Rube Goldberg and His Amazing Machines

by Brandon T. Snider, Ed Steckley (Illustrator)

Overview

The hilarious first book in an all-new illustrated middle-grade series starring young inventor Rube Goldberg—now in paperback
 

Grab a wrench, flip a switch, and get ready to spring into this all-new, sidesplitting illustrated series featuring a young master of machines—Rube Goldberg!
 
With summer gone too quickly, Rube must finally face what he’s been dreading all vacation: middle school! He’s not ready for new classes, new people, new everything—and it’s really taking a toll on him. With his anxieties in full gear, all Rube wants to do is do what he does best: invent!
 
When Principal Kim announces that the school is going to throw a Contraption Convention—Con Con—Rube is ready to show off his skills and get out of his funk! But things just can’t seem to go right for Rube: He gets banned from Con Con, his friendships are strained, and weird, ghostly incidents begin to throw the town into total chaos. But Rube has a big solution to every little problem, and he’s ready to get back on track, solve the ghostly mystery, and come up with something brilliant before it’s time to face the judging table!

 

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781647000929
Publisher:	ABRAMS
Publication date:	11/16/2021
Sold by:	Barnes & Noble
Format:	eBook
Pages:	240
File size:	12 MB
Note:	This product may take a few minutes to download.
Age Range:	8 - 12 Years

About the Author

Brandon T. Snider is the bestselling author of the award-winning Dark Knight Manual, as well as the Avengers: Infinity War: The Cosmic Quest series. Additionally, he has written books featuring Cartoon Network favorites such as Adventure Time and Regular Show, Marvel’s Spider-Man and Black Panther, plus pop-culture icons such as Justice League, Star Wars, and The Muppets. He lives in New York City, where he is a member of the Writers Guild of America and SAG-AFTRA. Jennifer George is president of the Rube Goldberg Institute for Innovation and Creativity. George is Rube Goldberg’s granddaughter and lives and works in New York City. Ed Steckley is an award-winning print and advertising illustrator. He grew up in Racine, Wisconsin, and currently lives in Queens, New York. He is on the board of directors of the National Cartoonist Society and is president of its New York City chapter.
Ed Steckley is an award-winning illustrator whose clients include MAD magazine and innumerable advertising agencies worldwide. He lives in Queens, New York.

Editorial Reviews

This book made my kids laugh and got them off screens. No really. It’s magic."

comedian Jim Gaffigan

"Snider accurately conveys feelings of change and growth at a time when tweens are truly still children . . . Steckley’s black-and-white illustrations evoke the cluttered, mad-scientist feel of Rube’s workspace. . ." —Kirkus Reviews

"With middle school humor and entertaining images, Rube learns to navigate strange and difficult situations in this first installment of the “Rube Goldberg” series." —School Library Journal

“This book made my kids laugh and got them off screens. No really. It’s magic."—Jim Gaffigan, comedian

From the Publisher

12/01/2021

Gr 4–6—In a new series based on a fictionalized version of the infamous inventor, Rube Goldberg loves to create contraptions. With his dad working out of town all the time, his mom deceased, and his grandmother dropping off the occasional casserole, Rube is able to spend his days and nights working on projects. After a summer of isolated machine building, Rube starts sixth grade at Beechwood Middle School. When the principal of Beechwood announces the school's Con-Con, or Contraption Convention, Rube withdraws even more from his old friends Boob (yes, Boob McNutt) and Pearl Williams. Rube's new and unlikely friend, Zach, drives a wedge further between Rube, Boob, and Pearl, as Rube elects to spend time working on inventions with Zach to prepare for Con-Con. Suspicions mount, strange things happen, and friends say all the wrong things as the competition draws nearer. With the exception of the curse of a haunted doll found in the woods, a few supernatural disturbances at the school, and an international criminal disguised as the new science teacher, Rube's induction into the middle school experience will be highly relatable to kids making this transition. Lively cartoon illustrations convey the spirit of the characters, while italicized passages convey Rube's thoughts. Rube and Boob are cued as white, and Pearl is Black. VERDICT With middle school humor and entertaining images, Rube learns to navigate strange and difficult situations in this first installment of the "Rube Goldberg" series.—Lindsay Persohn, Univ. of South Florida Sarasota-Manatee

School Library Journal

2021-09-29
Middle schooler Rube Goldberg’s obsession with building machines lands him in the midst of a best friend crisis, a school haunting, and a town mystery.

Though Rube shares the name of the famous American inventor, in this fictional story he is a regular 21st-century sixth grader. When Beechwood Middle School’s Principal Kim announces the Contraption Convention, Rube sees his shot at earning real recognition for his passion. His best friends, Boob and Pearl, get pushed to the side as Rube becomes focused both on his creation and his new friend, Zach. Ultimately, Rube has to come to terms with tensions arising from his affectionate but frequently absent father, his tattered friendships, and the lingering impact of the death of his mother. Snider accurately conveys feelings of change and growth at a time when tweens are truly still children. Though the story includes a spooky doll, ghost slime, and a neighborhood house that is rumored to be haunted, those elements feel like afterthoughts with weak connections to the central plotline and little thrill factor. Steckley’s black-and-white illustrations evoke the cluttered, mad-scientist feel of Rube’s workspace, even if some don’t always match the text’s descriptions. Illustrations cue Pearl as Black and most other main characters as White.

Moving parts and missing pieces don’t make for a successful machine. (Mystery. 8-12)

Kirkus Reviews