Larry Verstraete

Before I start taling about the book, I want to talk a bit about the cover art.

I’m assuming you read the book description. Now look at the cover. It tells the story. You’ll see after you read it.

Bravo to the author for his fun, whimsical, telling cover!

Now to the story.

Nate thinks his Gramp’s death was mysterious. And that is confirmed when he’s drawn to a cardboard box. It contains clues and a map to a hidden treasure, the long missing “Shipment #35 – Gold.”

Nate quickly grabs the box, rescuing it from the garage sale and the creepy clutches of his neighbor, old man Fortier.

Sure that his Gramps was onto something, Nate enlists the help of his friend, Simon, to seek out the treasure.

They make their plans, jump on a bus, and set off on the adventure of all adventures.

But someone else knows about the treasure, and the race is on.

This book is like a blast to the past. I remember some wild adventures I went on when I was young. I never found the pot of gold at the end of the rainbow, never found cans of money buried in my back yard(got in trouble for those holes, LOL) and never found a treasure, but I had a grand time looking.

I felt that same excitement while reading this book. I was a part of the adventure. I also felt the fear, the doubt, and the hope.

While this is recommended for middle grade readers, some of the characters are kids and some are older adults, so I’d recommend this to anyone with a sense of adventure. It’s good, clean fun.

Here’s looking at you, kid.… (meer)

As an exciting read, At the Edge is series of story about people that find themselves in harrowing conditions, and the remarkable way people overcome adversity. The book is broken down into four chapters each about being on the precipice of danger, terror, injustice, and the impossible. In each chapter, there are several 3-5-page stories relevant to the chapter's theme. Stories range from Hurricane Katrina to the Holocaust, the unnamed man in Tiananmen Square to the passengers on United Airline Flight 93. Black and white photos and relevant quotes are laid out throughout the book.

3Q 4P This book is great at what is does. It provide quick synopsis of events for readers that might be challenged or uninterested in longer narratives. The writing is engaging and succinct, and the author is successful in making his point that humans have both an amazing capacity to overcome and amazing courage in some of the worst possible situations. Where none of the stories go into too much detail, this is not one of those books that you will not find on any awards lists, but is a great book to share with struggling teen readers that might find some of those a bit more challenging.… (meer)