Small Change For Stuart

Middle graders, male or female, will be captivated by this book, but readers in that age range who like fantasy and magic, will simply love this story. From the first page of this Advance Reading Copy, I was engaged, and as I read, my lips curled into a smile. Although there are some fearful moments and times when the characters make some pretty foolish decisions, some serendipitous discoveries, and cause some major damage to exhibits they were exhorted not to touch, they and the story are wholesome, and the fearful moments are brief and resolve themselves quickly and without lasting issues.
The humor is gentle and feels true to life. There is just the right amount of silliness, secrecy and whimsy to fascinate a child. The author, Lissa show more Evans, has really captured the flavor of the ten-year-olds, in their conversations, mannerisms and deeds, as they try to solve a 40 year old mystery. Sometimes they do improper things, as children are wont to do, telling little white lies, even throwing caution to the wind and occasionally taking some pretty foolish chances. I wouldn't recommend that the children who read this story ever try to imitate anything these kids did, but the children who read it will love April and Stuart. Will these spunky children really discover the hidden workshop of the Magician, Teeny-Tiny Tony Horten, The Great Hortini, Stuart’s great-uncle who disappeared years ago along with his assistant?
Stuart is filled with a lust for life, but he also possesses the surliness of a boy who has been forced to move away from his friends, at the end of the school year, because his mom, a scientist, got a new job; he has no friends there, in Beeton, the town his father grew up in, and he has no prospect of making any until the summer ends and school begins again in his new neighborhood.
While going for a walk with his father, a crossword puzzle designer, they find the wreckage of the building that used to house his family business, Horten's Miraculous Mechanisms, and from there his dad begins to reminisce and tells him about his uncle Tony, a great magician! When they come across the wreck of his Uncle Tony's house, which has been empty for decades, Stuart is intrigued. His father had never told him about this part of the family. When they get home, Stuart, who is a curious child, has his interest piqued, and he gets his father's money box, given to his dad by his uncle Tony, and he finds a secret bottom with three pence coins in it.
From there the mystery takes off as Stuart seeks to find the clues which will lead him to the magician’s hidden workshop. On the way, he deals with many strange and magical occurrences, one of which is a disconnected phone which suddenly rings; he decides to answer. The person on the other end tells him the book he wanted is at the library. What book, he thinks? He hasn’t asked for any. The book, at the library, contains some photographs, and in each one, there is a picture of his great-uncle. Will these magical moments lead him to the clues he needs to solve the mystery? Can he do it alone? Fate intervenes in the form of one investigative reporter, April Kingley, who becomes Stuart’s partner in crime. She is one of a set of triplets, (the others being May and June), who are putting out a newspaper. They live in the house adjacent to Stuart’s.
When Stuart begins his investigation to find the missing workshop of his great-uncle, April is busy investigating him. It took a bit of convincing, but she has a very strong personality and eventually, in spite of his rude replies, wins him over and joins him in his effort. She is taller than Stuart which makes her very useful since he is very short for his age. Stuart has a really casual way about him, taking most things in stride. He is curious and loves adventure. He wonders often about his parents choice of name for him; They named him Stuart Horten, also known as S. Horten or Shorten, and then Shorty to teasing friends. April wears glasses and Stuart would like to be taller. These are regular, run of the mill, normal children with normal problems. They work together, helping each other to achieve their goal, each using the skills that overcome their handicaps of vision and height.
There is another heroine of sorts, in this story, an elderly blind woman and her guide dog Pluto. She is a sweet and kind lady who helps the children solve the mystery. Her sister was the magician’s assistant. The story wouldn’t be complete without its villains and Jeannie and her magic school student, Clifford, fill this role. She is a devious, bitter, rather unethical bully and he is fooled by her false promises.
This fantasy is very creative and well written. The characters are well developed. There are no missing pieces in the story; everything falls into place and is resolved. Reading this book, children will be inspired to dream, to believe that they can overcome their shortcomings, to think that the impossible might be possible and to believe that wishes might sometimes come true if you work hard enough to make it happen.
A wonderful part of this book is that the author has the child and father engaging in conversation without talking down to the child in baby language. The vocabulary is not your everyday garden variety, but when a word that a child would not readily understand is used, it is explained immediately after, either with Stuart questioning his dad or the author writing the definition into the tale. It is a marvelous story that will take the 8-12 year old boy or girl on a journey into a magical, mystical land of new experiences. It will let their imaginations soar. show less

Stuart Horten is small for his age and to make matters worse he was given a name that “could be written down as S. Horten” and anyone could see that given his stature and unfortunate name he could very well be nicknamed Shorten. That is OK, because Stuart’s life is good he has a great house that he has lived in all his life, a tree house, a bike and tons of friends. But all that is about to change when his mother who is “a doctor (not the sort who stitches up bleeding wounds, but the sort who peers down a microscope)” lands a new job in Beeton; which just so happens to be the town his father was born in. Now, Stuart is forced to move away from all his friends and the only house he has ever lived, and if that weren’t bad show more enough he has to do this at the start of summer vacation! So what is a ten year old boy to do with all this time on his hands and no friends? If you are Stuart, you happen upon an adventure.
One morning Stuarts father, who is “a writer (not of films or of bestselling books, but of difficult crosswords)”, asks Stuart if he would like to go on a “brief perambulation” and it was on this short walk that Stuart learns of the family business, Horten’s Miraculous Mechanisms and of his Great-Uncle Tony’s “lost legacy.” And when Stuart finds “eight threepenny bits” and a secret note meant for his father hidden in one of his father’s mechanisms given to him by his uncle, Teeny-Tiny Tony Horten, it sets up Stuart for the adventure of a lifetime, whereby Stuart will make both friends and enemies.

I loved this little book! This wonderful book, also being short in stature (one of the undersized type paperbacks), is 270 pages packed full of excitement. The characters were great, we did not see much of Stuart’s mother, but you still got a great sense of who she was, and Stuart’s dad…oh my, I loved him and his large vocabulary! My thirteen year old son is going to love that character. Oh and the bit where Stuart says he should just have a question mark tattooed to his forehead so every time his dad says something he could just point to it… I could see this so clearly in my mind.
Stuart’s neighbors, triplet girls named April, May and June (clever naming *grinning*), run a little newspaper and at first are nothing more than pest for Stuart, but later play a vital part in finding his great-uncle’s hidden workshop before it is too late.
This book brought on a case of nostalgia and sent me back to my childhood; a more carefree time, where we kids were outside all day during summer, bike riding for blocks and making adventures. Not coming home till the streetlights came on and sometimes, on rare occasions, having magnificent night time excursions.

Although this is a book geared towards middle-schoolers, I highly recommend it to everyone!
I received my Advanced Readers Copy of Horten’s Miraculous Mechanisms from a Library Thing member’s giveaway. I hear the British title was Small Change for Stuart… which, in this girls opinion, is a much better title. show less

I was not a reader until adulthood. I suppose that is at least part of why I am very drawn to juvenile fiction. This book would be perfect for 8-11year olds.

I really enjoyed this book. The interesting title is what first grabbed my attention in the bookstore, and the dust-cover was also intriguing. Its setting in England was also a draw, of course. S.Horten is a smart boy. When he and his parents move house he finds himself living next door to triplet girls. The mystery is intriguing and fun. I am eager to read more of the books in this series.

Stuart Horten is small for his age and to make matters worse he was given a name that “could be written down as S. Horten” and anyone could see that given his stature and unfortunate name he could very well be nicknamed Shorten. That is OK, because Stuart’s life is good he has a great house that he has lived in all his life, a tree house, a bike and tons of friends. But all that is about to change when his mother who is “a doctor (not the sort who stitches up bleeding wounds, but the sort who peers down a microscope)” lands a new job in Beeton; which just so happens to be the town his father was born in. Now, Stuart is forced to move away from all his friends and the only house he has ever lived, and if that weren’t bad show more enough he has to do this at the start of summer vacation! So what is a ten year old boy to do with all this time on his hands and no friends? If you are Stuart, you happen upon an adventure.
One morning Stuarts father, who is “a writer (not of films or of bestselling books, but of difficult crosswords)”, asks Stuart if he would like to go on a “brief perambulation” and it was on this short walk that Stuart learns of the family business, Horten’s Miraculous Mechanisms and of his Great-Uncle Tony’s “lost legacy.” And when Stuart finds “eight threepenny bits” and a secret note meant for his father hidden in one of his father’s mechanisms given to him by his uncle, Teeny-Tiny Tony Horten, it sets up Stuart for the adventure of a lifetime, whereby Stuart will make both friends and enemies.

I loved this little book! This wonderful book, also being short in stature (one of the undersized type paperbacks), is 270 pages packed full of excitement. The characters were great, we did not see much of Stuart’s mother, but you still got a great sense of who she was, and Stuart’s dad…oh my, I loved him and his large vocabulary! My thirteen year old son is going to love that character. Oh and the bit where Stuart says he should just have a question mark tattooed to his forehead so every time his dad says something he could just point to it… I could see this so clearly in my mind.
Stuart’s neighbors, triplet girls named April, May and June (clever naming *grinning*), run a little newspaper and at first are nothing more than pest for Stuart, but later play a vital part in finding his great-uncle’s hidden workshop before it is too late.
This book brought on a case of nostalgia and sent me back to my childhood; a more carefree time, where we kids were outside all day during summer, bike riding for blocks and making adventures. Not coming home till the streetlights came on and sometimes, on rare occasions, having magnificent night time excursions.

Although this is a book geared towards middle-schoolers, I highly recommend it to everyone!
I received my Advanced Readers Copy of Horten’s Miraculous Mechanisms from a Library Thing member’s giveaway. I hear the British title was Small Change for Stuart… which, in this girls opinion, is a much better title. show less

Horten's Miraculous Mechanisms is a charming read. It manages to combine elements of some of my favorite American books from childhood - Encyclopedia Brown, Harriet the Spy - while managing to have a decidedly British flavor of storytelling. In its storytelling style it reminds me most of Joan Aiken with a bit of Roald Dahl mixed in. If you're thinking that this is high praise, it is. This book really delivers.

Horten is a misfit kid, plopped into a new environment, and given that very best thing of all - an adventure. There are puzzles and clues and destinations and secrets and evildoers plus it's all one great big scavenger hunt. Along the way Horten gains confidence and makes friends in unlikely places. Everything wraps up into a show more delicious ending and the entire book was an enormous pleasure to read. Highly recommended for middle grades and up (that includes all the rest of you that really need a good kids' book to read). show less

Stuart Horten is not at all pleased when his parents announce they are moving to Beeton at the beginning of the summer - the worst time to move. Yet when Stuart discovers a clue left by his Great-Uncle Tony Horten (stage name Teeny Tiny Tony Horten), he sets off on a treasure hunt around town. His quest becomes more urgent when nosy next door neighbor April Kingley informs him that Great-Uncle Tony's house is slated for demolition; reluctantly, Stuart invites April into his quest. They are helped by Leonora, whose sister Lily was engaged to Tony and disappeared, and pursued by Jeannie, a money-hungry mayor who wants to mass-produce Tony's marvelous mechanisms.

A mystery with a touch of magic. Marvelous.

A great read aimed at a middle school or young adult audience. This book follows the adventures of Stuart Horton, a 10 year old boy who has just moved to a new town. He learns that his great-uncle was a famous stage magician and inventor. Stuart finds clues left behind by his great-uncle which lead him on a treasure hunt across town looking for the hidden workshop. During his quest Stuart meets and eventually befriends his neighbors, triplet girls, and an elderly blind lady named Lenora. He also develops an enemy who is also searching for the shop, to exploit the inventions for monetary gain. Stuart moves to a new town, learns some family history, makes new friends, and eventually finds the shop, all in one summer vacation.
ARC of the show more book received as a member giveaway. show less