Grand & Humble (Hardcover)

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Editorial Reviews

From Booklist

Gr. 7-10. In alternating chapters, Hartinger introduces two high-school kids who seem to be worlds apart. Harlan, 17, the gorgeous, brilliant son of a rich senator, appears to have it all; he never notices that his dad is always busy or that his mom is a control freak. Manny, also 17, is a theater geek, the child of a poor, nurturing single-parent dad, who has secrets that he won't share with his son. But the boys are alike in at least one way: both have panic attacks and recurring nightmares about drowning and being hit by a truck. Harlan's battle with his demonic mother is too purposive (his panic attacks will stop if he stands up to her), and readers may be confused about who's dreaming what until the plot cleverly twists to reveal a surprise. The minor characters are nicely drawn, including Harlan's best friend, Ricky, who is gay. Manny's best friend, Elsa, is deaf, and their signing talk is relaxed and friendly. Best of all, though, is the edge-of-fantasy feel that will make readers ask, "What if?" Hazel Rochman
Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved

Review

"A taut, skilfully woven psychological thriller with an ending they’ll never see coming." -- Bulletin of the Center for Children’s Books

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Product Details

• Reading level: Young Adult
  
• Hardcover: 224 pages
• Publisher: HarperTeen; First Edition edition (January 31, 2006)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0060567279
• ISBN-13: 978-0060567279
• Product Dimensions: 7.1 x 5.1 x 1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 10.4 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.6 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (14 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #887,401 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars GRAND AND WONDERFUL!, February 7, 2006

By	Linda Joy Singleton "Linda Joy Singleton" (Sacramento, CA USA) - See all my reviews

GRAND AND HUMBLE (YA/Harper Tempest)

I'm a fan of Brent Hartinger's writing so I was eager to read his newest book. I had no idea what to expect except I'd heard it was different that his other books. I'm going to be careful in this review not to reveal too much, but I can tell you that when I finished reading this book I literally said, "WOW!" And I'm still thinking about it, tempted to read it again to catch all the hidden meanings.

GRAND AND HUMBLE follows Manny, a humble likeable guy who is suddenly tormented by terrible dreams, and Harlan, a wealthy charismatic guy who is suddenly tormented by visions of death. As the chapters alternate from each viewpoint, the dreams and visions grow stronger, pushing the characters to delve deeper into secrets of the past. Manny's father seems to be hiding something and Harlan is being manipulated by his ambitious mother. Secrets are revealed and drive the characters toward a stunning revelation that takes places at the street intersection of Grand and Humble.

The characters are likeable, the pacing swift and mesmerizing, and the ending packs a surprising punch. Part mystery, part emotional journey. Excellent book! Highly recommended! I expect to see this on future YA award lists.

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Excellent, July 26, 2006

By	Brandon - See all my reviews

I've never read anything like this book (and that's a good thing). To say any more would be a bad thing. Just read it.

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Grand and Humble Review by Nick, June 15, 2006

By	Cindy K. Brazell "nicksreviews" (Shoreline, WA USA) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

Grand and Humble was awesome! It was a one of a kind book, and I have never read anything like it. I was always wanting to read more and find out what would happen next. Grand and Humble is about two boys, Manny and Harlan, that each live totally different life styles. Manny is a geek, with not a lot of money, and lives in a small house. Harlan on the other hand, is son of the senator, has more money than he knows what to do with, lives in a huge house, he is on the swim team, and on top of that he is the school president.
Now you're probably wondering how two totally different guys such as Harlan and Manny have anything to do with each other. Well, it is their senior year of high school and everything seems to be going great for both of them, until they start getting visions of them-selves getting hurt and even their deaths. After a few months the visions started getting out of control, and they don't know how much more they can take. What will happen when they find out the meaning of these visions?