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Jan 23, 2015LibrLdyMapleValley rated this title 5 out of 5 stars
Henry has decided that he and his best friends Riley and Reed are probably the most boring twelve year olds on the planet. But that's about to change because Henry has a plan to make them famous. Actually he has lots of plans. In their group Henry is the Idea Man, Riley takes the notes and Reed... well, Reed is the guinea pig. If something horrible is going to happen it will happen to Reed. Together they plan to become famous but really they become Masters of Disaster which is good too! So the first big plan is to break the world record for most somersaults on a bike. Henry decides that the best way to get a lot of somersaults in is to start higher up in the air. Brilliant. Henry had the idea. Riley took extensive notes so that leaves Reed to do the actual jump (tied to the bike and blind folded so he won't be scared). Of course, it doesn't work out quite as planned and the fact that they forgot to film the event makes the spectacular results kind of useless for making them famous. The most lasting impact is that Reed now permanently smells like baby poo. In fact, everything they do leaves Reed smelling just a little bit worse than before and by the end of the book his mother has him sleeping on the front porch to keep the smell out of the house. But that's just how things always work out for Reed so he takes it in stride with very little whining. Mostly. With each new plan to achieve fame things get more out of control. Henry is even foolish enough to say the fateful famous last words "what can go wrong in 10 seconds?" Plenty, especially when these boys are around. This is a fast, funny read with likeable characters and absolutely crazy situations. Gary Paulsen has once again created a wild and hilarious story filled with boys who are just plain fun to be around. Hop on for the ride!