Millions CD

Rating:
Summary: Money makes the world go around
Review: How should one spend a sudden windfall of a quarter of a million pounds? That is the question Damian and Anthony must answer when a large bag of stolen British sterling literally lands at their feet. The boys only have 17 days to decide what to do with it because the pound is going to be converted to the Euro, and the thieves who stole the money are monitoring the boys' every move. Add to their confusion the fact that they have recently lost their mother to an illness, which Damian copes with through an obsession with Catholic saints. It is Damian's engaging narrative and unique characterization that will sustain the reader through the occasionally awkward plot. The book is an fascinating look at how grief and loss can affect everybody differently. It also explores the concept of greed and how sudden influxes of money can bring about sudden, drastic change in one's life. Although the story seems disjointed at certain points, it is a solid adventure tale that will probably attract many middle school readers.

Rating:
Summary: two boys & a bagful of money
Review: So, what would you do if a million dollars in cash plopped into your life? Get yourself a copy of MILLIONS & find out what these two boys did. You'll find yourself laughing on every page, & sometimes getting teary-eyed because this isn't a "happy-ever-afterwards" kind of story...not exactly.

Set in the English Midlands near Manchester, just before the monetary system changed from pounds to Euros, Damian & Anthony have less than two weeks to spend the stuff before it becomes worthless. However, the money didn't just jump off the train on its own. Someone threw it & they want it back. Then there are the new neighbors who look like undercover agents; & a woman asking for donations for the poor, & of course, all the brothers' classmates who are willing to sell or do the oddest things for a handful of bills.

Rebeccasreads highly recommends MILLIONS for 8+ readers as a funny & sad adventure with some interesting ideas about wealth & happiness!

Rating:
Summary: You Will Love It!
Review: This book is amazing. It hooks you, then brings you in and you cant stop reading. Great for ages 10-12. YOU WILL NOT REGRET BUYING IT!

Rating:
Summary: Flat-out amazing
Review: When Brit Damian Cunningham talks about any topic, he likes to start with the patron saint of the story. His big brother, Anthony, is into money and investments, but Damian is fascinated by saints. As this story begins, the boys' mother has died. They've moved with their father into a new house and started attending a new school. Dad has instructed Damian to be excellent and he tries very hard to be good, partly because he's afraid his father will vanish, as his mother did, if he fails. To that end, he answers his teacher in class in such long-winded detail or is so "quiet" that his teacher is concerned.

Damian builds a hermitage, or retreat, of cardboard boxes down by the train tracks. There, he has visions of saints. When the saints talk to him, he always asks if they've seen his mother.

England is changing to a new money system, so people are exchanging their old notes for the new "Euros." The boys enjoy watching the trains carrying England's old money off to be destroyed. One night, Damian is in his hermitage, praying. The train thunders past. A bag with millions of the old-fashioned pound notes --- an unbelievable fortune! --- tumbles off the train, crashing into the hermitage. Damian believes it's a direct gift from God in sympathy for the death of his mother.

Damian and Anthony don't tell their father of their sudden wealth out of concern for taxes. They discuss all they can buy: sea monkeys, fancy bikes, cell phones, computer games, houses. They must spend their wealth in 17 days, because when the new money system goes into effect, their notes will be worthless. Life becomes more and more complicated when thieves and police enter the picture.

The brothers treat school kids to soft drinks, and then bribe them for favors. Damian and Anthony buy their classmates' belongings for huge prices. Soon, they're lying to their father about where all their new toys have come from. Damian wryly notes that there's no patron saint of lying.

This book is flat-out amazing --- I've never read anything remotely like it. It manages to be simultaneously funny, horrifying, fantastical, realistic, sad, touching, and shocking. The plot twists are unpredictable, and the characters are believably quirky. A truly excellent read.

--- Reviewed by Terry Miller Shannon ([e-mail])

Rating:
Summary: Wonderful Mystery/Suspense Novel for Middle Readers
Review: When Damian, a British fourth-grader, who is obsessed with saints, and helping others, finds a bag of money lying next to the train tracks, him and his older brother, fifth-grader Anthony, a schemer who thinks tricking people is the only thing that matters, try to spend it as quickly as possible. The money is all in pounds, which is somewhat of a problem, as England is about to convert their money to euros, and the two boys don't want to be left with a bag of worthless money, hence the shopping spree. But then some materialistic Mormons come into the picture, and begin snooping around, trying to figure out just what Damian and Anthony are up to.

I'm a huge fan of Brit lit, so I was very excited to see Frank Cottrell Boyce's new novel MILLIONS. The book is filled with excitement at every turn, as the two brothers fill their time spending money, while looking over their shoulder at the very same time. Filled with wonderful characters, who are sure to stay fresh in the readers mind, MILLIONS is a must.

Erika Sorocco
Book Review Columnist for The Community Bugle Newspaper