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Cross Ups #3
Rising Star
The continuing adventures of Jaden, Cali, and the Cross Ups crew.
When Jaden gets a call inviting him to Comicon to test out a new version of his favorite game, Cross Ups, he is thrilled . . . sort of. He’ll get to go with his best friend, Cali, they’ll be in New York City, and best of all, he’ll meet his idol and the greatest gamer of all time, Yuudai Sato. But he’s got no time to practice, and worse, his signature moves no longer work. His trip starts to feel less and less exciting, and more and more like one big problem. Jaden has to come up with some solutions—fast. He looks to some older gamers for guidance, but is JStar willing to change who he is for the sake of a game?
With its sharp dialogue and relatable characters, Rising Star, the third book in the Cross Ups series, chronicles the ups and downs of middle school with a relevant, contemporary twist.
When Jaden gets a call inviting him to Comicon to test out a new version of his favorite game, Cross Ups, he is thrilled . . . sort of. He’ll get to go with his best friend, Cali, they’ll be in New York City, and best of all, he’ll meet his idol and the greatest gamer of all time, Yuudai Sato. But he’s got no time to practice, and worse, his signature moves no longer work. His trip starts to feel less and less exciting, and more and more like one big problem. Jaden has to come up with some solutions—fast. He looks to some older gamers for guidance, but is JStar willing to change who he is for the sake of a game?
With its sharp dialogue and relatable characters, Rising Star, the third book in the Cross Ups series, chronicles the ups and downs of middle school with a relevant, contemporary twist.
200 pages, Paperback
Published October 8, 2019
3 people are currently reading
29 people want to read
About the author
Sylv Chiang
4 books10 followersSylv Chiang grew up in Toronto. As an only child, she had a lot of quiet time to read. Her favorite series was Trixie Belden, but she also loved books by Judy Blume and Beverly Cleary. In grade one, she wanted to be an author when she grew up. Besides reading, young Sylv loved playing outside, swimming, and doing gymnastics.
As a teenager, she coached gymnastics and worked at a local museum giving tours to school groups. She also did tour guiding for class trips to Montreal and Quebec City.
Sylv studied French at the University of Toronto, and since all her past jobs had involved teaching kids, the obvious path was to become a French teacher. She has taught French Immersion, Extended French, and Core French in the Toronto District School Board.
When her second daughter was born, Sylv remembered her childhood dream of becoming an author. She enrolled in a Writing for Children class and soon began her middle grade fiction series, Cross Ups, to appeal to the students in her grade five class who are more interested in video games than books. Anyone’s Game (Fall 2018) is the second book in the Cross Ups series.
Sylv’s favorite part of being an author is when her characters surprise her by doing something she wasn’t expecting. She loves the cast of characters in Cross Ups and looks forward to spending time with them while writing further books in the series. When she’s not writing, you can find Sylv on her yoga mat or at the library helping her daughters discover great books.
As a teenager, she coached gymnastics and worked at a local museum giving tours to school groups. She also did tour guiding for class trips to Montreal and Quebec City.
Sylv studied French at the University of Toronto, and since all her past jobs had involved teaching kids, the obvious path was to become a French teacher. She has taught French Immersion, Extended French, and Core French in the Toronto District School Board.
When her second daughter was born, Sylv remembered her childhood dream of becoming an author. She enrolled in a Writing for Children class and soon began her middle grade fiction series, Cross Ups, to appeal to the students in her grade five class who are more interested in video games than books. Anyone’s Game (Fall 2018) is the second book in the Cross Ups series.
Sylv’s favorite part of being an author is when her characters surprise her by doing something she wasn’t expecting. She loves the cast of characters in Cross Ups and looks forward to spending time with them while writing further books in the series. When she’s not writing, you can find Sylv on her yoga mat or at the library helping her daughters discover great books.
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Displaying 1 - 5 of 5 reviews
December 20, 2019
would have enjoyed it more if not for the racist microaggressions
December 11, 2019
This is another great book in the Cross-Ups series.
The kids go to New York Comic Con in this story. It was timely, since it just happened a couple of weeks ago. Comic Con is the biggest event for gaming and pop culture, so it was so cool to see Jaden and Cali living out this dream. I went to BookCon a couple of years ago, which is held at the same convention centre as Comic Con, so I could relate to that part of the story.
A great part about this series is that there are both a boy and a girl main character. Jaden narrates the story but his best female friend, Cali, plays a lead role in the story. Though video games are typically thought of as a “boy’s” activity, girls play video games too. I’m glad that girl gamers are represented in this series.
I really enjoyed this story!
Thank you Annick Press for providing a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.
The kids go to New York Comic Con in this story. It was timely, since it just happened a couple of weeks ago. Comic Con is the biggest event for gaming and pop culture, so it was so cool to see Jaden and Cali living out this dream. I went to BookCon a couple of years ago, which is held at the same convention centre as Comic Con, so I could relate to that part of the story.
A great part about this series is that there are both a boy and a girl main character. Jaden narrates the story but his best female friend, Cali, plays a lead role in the story. Though video games are typically thought of as a “boy’s” activity, girls play video games too. I’m glad that girl gamers are represented in this series.
I really enjoyed this story!
Thank you Annick Press for providing a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.
April 24, 2020
4/21/2020 ~ 4/18/2020 ~ Jaden loves computer games, and now that his mom lets him play, he's going to tournaments & has picked up a sponsorship. I know I have kids who will latch on to this book quickly: video gaming, the chance to play in a large tournament, getting sponsored by a company to play?! Yes, this will find readers in my elementary library. This volume explores Jaden's struggle to learn a new game and with the pressure from peers (or those you want to be your peers) to be cool & fit in. I appreciated the discussion about taking undiagnosed ADHD medications in the context of professional gaming.
June 3, 2021
I read this as another Good Reads member said there were racial micro-aggressions. I did not find any... There were negative remarks made about female gamers which is unfortunate but a realistic part of the gaming world. I am not into video games at all, so I was not overly engaged in the gaming descriptions, but for those who do enjoy video games, this is a good series to read.
December 25, 2019
Chiang's Cross Ups series keeps getting better and better. Her third outing, Rising Star, is a fun and enjoyable read, with scintillating dialogue and a really likeable cast of characters. A++.
Displaying 1 - 5 of 5 reviews