3 Below

3 Below (Floors #2)

by Patrick Carman

4 stars

240 pages

Published Sept. 1, 2012 by Scholastic Press

I read this book as a bedtime read-aloud to my 8-year-old son. He loved it, and couldn't wait for bedtime so I could read it to him. Since I got to read, and he stayed quiet for longer than 5 minutes, this was a win-win for all parties.

3 Below is Juvenile Fiction at its best - there are kids performing things that no responsible parents ever in a million years would let their kids do. No parental supervision at all, which I think is a kids' ultimate dream. Very Roald Dahl.

There are monkeys and burping and zip lines - things that would appeal to any kid. But beyond those silly things, the writing is spot-on for its audience. It's funny, and it doesn't use incredibly large words, so kids can understand what's going on; but it doesn't use dumb words either, so vocabulary is strengthened and stretched. A good balance between entertainment and education. But mostly entertainment.

And if it gets my kid excited about reading, I'll take it!