(5th MMGM) Pilfer Academy by Lauren Magaziner (review and giveaway)

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Pilfer Academy

by Lauren Magaziner

Feb. 16, 2016

Dial Books

Troublemaking George has never heard of Pilfer Academy, a top-secret school for cultivating young crooks, until he's kidnapped as its newest student. The teachers are kooky at best, and naughty does not even begin to describe his sneaky, smart, and morally bankrupt new classmates. Between disguise classes, cracking safes, and DIY gadgets, George becomes an expert bandit and finds true friendship with Tabitha, his new partner-in-crime. But everything is ruined when George comes to a shocking realization: He is just too good-hearted to be a thief! 

Unfortunately, not thieving is not an option at Pilfer Academy, and "misbehaving" students face Dean Deanbuggle's favorite punishment—the Whirlyblerg! In order to gain their freedom, George and Tabitha must pull the biggest heist the school has ever seen and reveal their true colors not as thieves, but as kind (and, okay, mischievous) kids.

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Praise for Pilfer Academy

"Magaziner creates another weird and silly world that mirrors Hogwarts without the magic. . . A fun fantasy romp."--Kirkus Reviews

"School-story buffs with a taste for absurd, off-kilter humor will find this a welcome addition to the mix." -The Bulletin for the Center of Children's Books

Only the very best young thieves, crooks, and criminals in the making can attend Pilfer Academy, and naughty George has just been kidnapped as its newest student. At Pilfer Academy stealing is an art form and George soon discovers that many of his peers are true artists with no guilt for the pilfering they commit. A a rather mischievous and misbehaving boy, George enjoys his quirky classes, wacky teachers, and time at Pilfer Academy, but quickly learns that he’s just not cut out for the thieving lifestyle. With his new BFF’s help, George sets out to escape from Pilfer Academy, but can he get past Dean Dean Deanbuggle and his horrifying Whirlyblerg?!

Lauren Magaziner’s Pilfer Academy: A School So Bad It’s Criminal, is a wildly funny and zany romp through the world of thievery! With a charming and firecracker-like voice, Magaziner spins a larger than life tale that’s a perfect mix of humor, adventure, and heart. The grand, very large Gothic mansion, that is home to Pilfer Academy, is a wondrous and captivating place, especially since EVERYTHING inside it (including the students!) has been stolen, filched, pilfered, borrowed with no intention of returning...even the mansion itself has been stolen from France! Every nook, cranny, corner, and spare alcove, is bursting with an array of stolen items and artifacts, from the amazing to the downright bizarre.

Magaziner’s storytelling and voice in Pilfer Academy is very reminiscent of Roald Dahl books, where the wit zings, the odd and weird quickly become the norm, and every page is full of unexpected and colorful imagination. And like many of Dahl’s books, the adult characters in Pilfer Academy prove to be not-so-bright, but oh so entertaining wackadoodles, that allow the younger characters to shine. Pilfer Academy is full of precocious, engaging, and interesting youngsters.

Young readers will have a blast attending intriguing classes with George, delight in the oddball antics of the teachers, and be enthralled with the surprises-around-every-corner mansion.  

my final thoughts: Pilfer Academy is kooky, quirky, wacky, whimsical fun that will leave readers laughing and thoroughly entertained.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Lauren Magaziner recently graduated from Hamilton College. She lives in Brooklyn, New York. Her debut novel, The Only Thing Worse Than Witches, released from Dial/Penguin in August 2014. Her second middle grade book, Pilfer Academy, released on February 16, 2016.

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(MMGM) Lauren Magaziner, author of The Only Thing Worse Than Witches {Interview}

Be sure to check out the full schedule of this year’s 3rd Annual March MG Madness and enter to win a box of 6 books!

I'm so excited to have the very funny Lauren Magaziner stopping by the March MG Madness today to chat about her book...

The Only Thing Worse Than Witches

by Lauren Magaziner

8/14/14

Penguin/Dial

Roald Dahl meets Eva Ibbotson in this hilarious middle grade debut perfect for reading aloud

Rupert Campbell is fascinated by the witches who live nearby. He dreams of broomstick tours and souvenir potions, but Rupert’s mother forbids him from even looking at that part of town. The closest he can get to a witchy experience is sitting in class with his awful teacher Mrs. Frabbleknacker, who smells like bellybutton lint and forbids Rupert’s classmates from talking to each other before, during, and after class. So when he sees an ad to become a witch’s apprentice, Rupert simply can’t resist applying.

But Witchling Two isn’t exactly what Rupert expected. With a hankering for lollipops and the magical aptitude of a toad, she needs all the help she can get to pass her exams and become a full-fledged witch. She’s determined to help Rupert stand up to dreadful Mrs. Frabbleknacker too, but the witchling's magic will be as useful as a clump of seaweed unless Rupert can figure out a way to help her improve her spellcasting—and fast!

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What three words best describe The Only Thing Worse Than Witches?

CRIGGLY

GNOBBLED

SILLYSHORTS

Can you give us your best one sentence pitch to convince readers, especially reluctant readers, to give The Only Thing Worse Than Witches a try?

International spy thriller meets sci-fi whodunnit meets heart-wrenching contemporary meets supernatural adventure... is not this book; however, this book DOES have a boy who becomes the apprentice to a witch-in-training, disastrous magical blunders, a witchy seaside town, terrifying bunnies, a torturous teacher that smells like mushy bananas, Bologna Macaroni ice cream, and laughs on every page.

Grab a copy of The Only Thing Worse Than Witches and answer the following:

favorite chapter? Aughhhh it's a tie between a few, but today I'm really digging the chapter called “A Potion to Beat All Potions”

favorite page? Page 217.

flip to a random page and give us a 1-2 sentence teaser? “‘Children,’ she said, as though she was saying something truly awful like Root Canal or Pickled Sausages. ‘Today we will study vocabulary.’”

What inspired The Only Thing Worse Than Witches?  How did the story come to be?

When I was studying abroad in Edinburgh, Scotland, all the cobblestones and castles started getting me in a really witchy mood-- I knew I simply had to write a witch book. I wrote a few false starts, but it wasn't until I went on spring break to Positano, Italy when everything clicked. The thought of creepy witches residing in a sunny seaside town made me giggle. On the flight back to Edinburgh, I picked up my pen and began drafting The Only Thing Worse Than Witches! And yes, that first chapter I wrote on the plane is still in the book today (though it's not chapter 1 anymore).

There are some memorable characters in The Only Thing Worse Than Witches, do you have a favorite? What do you love about him/her? Did any of your characters end up surprising even you with the way they turned out?

I don't have just one favorite--I love them ALL. (How's that for a diplomatic answer!) But for purposes of answering this question more interestingly: I suppose I'm a little partial to Witchling Two. In my opinion, she's the funniest character. She’s a complete wackadoodle, but in a very adorable way. She can't do a single spell correctly and messes up constantly, but she never lets it get her down. She has a sunshiny, energetic way about her that makes her very fun to write.

Some of the witches quite surprised me. A few turned out very differently than I had originally planned, but to clarify how would be a bit spoilery...

If you were a witch, what kind of potion or charm would you make sure you always had on hand?

A chocolate potion for snacking, obviously.

As a middle-grade author, why do you think middle-grade is so important? What do you love about writing and reading middle-grade?

Middle grade is fun! It’s funny! It's charming! It can be silly and goofy and wacky and weird. I love middle grade for the laughter. As a kid, I always gravitated toward books that made me chortle; I think kids love to laugh. Middle grade is where a life-long love of independent reading starts, so it's important to have books that will grab kids by the eyeballs and never let them go--and make them realize that reading can be pure joy.

What is your all time favorite middle-grade book, middle-grade hero, and middle-grade heroine?

Book: Sideways Stories From Wayside School by Louis Sachar

Hero: Harry Potter from Harry Potter

Heroine: Matilda from Matilda

Fill in the blanks:

I’m really awesome at Binge-watching television.

I’m really embarrassed to admit that I binge watch a lot of television.

The last great book I read was Hope Is a Ferris Wheel by Robin Herrera--a funny, adorable, sweet, smart, emotional roller coaster middle grade.

If you were to create and bake a cupcake inspired by The Only Thing Worse Than Witches, what would it look and taste like, and what would you call it?

It would be called THE DREADED FAIRFOUL WITCH CUPCAKE: EAT IF YOU DARE.

It would be three feet tall, with alternating layers of cake, icing, ice cream, cookies, donuts, and lollipops. You would need a jaw-unhinging spell just to take a bite! (You'd best have a witch close by to help you.)

It would have lollipop the size of a head sticking out of it, and the top would be sprinkled with shredded carrots. The cupcake wrapper would have fortune cookie fortunes written all over it.

The Dreaded Fairfoul Witch Cupcake would morph tastes in your mouth. First it would taste like oodles and oodles of sugar, then sharp cheddar cheese, then hot french fries just out of the oiler, then dark chocolate with a bit of a bite, then a big bowl of hearty homemade soup, then the creamiest ice cream that ever were, then the most delicious, melty, warm-summer sea salt molasses paddle. The taste-splosion would made you feel tickled pink.

Fine print: the side effect of eating this cupcake will make you have side-splitting laughter for hours upon end (or at least until the cupcake passes through your digestive tract). But in the manufacturer's defense, the name of the cupcake does say EAT IF YOU DARE.

Thanks so much for stopping by Lauren! And that cupcake is AHH-MAZING and I want a dozen!!!

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Lauren Magaziner recently graduated from Hamilton College. She lives in Brooklyn, New York and works in children's publishing. Her debut novel, The Only Thing Worse Than Witches, releases from Dial/Penguin in August 2014.