seem to have no talents aside from being easily overlooked.
The plot centers around a kidnapped Vice President. The current league members might be compromised, so Shelley and Jonathan are recruited. They fail their training, but are sent out into the field anyway. However, they aren't alone: they're teamed up with a pair of exceptionals from Britain.
I like the central message of THE LEAGUE OF UNEXCEPTIONAL CHILDREN: everyone has something to offer. The book is lightly humorous. Maybe I'm overthinking it, but I just don't think it hangs together. I'll always love books about kid spies, but this one is a miss for me.
August 29, 2015
An appropriately unexceptional book
I was really intrigued by the concept of this book and was looking forward to a good read. What immediately impressed, though, was the utter lack of semblance to reality the book possessed. That being said, while the reality is off, I think there will be many kids who relate to these characters in feeling overlooked, unremembered, unremarkable. But the main characters are seriously extreme versions of this - not only are the unexceptional, they are pretty much entirely inept. Much of the dialouge is unnecessary nervous rambling that doesn't do much to advance the plot and doesn't really help connect with the characters.
The plot is thin and exceptionally hard to believe. And I'm not a stranger to children's fiction.
The whole story just felt really contrived. I love fiction, but I like it to feel real. This decidedly did not feel real. Not even close. I was disappointed in the book, but I do think that there are kids (the target demographic) who will love this book and new series. My concern is sustainability. How long can you really have a series run that has bungling kids who still manage to solve national crises before they all start feeling like old episodes?
Check the book out of your local library to see if this is something your children will enjoy before purchasing. I hope the rest of the books will be more memorable than this first one.
I received a complimentary ecopy in exchange for my honest opinion.
I was really intrigued by the concept of this book and was looking forward to a good read. What immediately impressed, though, was the utter lack of semblance to reality the book possessed. That being said, while the reality is off, I think there will be many kids who relate to these characters in feeling overlooked, unremembered, unremarkable. But the main characters are seriously extreme versions of this - not only are the unexceptional, they are pretty much entirely inept. Much of the dialouge is unnecessary nervous rambling that doesn't do much to advance the plot and doesn't really help connect with the characters.
The plot is thin and exceptionally hard to believe. And I'm not a stranger to children's fiction.
The whole story just felt really contrived. I love fiction, but I like it to feel real. This decidedly did not feel real. Not even close. I was disappointed in the book, but I do think that there are kids (the target demographic) who will love this book and new series. My concern is sustainability. How long can you really have a series run that has bungling kids who still manage to solve national crises before they all start feeling like old episodes?
Check the book out of your local library to see if this is something your children will enjoy before purchasing. I hope the rest of the books will be more memorable than this first one.
I received a complimentary ecopy in exchange for my honest opinion.
May 22, 2018
The moment I read the title of this book, I knew Laila was going to enjoy it. I was elated upon approval to read and review this book.
“The description of the book doesn’t do it justice. It’s way cooler than what that description said, mom,” Laila told me when we finished reading it. I agree. When we read books like this, the one chapter a night rule is a real bummer. If I didn’t have that rule in place, we would have read it all in one sitting.
You find out, rather quickly, that the unexceptionals are actually exceptional but in a very different way. Jonathan and Shelly are quite the pair. Shelly was by far our favorite of the duo, but we loved Jonathan too.
Living close to Washington D.C., where the story takes place, made the book that much more enjoyable for us. The whole novel from start-to-finish was an exciting, and fun read for both Laila and I. We laughed every single chapter. She really enjoyed the "Top Secret" bits.
As far as reading it goes, Laila would get caught on the dialog tags, which was an odd thing. At one point she asked me, “What happened to good ole’ he said-she said?” To which I had no reply. Other than that, it was easy for her to read and follow. The ending led us to believe this might be a series in the making, and both of us are excited at the thought.
Both Laila and I agree, this book gets four stars and a big thumbs up because kid spies are cool.
“The description of the book doesn’t do it justice. It’s way cooler than what that description said, mom,” Laila told me when we finished reading it. I agree. When we read books like this, the one chapter a night rule is a real bummer. If I didn’t have that rule in place, we would have read it all in one sitting.
You find out, rather quickly, that the unexceptionals are actually exceptional but in a very different way. Jonathan and Shelly are quite the pair. Shelly was by far our favorite of the duo, but we loved Jonathan too.
Living close to Washington D.C., where the story takes place, made the book that much more enjoyable for us. The whole novel from start-to-finish was an exciting, and fun read for both Laila and I. We laughed every single chapter. She really enjoyed the "Top Secret" bits.
As far as reading it goes, Laila would get caught on the dialog tags, which was an odd thing. At one point she asked me, “What happened to good ole’ he said-she said?” To which I had no reply. Other than that, it was easy for her to read and follow. The ending led us to believe this might be a series in the making, and both of us are excited at the thought.
Both Laila and I agree, this book gets four stars and a big thumbs up because kid spies are cool.
January 27, 2016
Have you ever wondered about the kids who didn’t play sports and didn’t go to after school clubs? The League of Unexceptional Children by Gitty Daneshvari tells you what they do. This book is very humorous and is one of the best books I have read. This book is about two kids, Jonathan Murray and Shelley Brown, who have been ignored their whole life. These are types of kids that the League of Unexceptional Children have been looking for. The League of Unexceptional Children is a network that uses the nation's most average, forgettable, and unexceptional children as spies. Some people may ask why not use the popular kids or the brainiacs? The reason is simple people remember these types of kids. This all takes place in Washington D.C. The reason why Jonathan and Shelley were recruited is because of what had recently happened, the Vice President had been kidnapped. A part in the book that shows it is humorous is when Jonathan and Shelley have to order a double dog with a side of mustard, two sides of relish, a can of diet Fanta, fourteen packets of ketchup, two straws, and seven napkins. They had to order this everytime the needed to get into the Unexceptional Children Headquarters. Overall, this book was very well written. One type of reader that will enjoy this is a reader who enjoys humor and action.
August 31, 2018
This is an unremarkable book about unremarkable children. Two weeks from now I probably won't remember a thing about it. Kind of ironic.
Jonathan and Shelley are unexceptional in every way. They don’t play sports. Their grades are mediocre. They aren’t musical. No one ever remembers their names or even having met them. They are so good at being undetectable that they are recruited by Hammett and Nurse Maidenkirk to be spies in the League of Unexceptional Children, headquartered in the back of a hot dog restaurant. The vice-president has been kidnapped, secret codes are at risk and the United States is on the verge of total chaos unless Johno and Shells can figure out which government official is responsible.
To enjoy this book you have to set aside any requirement that a book be believable. You have to love sarcasm. You have to be ok with a thin plot. If you like movies like Dumb and Dumber then you will probably make it to the end. I actually like a little mindless reading now and then, so I was duly entertained. Humor is a must with many middle grade readers today. A good plot ranks low. Therefore, I can safely recommend this for school libraries.
Jonathan and Shelley are unexceptional in every way. They don’t play sports. Their grades are mediocre. They aren’t musical. No one ever remembers their names or even having met them. They are so good at being undetectable that they are recruited by Hammett and Nurse Maidenkirk to be spies in the League of Unexceptional Children, headquartered in the back of a hot dog restaurant. The vice-president has been kidnapped, secret codes are at risk and the United States is on the verge of total chaos unless Johno and Shells can figure out which government official is responsible.
To enjoy this book you have to set aside any requirement that a book be believable. You have to love sarcasm. You have to be ok with a thin plot. If you like movies like Dumb and Dumber then you will probably make it to the end. I actually like a little mindless reading now and then, so I was duly entertained. Humor is a must with many middle grade readers today. A good plot ranks low. Therefore, I can safely recommend this for school libraries.
October 12, 2015
Traditionally heroes have had super powers, an incredible intellect, or some feature that distinguishes an individual as extraordinary. In this book it's the protagonist's lack of the extraordinary that makes them exceptional at doing their job, which is to blend in and not get noticed. This is also what makes the protagonists easy to relate with: in many cases they're very much like the reader.
The writing style is quirky and the book is filled with awkward moments, failures, and fumbling. However, it does show how persistence and being yourself can pay off in the long run. We're not all going to be superheroes, but we can make a difference by being ourselves and doing our best.
The writing style is quirky and the book is filled with awkward moments, failures, and fumbling. However, it does show how persistence and being yourself can pay off in the long run. We're not all going to be superheroes, but we can make a difference by being ourselves and doing our best.
May 11, 2020
I would have forgiven this book a lot more of its flaws if the author had just used the word “said” more often. Characters stated, muttered, mumbled, shouted, admonished, reminded, recalled, explained, expounded, and declared their dialogue, and every time it happened was a snaggy bit in the fabric of the text. I liked the premise, and sometimes the goofy bits were a bit much (although I recognize I’m very far outside of the target demographic), but I would have enjoyed my read more if people had just said things to each other.
September 13, 2015
I had an opportunity to read a digital ARC of this book from NetGalley. This review is based on uncorrected advance content.
The main characters in this fun spy novel, Jonathan and Shelley, are selected to be part of a secret network of spies because they are extremely ordinary kids; able to be invisible and blend in.
For my complete review, please visit my blogpost:
http://www.janatheteacher.blogspot.co...
The main characters in this fun spy novel, Jonathan and Shelley, are selected to be part of a secret network of spies because they are extremely ordinary kids; able to be invisible and blend in.
For my complete review, please visit my blogpost:
http://www.janatheteacher.blogspot.co...
July 24, 2017
Cute concept, disappointing execution. I could have done without all the fat jokes about the security guard eating so much and wearing ill-fitting clothes. Audio reader would have been just right if I was listening with children, but her voices all grated a bit on my boring grown-up ears.
February 25, 2016
Will never get that time in my life back. Didn't take my own advice to abandon. Had hope but it just never got better.
November 13, 2015
Cute. Had some really funny moments!
September 29, 2017
Review by James, age 8
This book is about three children: Jonathan, Mary, and Shelly. They are about 10 to 12 years old. The kids have a lot of hidden talents, but they've spent almost their entire lives being ignored - not all of it though. It turns out that they're wanted to be spies by the government because the Vice President was kidnapped by a teenager, and the he also stole a bunch of documents including the first nuclear code. The documents belonged to places like the FBI. And the kids' task is to stop the Seal - the big bad guy - from selling the nuclear codes. Eventually they caught the bad guy and stopped the codes from being sold, thanks to the high-tech gadget "The Spy Fly." Basically a flying miniature camera and microphone, it can be linked up to your phone, and it cannot be told from a real fly.
My favorite part of the story was all the Evenston community patrol officers. They were so crazy.
I would read other books in this series. I would recommend this book to 10 to 12 year olds.
Warning: do not give to three year old. Caution, small parts, not for children under 6.
This book is about three children: Jonathan, Mary, and Shelly. They are about 10 to 12 years old. The kids have a lot of hidden talents, but they've spent almost their entire lives being ignored - not all of it though. It turns out that they're wanted to be spies by the government because the Vice President was kidnapped by a teenager, and the he also stole a bunch of documents including the first nuclear code. The documents belonged to places like the FBI. And the kids' task is to stop the Seal - the big bad guy - from selling the nuclear codes. Eventually they caught the bad guy and stopped the codes from being sold, thanks to the high-tech gadget "The Spy Fly." Basically a flying miniature camera and microphone, it can be linked up to your phone, and it cannot be told from a real fly.
My favorite part of the story was all the Evenston community patrol officers. They were so crazy.
I would read other books in this series. I would recommend this book to 10 to 12 year olds.
Warning: do not give to three year old. Caution, small parts, not for children under 6.
May 13, 2017
Although the idea of this book, unexceptional children as spies, is interesting and fun, the story was a bit disappointing.
The characters are so exaggerated that it's not even funny anymore. The rambling of Shelly gets rather annoying after a while. And if it was just the two unexceptional children who were strange, it would have been believable. But all characters are over the top.
The story itself is one in a billion. There are many other - better - books in this genre. More exciting and more believable ones. Which is really a shame, because this one had so much potential.
I did like the fact that almost everyone in the story kept calling them by the wrong name. That was funny and fitting with the characters.
Another thing that caught my eye was the use of rather difficult words for the target audience.
There also wasn't a climax in the end. I was waiting for a final, exciting fight, but it was over after blinking twice. A missed chance for some extra excitement.
All in all, not bad, but I'm not going to read the next one.
The characters are so exaggerated that it's not even funny anymore. The rambling of Shelly gets rather annoying after a while. And if it was just the two unexceptional children who were strange, it would have been believable. But all characters are over the top.
The story itself is one in a billion. There are many other - better - books in this genre. More exciting and more believable ones. Which is really a shame, because this one had so much potential.
I did like the fact that almost everyone in the story kept calling them by the wrong name. That was funny and fitting with the characters.
Another thing that caught my eye was the use of rather difficult words for the target audience.
There also wasn't a climax in the end. I was waiting for a final, exciting fight, but it was over after blinking twice. A missed chance for some extra excitement.
All in all, not bad, but I'm not going to read the next one.
December 26, 2019
I have to say, I was with the kids for a while on this one, wondering if someone was just messing with them. It seems so weird to say that you want people that are as average as possible. In a way, it does make sense. You never have to worry about a disguise if you are so average that you seamlessly blend in and no one can recall what you look like or your name. I have to say, it would be a little disheartening to be one of those people. Not that I would want to be the center of attention all of the time, but I would like to know that people didn't just forget me the moment I left.
I feel like kids will enjoy the fact that the kids are not helpless. The adults are not coming in to save the day, in fact, it's the opposite. The kids have to come in and clean up the mess that the adults made. It shows that kids are capable of great things if given the opportunity. Of course, for most that does not involve become a super secret government agent, but you never know.
Author: Gitty Daneshvari
Publisher: Little, Brown Books for Young Readers
Publication Date: October 20th 2015
I feel like kids will enjoy the fact that the kids are not helpless. The adults are not coming in to save the day, in fact, it's the opposite. The kids have to come in and clean up the mess that the adults made. It shows that kids are capable of great things if given the opportunity. Of course, for most that does not involve become a super secret government agent, but you never know.
Author: Gitty Daneshvari
Publisher: Little, Brown Books for Young Readers
Publication Date: October 20th 2015
July 5, 2018
The League of Unexceptional Children is a fun quick read about two very unexceptional kids. Jonathan and Shelly are recruited as part of the organization because of their ability to go through life being ignored by almost everyone including their friends and families. In this story, the Vice President of the United States has been kidnapped in order to find out the nuclear launch codes as well as the identities of US agents around the world. Jonathan and Shelly are uniquely qualified for this assignment because they are unknown to the suspects that they are to track.
I enjoyed this book to a certain extent, but there were many times that it seemed that the author was trying too hard to make the characters and their actions funny. Also, much of the story was beyond absurd which made it difficulty to take seriously. Overall, a pretty good spy story that could have been better if it had been a little more subtle.
I enjoyed this book to a certain extent, but there were many times that it seemed that the author was trying too hard to make the characters and their actions funny. Also, much of the story was beyond absurd which made it difficulty to take seriously. Overall, a pretty good spy story that could have been better if it had been a little more subtle.
June 26, 2023
6/27/2023
Pros: I actually like the writing style for the descriptive narratives. It's very concise. I also love Jonathan's self deprecating humor. Laslty, the concept itself - using forgettable children as spy - is very unique.
Cons: Shelley is insufferable and makes me want to pull my hairs out. The story relied too much on exposition, instead of showing. I understand that the target audience is children, yet I fail to see the appeal of the grating dialogue exchanges between the protagonists. Even the plot and how the story evolved- that ending felt very rushed. Secondary characters were very 2D and cliche, and equally as unmemorble as the main leads.
Overall, this novel had good things going for it, but that wasn't enough. In fact, I daresay, this was (unfortunately) quite unexceptional...
Pros: I actually like the writing style for the descriptive narratives. It's very concise. I also love Jonathan's self deprecating humor. Laslty, the concept itself - using forgettable children as spy - is very unique.
Cons: Shelley is insufferable and makes me want to pull my hairs out. The story relied too much on exposition, instead of showing. I understand that the target audience is children, yet I fail to see the appeal of the grating dialogue exchanges between the protagonists. Even the plot and how the story evolved- that ending felt very rushed. Secondary characters were very 2D and cliche, and equally as unmemorble as the main leads.
Overall, this novel had good things going for it, but that wasn't enough. In fact, I daresay, this was (unfortunately) quite unexceptional...
May 26, 2017
My Rating: 2.5 of 5 (between It's OK and I Liked It)
This is a cute book with a fun premise, using a network of the average and nondescript children for espionage and adventure. It was pretty funny, but it missed on the suspense and adventure side of things. Yes, it's possible to be all of the above - a funny story with adventure and mystery too - but the suspenseful side never really clicked together, and at times it felt more rushed or forced than anything else. I wanted to like it, I really did, and it's not that it's a bad book, but it's not great either. It's fun, a quick read, but not really memorable. In it's own way, unexceptional.
For more, see the blog: http://theknittingpenguin.blogspot.co...
This is a cute book with a fun premise, using a network of the average and nondescript children for espionage and adventure. It was pretty funny, but it missed on the suspense and adventure side of things. Yes, it's possible to be all of the above - a funny story with adventure and mystery too - but the suspenseful side never really clicked together, and at times it felt more rushed or forced than anything else. I wanted to like it, I really did, and it's not that it's a bad book, but it's not great either. It's fun, a quick read, but not really memorable. In it's own way, unexceptional.
For more, see the blog: http://theknittingpenguin.blogspot.co...
February 22, 2021
The wacky sense of humor of this story will surely appeal to middle school kids! A funny spy story that will appeal to readers who love Spy School, City Spies and Mrs. Smith's Spy School for Girls.
Grades 4 and up.
Grades 4 and up.
October 21, 2018
I really love the concept of this book: using unexceptional children as spies because they are not noticeable. I also loved the epigraphs at the beginning of each chapter, which were very funny. Unfortunately, I found several of the characters rather annoying. Since I listened to the book rather than read it, it is possible that my dislike of the characters has to do with the way that they were read, but I think that was really also the way they were written - too overdrawn, such extreme versions of their characteristics that they came across more as annoying than humorous. That wasn't true of all the characters - I quite liked Jonathan. Still, this is not a book I would recommend.
July 7, 2018
Incredibly average and forgettable kids are recruited into a secret spy agency. Since they are so unrememberable, they can go in and out and no one notices they were there. In this volume they find out who stole secret codes from the White House.
There is an episode of Buffy the Vampire the Slayer that is very much like the premise of this series. The unremarkable girl turns invisible and wreaks her vengeance on the school. At the end of the show she is captured by government agents and attends a secret school filled with invisible kids and trained to be a secret agent.
There is an episode of Buffy the Vampire the Slayer that is very much like the premise of this series. The unremarkable girl turns invisible and wreaks her vengeance on the school. At the end of the show she is captured by government agents and attends a secret school filled with invisible kids and trained to be a secret agent.
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