MINNIE AND MOO: WANTED DEAD OR ALIVE; Denys Cazet; Easy Reader; HarperCollins; 2006, 48pp. Our favorite cows, Minnie and Moo, overhear the farmer say he doesn't have money to pay his bills, and immediately visualize his becoming depressed, holing up indoors, and neglecting the farm, until all is lost. Moo decides the bank has lots of extra money--all they need to do is ask for some to save the farm, but the bank probably won't give money to cows so they dress up in some trench coats they find in the barn, and ride into town on the tractor, carrying an old violin case to put the money in. Thus attired, Minnie and Moo bear an unfortunate resemblance to the dreaded Bazooka Sisters, wanted dead or alive. "'The bank just wants people to feel good about themselves. Even if you're dead,' said Moo, 'it's nice to know you're still wanted.'" Minnie and Moo's adventures after they accidentally rob the bank are the stuff of legend and best left for readers to discover for themselves. As is usual with Denys Cazet's unfailingly charming books, big laughs are to be had for children and adults
Faker By Gordon Korman New York: Scholastic Press, 2024. Fiction. 214 pages. 12-year-old Trey is used to starting over at a new school -- he has the routine perfectly memorized: make new friends, introduce his dad to the wealthy parents of his new friends, and "Houdini" themselves out of there before they get caught running their latest scam. Trey's dad is a master con artist, and Trey has just been promoted to full-partner. Their new scheme for the next big score brings them to the affluent suburb of Boxelder, TN where Trey's dad has cooked up a fake electric car company for investors to buy into. The only problem is that Trey is starting to grow tired of moving around and never putting down roots, especially after forming a fast friendship with Logan and developing a crush on Kaylee, a socially conscious girl in his class. As Trey longs for a normal life, is there any way he can convince his dad to get out of the family business? Gordon Korman is a perennial favorit...
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