Common Sense Media Review
By Mary Eisenhart
,
based on child development research. How do we rate?
Wacky duo adds mayhem to scavenger hunt in funny follow-up.
Parents Need to Know
Why Age 9+?
Any Positive Content?
Where to Read
What's the Story?
New York's zany Tapper Twins return, as sixth-grade president Claudia dreams up a scavenger hunt, which soon has her; her twin brother, Reese; their hapless parents; and their classmates from posh Culvert Prep involved in assorted mayhem across most of the five boroughs. It's all to raise funds to feed New York's hungry kids, but the prize -- front-row tickets at Madison Square Garden, to the event of the winner's choice -- quickly leads to a lot of unseemly, hilarious behavior. Still, says Claudia, those newspaper stories about "Schoolkid Scavengers Run Riot: Private School Kids, Parents in Fundraiser Fracas" are "almost completely not true," so she and the dramatis personae set the record straight in phone pictures and text messages.
Is It Any Good?
Formulaic-comedy veteran Geoff Rodkey is in top form in this text-message-and-phone-pic "oral history" of sixth-graders run amok (or not, depending on whose version you believe). The second installment in his Tapper Twins series, THE TAPPER TWINS TEAR UP NEW YORK, introduces readers to many of the city's attractions and activities, from the Staten Island Ferry to schmoozing with the paparazzi, while delivering nonstop snarky commentary in (G-rated) middle school language from a host of cartoonish -- but highly entertaining -- characters.
Don't look here for noble quests or inspirational speeches, but, as in much classic comedy, there's a strong sense of fair play, just comeuppance, and cleverness rewarded after many unexpected adversities.
Talk to Your Kids About ...
Families can talk about stories set in New York City. Which ones do you like best? Do they make you want to visit? What would you really like to check out when you get there?
Do you like the way the Tapper Twins stories are told in phone pictures and text messages? Do you think that's a good way to tell a story? Do you think you and your friends could write your own story this way about something that happened to all of you?
Do you think scavenger hunts are a good way to learn about a place? Create a scavenger hunt that involves things in your neighborhood.
Book Details
- Author :
- Illustrator : Geoff Rodkey
- Genre : Humor
- Topics : Adventures , Family Stories ( Siblings ) , Friendship
- Book type : Fiction
- Publisher : Little, Brown and Company
- Publication date : September 29, 2015
- Publisher's recommended age(s) : 8 - 12
- Number of pages : 288
- Available on : Audiobook (unabridged), Hardback, Apple Books, Kindle
- Last updated : September 30, 2025
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