Jimmy Coates: Target [Library Binding]

Joe Craig (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: March 13, 2007 | Age Level: 10 and up | Grade Level: 5 and up

In the nonstop sequel to Jimmy Coates: Assassin? Jimmy is still being hunted by NJ7. He escaped from them once, but the government agency that created him won't let their eleven-year-old superassassin go. NJ7 want him working for them, or they want him dead.

Jimmy knows he'll never be a normal kid again. Too much has happened already. He struggles with the knowledge that he is only 38 percent human and created to kill. He is determined that if he can't be normal, at least he won't become a killer.

But someone from Jimmy's past —someone who can run, jump, and fight like Jimmy—is coming for him. And this teenage assassin doesn't share Jimmy's aversion to killing.

Editorial Reviews

From Booklist

Jimmy Coates, introduced in Jimmy Coates: Assassin? (2005), is mostly robot and 38 percent human. In the not-too-distant future, the government of Great Britain, a brutal dictatorship, conceives of Jimmy as a killing machine. Then Jimmy's human side takes over, and he joins forces with the government opposition. Deciding that Jimmy is too dangerous to keep alive, the prime minister sends another, slightly older robot boy to assassinate him. Rather than simply offering an exciting thriller, Craig explores deeper themes: it is Jimmy's human side, his inventiveness and ability to relate to people, that keeps him alive through the action-packed chases and escapes that fill the pages. The novel ends with Great Britain engaged in a war with the still-democratic France, Jimmy and his allies on the run, and the promise of more thrillers to follow. Morning, Todd --This text refers to the Hardcover edition.

Review

Praise for Jimmy Coates: Revenge"Boys love this stuff, and so do girls. Jimmy is a pint-sized verision of Robocop or Terminator… Like Anthony Horowitz's splendid fantasies, [these novels] tap into almost everything a bolshy boy wants and feels. Immensely clever, immediately engaging, they will prepare a child for Orwell and Huxley." Amanda Craig, The Times"Fast-paced and intelligently written." The Bookseller"the sort of book to wow reluctant boy readers away from computer games and into the pages of a book." Books for Keeps"Joe Craig has produced another thrilling page-turner." Jewish Chronicle"A rollicking good spy romp." School House magazine.Praise for Jimmy Coates: Target"With cinematic skill, Craig unrolls a series of action-packed scenes, with a new crisis at every turn of the page. It's gripping, but not mindless” Angela KilversteinPraise for Jimmy Coates: Killer“…a totally excellent adventure – a lit bit Bond, a lit bit Matrix and a lot of what you’ve never read before. Someone make this into a movie!” Flipside“A gripping action-thriller that’s packed with twists.” Funday Times“The perfect primer to the Bourne series by Robert Ludlum.” VOYA --This text refers to the Kindle Edition edition.

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Reading level: Ages 10 and up
  
• Library Binding: 272 pages
• Publisher: HarperCollins (March 13, 2007)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0060772670
• ISBN-13: 978-0060772673
• Product Dimensions: 8.4 x 5.6 x 1.1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 13.6 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (1 customer review)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #5,364,668 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

The Times of London already ranks Joe Craig alongside Anthony Horowitz and Charlie Higson as one of "the best spy-kids authors... outstanding at both writing and plotting."

Fans all over the world agree. His first book was one of the biggest selling children's book debuts of 2005 in the UK, and since then his 'Jimmy Coates' novels have become a hit with young action-thriller addicts everywhere, winning awards and inspiring 8-13 year-olds to become keen readers.

Craig (born 30 June 1981 in London) is an English writer, children's novelist and musician, best known for the Jimmy Coates series of books, described in several reviews as 'The Bourne Identity for kids'.

He studied Philosophy at Cambridge University then became a musician, composing scores for stage and TV, and songs for various pop artists.

"Joe Craig could be well justified as being compared to the great Anthony Horowitz." (Lovereading4kids.com)

"Few books have the power to drag boys away from their Xbox or Wii, but I've seen the Jimmy Coates series in action - Super Mario is no match for this schoolboy assassin." (The Independent, 50 Best Summer Reads)

Craig is consistently at the forefront of use of new media by children's writers. In 2005 he was one of the first authors to use Facebook to build a fanbase and enhance fans' experience of his writing, using character profiles as well as his personal pages to create an online world that reflected that of his books.

In 2007 he became one of the first children's writers to utilise Twitter as a means of communicating with fans and creating new stories. He continues to use both, as well as experimenting with new kinds of author videos and book trailers on video sites, such as youtube.

He lives in London with his wife and pets: a dog called Harpo and a dwarf crocodile called Professor Sven.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Courtesy of Teens Read Too, October 19, 2008

By 

TeensReadToo "Eat. Drink. Read. Be Merrier." (All Over the US & Canada) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Jimmy Coates: Target (Hardcover)

This is the sequel to JIMMY COATES: ASSASSIN?

I had a little trouble wrapping my imagination around a main character who was a robot but also 38 percent human, and who was programmed to be a killing machine. However, Jimmy is a very compelling character, especially when his human side takes over and decides to do the right thing.

The harsh government of Great Britain in Jimmy's era is a cruel dictatorship known as NJ7. Jimmy belongs to them, but then he joins forces with the opposition government. NJ7 realizes that Jimmy knows enough to be a serious problem to them, so they send another robot boy to kill him.

Joe Craig has an incredible imagination and he really puts it to the test in this exciting and innovative thriller. It is filled with high-octane chases and hair-raising escapes that kept me reading into the early morning hours. The personal inner conflict that Jimmy has between his human and robot sides is gripping. He desperately wants to just be a normal boy, but has to deal with the fact that he was created by NJ7 to kill.

I can't wait for the next installment of this great sci-fi/fantasy/action-adventure series.

Reviewed by: Grandma Bev