Andrew North Blows up the World by Adam Selzer

Selzer, Adam, Andrew North Blows up the World. Delacorte Books for Young Readers, 2009. Pgs. 128. Violence: G, Sexual Content: G, Language: G.


Andrew North is a spy in training. He strongly believes that his brother and his father are secret agents and that he is destined to join the family business when he’s old enough. When one day he borrows his brother’s fancy calculator and types in that he’s ready to become a pro, weird numbers and dots appear on the screen. Before he can figure out what he did, his third-grade teacher takes the calculator and puts in Storage Room B for the weekend. When he gets home, his brother discovers the missing calculator and needs it back by Monday. Thinking that getting the calculator back from the evil janitor is a matter of life and death, Andrew risks expulsion and major trouble to get it back. Will Andrew succeed or will he be caught? Are Andrew’s brother and dad really spies?

A fun, fast read that will keep children intrigued and laughing. Although the secondary characters aren’t well-developed, the lack of development adds to the mystery of the story. The plot is light-hearted and moves along at a fast enough pace to keep a reluctant reader interested. Readers in Grades 2 to 4 who like realistic fiction, adventure, and spies will probably enjoy reading this book. EL(K to 3)/ EL (4 to 6). ADVISABLE. Reviewer: Kira, Youth Services Librarian, HUN Public Library