14 of 14 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
Warning: This book is a spoof!, September 25, 2008
This review is from: The Kid Who Became President (Paperback)
Let me put it out on the table right now, right up front--this book is not to be taken seriously. Dan Gutman wrote the wildest, most implausible, fun book he could think of. Why? How have adult presidents done in office? Great? Really good? Horrible? Just to stir the waters a bit, Gutman published his book in time for the campaign season. Through the story he asks hard questions about presidential campaigns and candidates. Who do we elect as our President?
Gutman goes into the story with the proposition that even a kid could do as well as an adult in presiding over a country. Here are two give-aways that Gutman was spoofing: (These are obvious--I just wanted to have fun writing them)
1. What adult with even half a brain would vote for a 12-year-old kid, especially if that adult has a child that age or near it. Kids would put pressure on their parents to vote for Judson Moon? Parents would given in? Ya think?
2. Another wildly improbable idea is legally changing the age for president. It takes about nine months in the book. Congress is going to do this? No way. That's how you know that Gutman is pulling your leg.
That out of the way, we can examine the novel. I'm an old folk, a librarian to be sure, but still an old folk, and I thoroughly enjoyed this book. It was fun to watch (in my mind's eye) a mere child--no less President of the United States-- who still has parents tell him to clean up his room in the White House. As Judson tells voters during the campaign, he doesn't know anything.
What do you think one of the first acts of a 12-year-old kid would be? Did you guess that he flies in all his friends from his home in Wisconsin over for the weekend in the White House? Can you imagine 30 unsupervised 12-year-olds roving all over the White House?
Because he does "not know anything," several local and international events occur, with one of utmost importance, involving a nasty, despicable South American dictator. Another of great discouragement is that Judson's Chief of Staff resigns and goes back home to a normal school life in Wisconsin.
His First Babe, uh, First Lady is beautiful (at 12?) Chelsea Daniels, who does know her etiquette, and style, and flair. Judson's style is light-hearted even though it makes him enemies (that South American dictator). One of my favorite scenes involves Chelsea morphing from a social butterfly into a worker bee--drab in sweatpants, ponytail, but devoted to helping hurricane victims--sincerely so.
Underneath the fun and work of being President, Judson, too, learns the seriousness (he ran as a lark), dedication (he did want to do good), passion (has it, does get to use it), and experience (a dead end). Gutman laces the story with civics and government mini-lessons, but only enough to clue in a reader who might not know this information yet. It's well-done and certainly not offensive.
How it ends is left for the reader to discover. Trust me, everyone is satisfied and even happy. A truly fun reading experience. Not to be missed. As an older woman friend would say, "A hoot!" As my fifth-grade niece would say, "Snap!"
As Judson Moon said in his inauguration: "Let's Rummmmbbblllee!!"
Help other customers find the most helpful reviews
Was this review helpful to you? Yes
No
9 of 9 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Terrific Supplement to Social Studies!, October 19, 2004
This review is from: The Kid Who Became President (Paperback)
I am a 5th Grade teacher in northern Wisconsin. I have used this book, and the one previous to it, (The Kid Who Ran For President), for the past several years to supplement my Social Studies curriculum. Both the books are nothing short of fabulous. Even though it's fiction, Mr. Gutman has managed to incorporate tons of history, government, and political knowledge into both books. Even my most turned-off, negative readers can hardly wait for me to read each chapter. I think if it were made into a movie, it would be a blockbuster! I only hope that if they do, I can play the mom part! Mr. Gutman, you're a genius!
Help other customers find the most helpful reviews
Was this review helpful to you? Yes
No
9 of 9 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Kid Who Became President, The by D. Gutman: A superb book!, May 16, 2001
This review is from: The Kid Who Became President (Paperback)
If you don't want to read the whole review or don't want even the smallest secret revealed, here is an overview: Summary: Judson Moon, a thirteen year old, becomes President, only to be surprised about the realities of the Presidency. Grade: I have given this book a 96%, which is an A. Recommendations: Great for anybody who can understand politics and the effect the media has on it. 11 or 12 years of age would be a good minimum. Reading Level: The prologue rated 6.0 on the Flesch-Kincaid Scale, which indicates a grade 6 reading level. Further Reading: May I also suggest "The Kid Who Ran for President" by Dan Gutman, the prequel to this book.
"The Kid Who Became President" by Dan Gutman is an interesting book about a thirteen year-old boy named Judson Moon who becomes President after a grueling campaign of how he didn't know enough about politics to screw up the economy, raise taxes, etc. January 20, 2001 approaches, and he isn't too sure about being inaugurated as President of the entire United States of America. Would you want to be responsible for 281 million people? As he isn't married, he chooses one of his girlfriends to be "first babe" / lady. When she hears that he is thinking about resigning before he is even inaugurated, she gets very angry.
Ms. June Syers, Moon's babysitter from when he was younger, is his running mate as vice-President. Moon's Inaugural Address only proves his lack of political knowledge:
"...I'm not a Republican, so you Democrats have no reason to oppose me. I'm not a Democrat, so you Republicans have no reason to oppose me. But if we all work together, we can guide our nation into this new century.... Together we can put an end to crime, an end to poverty, an end to unemployment, an end to inflation, an end to peace in the world...." (Apparently, he had skipped a line in his speech, as there was a loud gasp from the crowd).
During his first week of presidency, Moon invites his seventh-grade class for an exclusive tour of the white house. He shows them all around, and they were all very amazed. However, the students started to get rowdy, so they had to walk an underground tunnel to a nearby swimming pool, where they are still as rowdy as ever, perhaps more, as they push Moon's personal bodyguard, Secret Service Agent John Doe (that is his real name) into the pool. The next morning, the event is all over the front page of national newspapers.
Early in his first year in office President Moon meets Supreme Ruler Raul Trujillo, the dictator who runs Cantania, at Moon's first state dinner. How unfortunate it was that the United States' decision to elect Moon insulted Trujillo. "I see the United States has sent a boy to do a man's job."
On Christmas Eve night, Moon is awakened by vice-President June Syers. He thinks that she is Santa Claus and goes back to sleep. When he hears that it is a national emergency, he groggily walks down to meet with everyone else. Cantanian troops are bordering Boraguay!
It just so happens that Trujillo is behind all of this, just to make things miserable for Moon. After they decide to meet privately on a cruise ship halfway between the United States and Cantania, Moon and Trujillo agree on playing a video game (I know it sounds out of context, but bear with me). If Moon wins the video game, Trujillo is forced to retreat. If Trujillo wins, however, Moon is forced to sit back and watch Boraguay be "blown to bits", so to speak.
Moon, being a teenager, is very good at video games, however there is one drawback-Trujillo gets to choose the game. Trujillo chooses a game made by a Cantanian game-maker called "World War IV." The two players are the United States of America and Cantania. The object is-total nuclear annihilation.
Each player has one hundred nuclear missiles and one movable "umbrella" that could be used to block incoming missiles. The game is very high-paced and there are advantages to each side-the United States is bigger, so it takes about fifty missiles to destroy it, while Cantania is smaller. It may take only two or three missiles to destroy Cantania, but there is less land to defend. Trujillo had played against his son for many years and had become good at it.
After an agreed-upon practice round, Moon stares at the screen, awestruck, that he was beaten. After a bit of strategic thinking, Moon tells Trujillo to reset the game-because this time it's for real!
Will Boraguay be "blown to bits"? or will Trujillo lose and continue to be angry? Will Moon assume that every problem is this easy to fix and that he really wants to be re-elected for a second term? or will he be under so much pressure that he quits even before his first term ends? Find out all of this and more by reading "The Kid Who Became President" by Dan Gutman. It's a really great book!
Help other customers find the most helpful reviews
Was this review helpful to you? Yes
No
