Kid Konnection: The Tapper Twins Tear Up New York

Every Saturday, I host a feature called Kid Konnection -- a regular weekend feature about anything related to children's books. This week I'm going to share with you the second book in a series that I adore!

Summary: The Tapper twins' scavenger hunt takes cutthroat competition to hilarious new heights!

In the follow up to The Tapper Twins Go to War, Geoff Rodkey delivers another ultra-modern comedy told as oral history with texts, screenshots and smartphone photos. When Claudia initiates a citywide scavenger hunt to raise money for charity, it's not just the twins' opposing teams that run riot. With the whole school racing to trade in sights seen for points to score front row tickets at Madison Square Garden, they may not get to the finish line with their dignity-and social lives-intact! -- Little, Brown

Earlier this year, I reviewed THE TAPPER TWINS GO TO WAR (WITH EACH OTHER) by Geoff Rodkey. I absolutely loved this book and was so excited to learn that it was the first book in a planned series. The followup story, THE TAPPER TWINS TEAR UP NEW YORK, is now available; and I think I loved it even more... if that's possible.

In THE TAPPER TWINS TEAR UP NEW YORK, twins Claudia and Reese are back with more of their fun antics. This time, Claudia comes up with a great idea to make money for a charity -- a scavenger hunt in New York City. Reese and Claudia are, of course, on opposing teams (with a totally different strategy!); however, both kids find themselves up against some serious competition. Everyone wants to win the grand prize -- from row tickets for an event at Madison Square Garden! When the entire school is set loose on the streets of New York, just about everything thing that can go wrong does!

I thought THE TAPPER TWINS TEAR UP NEW YORK was fantastic and even funnier than the first book. That's really saying something because I loved the sibling rivalry and the all-out war in THE TAPPER TWINS GO TO WAR (WITH EACH OTHER.) In this book, the twins are technically against each other in their quest to complete the scavenger hunt with the most points; however, there are a few other teams from their school that give them quite the challenge. Don't worry, though, the twins still manage to make plenty of jabs at each other!

I loved Claudia and Reese from the moment I first "met" them in the first book, but now I can claim to adore their parents too. In this story, the twins' father exhibits some pretty irresponsible behavior, and I loved the banter between the parents that occurred as a result. I also liked that there was a group of popular (or mean) girls that made the scavenger hunt extra challenging for Claudia's team!

Once again, Mr. Rodkey has made a fun book that even the most reluctant readers will have a hard time putting down. The humor is just right for middle grade readers, and there are enough interesting "things" to look at in the book. THE TAPPER TWINS TEAR UP NEW YORK isn't a traditional graphic novel (mainly because the author claims he can't draw), but it does have a lot of "graphics" on the pages of this book. Since the book is written as an oral history, the author has included photographs, copies of emails, text message streams, maps and more to bring the story to life. They help to break up the reading for readers who aren't comfortable with a lot of text, but I think they are just plain fun!

THE TAPPER TWINS TEAR UP NEW YORK is very fast-paced and exciting but it also shows New York City in a fun way. I love New York so I especially enjoyed "visiting" landmarks with the various scavenger hunt teams. In addition, I think kids who aren't familiar with the city will appreciate seeing some of the famous (and not-so-famous) sights.

Finally, I enjoyed that THE TAPPER TWINS TEAR UP NEW YORK had a bit of a surprise ending. I don't want to give too much away but I will say that things aren't quite as they initially appear. I guess that's why it's up to Claudia and Reese to explain the entire catastrophe and clear up what local newspapers are reporting about the event!

I actually waited in line for an autographed copy of this book at the 2015 BEA.

If you'd like to participate in Kid Konnection and share a post about anything related to children's books (picture, middle grade, or young adult) from the past week, please leave a comment as well as a link below with your name/blog name and the title of the book! Feel free to grab the little button too!