Customer Reviews

The Gollywhopper Games

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Twelve-year-old Gil Goodson and his parents have had a grueling 18 months of legal battles, press invasions and tarnished reputations in their Orchard Heights community. Gil's father, a former employee of the Golly Toy & Game Company, was falsely accused of embezzlement. And although the jury finds him innocent, a big chunk of the community refuses to accept it. Even Gil is the victim of emotional and physical harassment at school, and is chased off his sports teams. Thinking it won't ever get better, he begs his dad to move. However, the family can't afford it. Then Gil gets an idea.

To celebrate their 50th anniversary, Golly Toy & Game Company announces a huge event --- The Gollywhopper Games! Open to young people ages 11 to 15, contestants will compete in a series of clever puzzles and physical stunts to win a huge collection of prizes. Gil makes a deal with his dad: If he wins, then the family moves away from Orchard Heights forever. Easy, right? Not exactly. Since Gil's dad isn't an employee anymore, eligibility won't be an issue (though it could turn into a big problem later). But what definitely will be an immediate problem will be getting into the competition.

Twenty-five thousand kids will start off --- including 500 instant wins hidden in Golly Toy & Game products, 20,000 winners in a random drawing and 4,500 winners chosen at the front door the morning of the competition. It's the last one Gil is shooting for, as he lives mere blocks from the stadium where stage one of the competition is being held. He loads a backpack and grabs a sleeping bag, ready to camp out in order to be first in line. Unfortunately, unplanned events get in his way.

But, of course, Gil gets into the competition. The first round of games in the stadium will whittle down the contestants from 25,000 to 10. These finalists are instructed to arrive at the Golly Toy & Game Company building the next morning for the big fun to start. And what an amazing, incredible, adventurous day they have in front of them --- mind-boggling puzzles and physically demanding stunts hosted in a colorfully enchanted, dream-like warehouse, all in a race against time and each other to capture the huge prize. Win or lose, Gil is going to have the time of his life.

Jody Feldman's first book for kids is so much fun! The high energy level spans the entire book, from the introduction of lovable and relatable Gil, through the clever puzzles and amazing tasks, all the way to the all-to-soon ending. Feldman reveals her colorful imagination, intricate smarts and writing talents on every page. It's almost like the magical WILLY WONKA AND THE CHOCOLATE FACTORY meets the brain-tickling reality show "The Mole." Readers can have even more fun by trying to figure out the puzzles on their own before learning what the characters do. I highly recommend THE GOLLYWHOPPER GAMES, which will leave fans waiting impatiently for Feldman's next book.

--- Reviewed by Chris Shanley-Dillman, author of FINDING MY LIGHT and THE BLACK POND

The Gollywhopper Games is a cross between Dahl's Charlie and the Chocolate Factory and Balliett's The Wright Three. It has all the humor of Charlie and the Chocolate Factory without the bleakness, and it has all the brain-teasers of The Wright Three without any of the characters seeming stuffy. Jody Feldman has written a fun, fast-paced novel that gives kids credit for the brains in their heads and the kindness in their hearts.

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I have been a longtime fan of children's literature and continue to read juvenile fiction on a regular basis. I have no doubt that this is on its way to becoming a contemporary hit and a long-term favorite.

Comparison's can be made with Roald Dahl but the difference is that The Gollywhopper Games provides an opportunity for its protagonist, Gil, to actively prove his value and--more importantly--his self-worth. Charlie (of the famous chocolate factory) wins more by passivity than by anything he actually does; in essence, he is the least repellant of that motley crew. Here, Feldman shows a range of real young people and adults who are wonderful shades of gray. No one is perfect but no one is wholly bad. With an incredible amount of detail in both atmosphere and character, this is a tale of learning, forgiveness, teamwork, and self-fulfillment.

Feldman has created a fantastic world grounded in reality and populated it with real people and tantalizing puzzles. This is a must-read for anyone who enjoys a great book.

So, it's basically Charlie and the Chocolate Factory in a toy factory with a few twists. Not as dark. Nobody gets possibly sent to the incinerator, for instance, and there are no characters you'd really want to see go there.

But the influence is obvious. You have a boy, maybe not poor in money, but poor in friends. You see, his father was accused of embezzling money from the Gollywhoopper Toy Company. Never mind that he was acquitted, the town has already tried him and sealed the verdict. Charlie, called Gil Goodson here, wants to win the games so his family can have enough money to move away from all those who keep calling his father a thief.

You have a fantastical toy company hosting a special event. One way to get in is to find tickets in their products. (Cue "I've Got a Golden Ticket.") The kids will compete to win prizes. You've got your Veruca Salt type who gets in by buying so many products he has to get a ticket. You've a character who would be Augustus Gloop if Augustus were hooked on winning and not candy. A Mike Teavee (I guess she would be a Moovee, since she's hoping to be in films) with the spunk of a Violet Beauregarde. Perhaps the only odd man (or girl) out here is the character of Lavinia, an overprotected bookworm.

Although the book is put forth as realistic fiction -- I mean embezzlement is hardly a fantasy crime -- the Gollywhopper factory is just as fantastical as Wonka's chocolate factory. It almost overpowered the story for me at times. I kept thinking things like, "But they couldn't have built up and then torn down a waterfall that quickly," or, "Did they have rooms that revolved before the games or did they (unbelievable) build them for the competition?" And so forth.

Yet I can see the book's appeal. First of all, it is just a fun story. Just as every kid dreams of stumbling upon Wonka's amazing factory some day, I know the idea of this fantastical toy company will follow them to sleep.

The puzzles are quite fun, if not very challenging for the adult reader. In this respect, the books are quite different from Wonka. I think fans of Chasing Vermeer or they Mysterious Benedict Society might enjoy Gollywhopper for this reason, as well as the teamwork.

The teamwork is another key difference. The reader hardly feels sorry when Violet eats that gum and swells. She deserved it, right? But all the characters here, even cheaters like Thorn, have their redeeming points. And Gil can't get where he needs to without them.

However, the ending is more or less the same (if I wasn't sure that Felman was working with Wonka in mind from the beginning, by the time the ending comes complete with a Slugworth-like turnaround [yes, I know Slugworth was only in the first film] I was quite sure). This is sort of unsatisfying, as I was hoping for something a little more... original.

Gollywhopper Games isn't a wast of time -- far from it. It is riveting, and highly entertaining. If there was only time to read one or the other, I'd choose classic Dahl, but fortunately for us, there's time, and room, for them both.

This book is one of the 2011 Connecticut Nutmeg Award nominees, so I figured I'd give it a read before my 4th graders started. This book is basically an updated version of Charlie and The Chocolate Factory, with prizes and games and a factory tour that have been dumbed down enough for 10 year olds with short attention spans to be able to maintain their focus. The book zips along without much depth, and while it is entertaining, I can't say that it is well-written. Sentences and action sequences often seem to be missing words, and there were times when I would turn a page to continue reading, but then encounter a new sentence that seemed to have been added without looking back at what had been written before.

I wanted to love this book, but its shortcomings prevented that from happening. I do think this will engage reluctant readers, and will recommend it to those kids in my class who have short attention spans (there are many). However, I will not read this book aloud to my class since I don't think it is well written. I have a hunch Ms Feldman wrote a more intelligent book, but some editor came along and said, "Let's chop this up to make it easier to read."

The Gollywhopper Games, a page turner by Jody Feldman, is a fictional story about a boy named Gil Goodsen, who lives in Orchard Heights. He has wanted to move away from his house ever since The Incident, when his dad was accused of stealing money from the Golly Toy Factory. Ever since then he has been an outcast at school and called names like "son of a thief".

Gil enters the Gollywhopper Games, which are games that include wacky puzzles that have to do with the toy factory. If he wins the games he will have enough money to move away from his town. At the toy factory, he meets this girl named Bianca, and they both advance into the third round of the games and team up with 3 others, including a bully named Rocky who teased Gil before Rocky's family moved away. As Gil and Bianca advance into the final stage, Gil thinks he can fulfill his dream to win the games and move away from the Incident. But does he want to move anymore? I liked how the author included the puzzles and showed how Gil solved them in the book. This book is fabulous and I recommend it to kids ages 8-13.

I read this novel out loud to my sons, ages 8 and 11, and we all loved it. My 8-year-old is a bookworm, but my 11-year-old is a very reluctant reader. So I was thrilled that they were so eager to listen to me read. In fact, my older son got impatient halfway through the book and read the rest on his own. Terrific!

This novel is about a boy whose father is falsely accused of embezzling money from the Gollywhopper Toy Company. To avenge his father's name and to win money for his family, the boy enters the toy company's giant contest. He must work with teammates and solve puzzles to win the grand prize. My sons and I enjoyed trying to solve the puzzles together and guessing which player would be eliminated each time. Great fun!

The Golly-Whopper Games is a book that is fun to read. I wasn't quite sure if I would actually like it or not when I first saw it but it turned out to be interesting. The main character Gil Goodson and the book is told by him and all the emotions as he has to go through being an outcast in his school and his town after his father is falsely accussed of stealing money from the Golly Whopper Toy Company where he worked. Even after his father is found innocent, the town and Gil can't seem to get over all the drama. Since Gil's father is no longer an employee of the toy company, Gil is free to enter a contest that they are having. He hopes to win it, not for toys that he would win but so that he can his family can win the money and move away from their home town. The book is full of puzzles that you can slove with Gil as he makes his way closer and closer to the end of the game. If you like a good book with lots of puzzles, twists and a happy ending then you will enjoy this book, just like I did.

Everybody thinks Gil's dad is trying to steal money from the company. The rumors are making Gil's life miserable. His dad tells him if he win the Gollywhopper Games then they can move. So starts a game of trivia and logic. It's very exciting to see who answers which questions correctly, and all the problems that they encounter.

Great read. Would highly recommended it.

Only problem when received it, the cover and first 10 pages were torn.