The Toilet of Doom [Large Print] [Paperback]

Michael Lawrence (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: September 2004

When these tempting words appear on the computer screen, Jiggy McCue can't resist. He hits "F for Flush" and...Oh dear. He really shouldn't have done that. Because the life he gets in place of his own is a very embarrassing one--for a boy.

Editorial Reviews

From School Library Journal

Grade 5-7-Jiggy McCue and the gang are back in another weird adventure. Milo lets it slip that his mysterious, anonymous friend has almost perfected a computer game, The Toilet of Life, which should not be played yet. The temptation proves too strong for Jiggy, though, and he pushes the forbidden letter F (for FLUSH) on the keyboard, which results in him and his friend Angie exchanging bodies. Now they are stuck in one another's skins until they can figure out a way to make the game switch them back. In the meantime, there is a lot of scatological humor regarding one gender getting used to the other's body parts and hormones as well as discovering that neither child's family is better or less strange than the other. Jiggy is a smart-mouthed boy who tells his story complete with derogatory comments about his intelligence, or lack thereof, in making certain choices that led to his temporary sex change. The humor is definitely typical of middle schoolers as is the dialogue with the characters calling each other a lot of names. There is also some gratuitous use of the word "hell." The major characters are all likable young people; the adults are shallow at best, as they never suspect there is anything amiss with the children. This is not great literature, but it is a fast-paced, entertaining read.
Nancy P. Reeder, Heathwood Hall Episcopal School, Columbia, SC
Copyright 2002 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

From Booklist

Gr. 4-6. As the latest story in the British Jiggy McCue series begins, Jiggy and his friends, Angie and Pete, are playing a computer game called the Toilet of Life. Unfortunately, the game is still in the developmental stage, and after they hit the "F for Flush" key, a strange fog envelops the room. When Jiggy and Angie wake the next morning, they discover that they have switched bodies. This leads to a series of comic situations involving skirts, underwear, washrooms, and gym class, until Jiggy and Angie manage to switch their bodies back. Before things get sorted out, though, there are more wild switches. Those familiar with the other stories about Jiggy will know that Lawrence steers clear of dry, brittle, Noel Coward-like English humor. Yet this effort delivers some laughs, even though it often takes the lowest road at the comedy intersection. Todd Morning
Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

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Product Details

• Paperback: 256 pages
• Publisher: Chivers North America (September 2004)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0754079139
• ISBN-13: 978-0754079132
• Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (1 customer review)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #10,245,040 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Since his first novel came out in 1995, Michael Lawrence has published over forty books for children and young adults, plus a personal memoir, Milking the Novelty, which covers a year in his life as a young photographer in London, Paris, and at a holiday camp in Wales.

His fiction includes The Aldous Lexicon, a trilogy about chance and reality (published as The Withern Rise Trilogy in the US), which he has issued as Kindle ebooks. He has also re-edited the three volumes into one extensive ebook (equivalent to around 700 printed pages) under the title The Realities of Aldous U, a trailer for which can be viewed on YouTube.

Several of Michael's books have won awards or been shortlisted for awards in England and America.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars funny, August 3, 2004

A Kid's Review

This review is from: Toilet of Doom (Red Apple) (Paperback)

It was a really funny book. It's totally different from the books I normally read, but it's OK. I like the cat, Stallone.