The Ministry of SUITs

May 9, 2016
Debut author Gamble combines outrageous adventure and a tongue-in-cheek tone to create a novel that’s both thoughtful and filled with laughs. Jack Pearse is a naturally curious 12-year-old who lives in Northern Ireland. After his quick thinking thwarts a rampaging bear, the Ministry of Strange, Unusual, and Impossible Things comes calling. Recruited by the organization, Jack is paired up with Trudy, a classmate with “a reputation for being dangerous and punching people who irritated her,” to uncover the mystery of their school’s new sponsor, as well as why students—particularly those considered odd or loners—have been disappearing. While the children occasionally succeed where adults fear to tread, the story is presented as a cooperative effort among heroes young, old, and inhuman. Relatively short, action-filled chapters keep things moving briskly, despite interruptions from frequent (and quite funny) footnotes and excerpts from the Ministry handbook, which cover everything from the role of kangaroos in the manufacturing of duvet covers to why pirates “always bury their money rather than making use of more convenient online banking.” Ages 9–13. Agent: Gemma Cooper, Bent Agency.

April 1, 2016

Gr 4-6-Jack is constantly curious about everything, especially some odd happenings at his middle school. His misfit best friend, David, is the complete opposite. When the mean P.E. teacher punishes forgetful students by making them wear used, stinky, stained, and tight uniforms plucked from the creepy Box of Spares, Jack becomes convinced that the previous owners of these clothes were kidnapped. Also intriguing is a sinister new school sponsor who presents the school with puzzling gifts, including a wind turbine, new carpets, and polyester uniforms that look identical to the old. The same strange day, Jack's curiosity is rewarded by a job offer from Mr. Grey of the Ministry of Strange, Unusual, and Impossible Things (S.U.I.T.s), an organization that deals with creatures that no one believes exist anymore, such as pirates, dinosaurs, and zombies. He hopes by joining up he can solve the mysteries at his school. He almost changes his mind when he finds out that he needs to partner with scary fellow student "Moody Trudy." But he is impressed when he sees her demonstrate a Ministry technique in which she walks on the ceiling and defeats her foes with incredible acrobatics. Jack realizes that by making himself as miserable and unhappy as possible, he, too, can learn the Speed technique. Jack and Trudy's prowess comes in handy when they are attacked by half-man, half-lizardlike creatures; giant moles; and a steam-powered bone dinosaur. Gamble's debut novel is overflowing with offbeat humor, though the numerous footnotes and Ministry Handbook entries can be distracting and break the flow of the otherwise swift-moving plot line. VERDICT An entertaining read for fans of humorous adventure, such as Michael Buckley's "NERDS" series.-Diane McCabe, John Muir Elementary, Santa Monica, CA

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