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Game Over, Pete Watson
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When videogame obsessed Pete Watson discovers his dad is not only a super-spy but has been kidnapped and is now trapped inside a video game, he has to use his super gaming skills and enter the game to rescue him. Will he be able to save his friends and family and the entire world from giant mechanical cockroaches and a massive cyber attack set to take down the world's net
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Hardcover, 224 pages
Published
March 11th 2014
by HMH Books for Young Readers
(first published January 1st 2014)
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Start your review of Game Over, Pete Watson
Don't go into this expecting great literature or feasibility. If you go in looking for what it sets out to be: a high-interest, wacky, fun chapter book that lives somewhere between Diary of a Wimpy Kid, Alex Rider and Grasshopper Jungle, appropriate for upper elementary and middle schoolers, you will have a great time.
Pete tells his story - and it's one of video games, secret missions, creepy villains, and secret identities.
I used this as my opener for every booktalk presentation I did in 20 ...more
Pete tells his story - and it's one of video games, secret missions, creepy villains, and secret identities.
I used this as my opener for every booktalk presentation I did in 20 ...more
If you can imagine a Wimpy Kid-Captain Underpants-Scooby-Doo fusion, this might just be it. But that’s also exactly the reason why this book makes me feel old – I wanted to enjoy it so badly, but it had so much fun-yet-nonsensical material that my brain just refused to process certain scenes. Game Over, Pete Watson is a middle-grade spy thriller that feels more bizarre than funny to me, but I think that kids who actually fall in the middle-grade range will enjoy this more than young adults and a
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Some things are just guilty pleasures. As a person that’s grown up with video games, you have to admit they’ve become part of our culture. Author Joe Schreiber takes that idea and spins it into a fun story involving a kid, an old gaming console, and a secret plot to hack the CIA and every computer on the planet. Game Over, Pete Watson knows how to have fun.
For starters, Pete is a pretty average kid who loves video games. He’s been saving up money for the latest release of his favorite game franc ...more
For starters, Pete is a pretty average kid who loves video games. He’s been saving up money for the latest release of his favorite game franc ...more
I picked this book up for my nephews. They have gotten into the computer games, so I thought they would like this book. I read it first to see how it was. I liked the book. Pete was a good guy. Someone that my nephews will relate to while reading this book. The adventure that he finds himself in helps keep things moving and exciting. The author does understand his characters. To admit while reading this book, I think the author might have the "Peter Pan syndrome". In fact, he could very well hav
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Hilarious book that fans of The Wimpy Kid will devour from cover to cover.
That's a simply nutty retro fun book kids will enjoy with a Scooby Dooesque ending! Forget logic! Enjoy!
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This book is about a boy who loves to play video games. A new game is coming out and he doesn't have enough money to buy it so he sells his dads old game console to a man for $20. It turns out this almost causes a chain reaction to the end of the world. From the help of Pete's friends and odd suspicious neighbors acting like they are on his side, Pete saves the world with his dad in an 8-bit world.
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Look, what do you want from this book? With all honesty, you know what you’re getting into and this book delivers. Plot holes abound and it’s entirely preposterous, but that’s kind of what it’s supposed to be. This is a fun story for people who are interested in video games and it’s a quick, light-hearted read to give you some entertainment and laughs. The art really does add to the story, helping continue the written voice of Pete. Have some fun!
I gave it a five star rating because its really funny and its about video games. my favrite part is when they took off ms.werteys mask.
Read this book to my kids. Totally loved it! Many much laughs. 10/10 recommend.
Great book
This was a fun book. My 9yro gave it 4 stars. I give it 3
Pete is all set to sneak over to the game store and purchase Brawl-a-Thon 3000 when he realizes that his mother has borrowed a much needed $20 from his savings. Ever the quick thinker, he hauls junk out of the basement and has an impromptu garage sale. Luckily, he gets $20 from an exterminator for his father's old CommandRoid gaming system. When he goes off to the store to buy the game, he sees his father kidnapped in front of him, and when the president appears on television spewing nonsense, P
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Review originally posted here at Children's Atheneum.
Pete Watson is a bit video game obsessed. When he doesn't have enough money to buy a new video game, he quickly grabs some junk from around the house and has an impromptu yard sale. What he can't know is that his dad is not only a super-spy, but he has also been kidnapped and is now trapped inside the very video game that Pete sold at his yard sale.
Pete Watson is the kind of character that a lot of boys will be able to relate to. Heedless, hea ...more
Pete Watson is a bit video game obsessed. When he doesn't have enough money to buy a new video game, he quickly grabs some junk from around the house and has an impromptu yard sale. What he can't know is that his dad is not only a super-spy, but he has also been kidnapped and is now trapped inside the very video game that Pete sold at his yard sale.
Pete Watson is the kind of character that a lot of boys will be able to relate to. Heedless, hea ...more
Pete Watson has just saved up enough money to buy the newest, best video game ever: BRAWL-A-THON 3000 XL. But on the day of the release, when he goes to his savings jar to get the money, he finds an IOU from his mom saying that she borrowed $10. Panicked, Pete starts an impromptu garage sale to earn the money back. His parents won't miss any of this old junk, right? There's no way his dad's ancient video game system actually contains top secret coded CIA secrets, right? Unfortunately, Pete sets
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Full review at http://thebookshelfgargoyle.wordpress...
I received a digital copy of this book for review from the publishers via Netgalley.
Ten Second Synopsis:
Pete Watson, doyen of video game Brawl-a-Thon 3000, indadvertently enters a world of state secrets, espionage and giant mechanical cockroaches when he holds a garage sale to raise money to buy Brawl-a-Thon 3000 XL.
While not the best of the bunch of books in this format and genre floating about, there's plenty here that's new and different ...more
I received a digital copy of this book for review from the publishers via Netgalley.
Ten Second Synopsis:
Pete Watson, doyen of video game Brawl-a-Thon 3000, indadvertently enters a world of state secrets, espionage and giant mechanical cockroaches when he holds a garage sale to raise money to buy Brawl-a-Thon 3000 XL.
While not the best of the bunch of books in this format and genre floating about, there's plenty here that's new and different ...more
I received a review copy from Amazon Vine.
I requested this book, because I thought my 4th grader would like it. And he did -- sort of. He picked it up right away, which is great, because he's kind of picky (or at least stubborn, if he decides he doesn't like something!). He read through it pretty quickly and ended up passing me up (we often have dueling bookmarks if we are both reading).
There was a lot to like -- a sort of mystery/adventure when Pete has a yard sale to raise money to buy the ne ...more
I requested this book, because I thought my 4th grader would like it. And he did -- sort of. He picked it up right away, which is great, because he's kind of picky (or at least stubborn, if he decides he doesn't like something!). He read through it pretty quickly and ended up passing me up (we often have dueling bookmarks if we are both reading).
There was a lot to like -- a sort of mystery/adventure when Pete has a yard sale to raise money to buy the ne ...more
Pete Watson has been saving up to buy the newest version of his favorite video game. One the day it goes on sale he finds an IOU from his mom and is $20 short. So he decides to have an impromptu garage sale where he sells his dad's old gaming console to a bug guy. When he goes to buy his new game he sees his dad kidnapped and learns from his neighbor that dad was really a CIA analyst and the game console has all the CIA secrets on it. Pete enlists the help of his friend Wesley and Wesley's siste
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NOTE: I received a copy of Game Over, Pete Watson for free from Goodreads First Reads. The review below is entirely of my own opinion.
"Aren't you ever going to do anything but play video games?"
It's something we hear from our parents on a regular basis. For Pete Watson, it's getting old hearing his parents tell him that video games are a pointless waste of time. But when his father is kidnapped and put into a video game, Pete's "useless" skills become more important than even he imagined.
Game Ov ...more
"Aren't you ever going to do anything but play video games?"
It's something we hear from our parents on a regular basis. For Pete Watson, it's getting old hearing his parents tell him that video games are a pointless waste of time. But when his father is kidnapped and put into a video game, Pete's "useless" skills become more important than even he imagined.
Game Ov ...more
Summary:
Pete Watson loves video games. He's been saving up for the latest and greatest video game. In order to make some money, he sells his father's old video game console. Unfortunately for Pete, that console was actually a spy device and now everyone wants it to crack the code into every computer system in the world. How can Pete possibly survive without his game being over.
My thoughts:
This is a fun book. It is often humorous and has some twists that were unexpected. There is a bit of a myste ...more
Pete Watson loves video games. He's been saving up for the latest and greatest video game. In order to make some money, he sells his father's old video game console. Unfortunately for Pete, that console was actually a spy device and now everyone wants it to crack the code into every computer system in the world. How can Pete possibly survive without his game being over.
My thoughts:
This is a fun book. It is often humorous and has some twists that were unexpected. There is a bit of a myste ...more
Game Over, Pete Watson is a novel by Joe Schreiber. Well Pete is really the author of the story, insisting that certain parts will be different in the "digital version" of the book. Pete tells the story of how he saved the world when his CIA dad got trapped in a video game. Yeah.
Game Over, Pete Watson is a really easy read. But it's not that entertaining or enjoyable. There are some funny moments, but nothing amused me that much or surprised me. Pete is kind of a jerk with a fat, dorky friend, w ...more
Game Over, Pete Watson is a really easy read. But it's not that entertaining or enjoyable. There are some funny moments, but nothing amused me that much or surprised me. Pete is kind of a jerk with a fat, dorky friend, w ...more
I read this aloud to my 13-year old son, who grants it 3.5 stars. He liked the illustrations, and the video game theme appealed to him. It was probably a bit young for him, but it was a fast read.
The book offered some amusement, even if a lot of it involved me rolling my eyes. My favorite present as a kid was my Atari 2600, so I felt comfortable with the gaming references and that part of the story helped to keep my interest up. It was too silly for me, the characters were too stereotypical, and ...more
The book offered some amusement, even if a lot of it involved me rolling my eyes. My favorite present as a kid was my Atari 2600, so I felt comfortable with the gaming references and that part of the story helped to keep my interest up. It was too silly for me, the characters were too stereotypical, and ...more
Another nominee for the 2015/2016 Surrey Schools Book of the Year award.
A book that will appeal to students, especially boys, thanks to the front cover, but left me hoping it doesn't take the Best Book prize. The storyline is cute and exciting, but I was left thinking: is the main character, Pete Watson, not a bit mean and conceited? I'm not sure he is a good role model for students, especially the way he speaks about and treats his off-again on-again best friend Wesley.
Definitely not my favou ...more
A book that will appeal to students, especially boys, thanks to the front cover, but left me hoping it doesn't take the Best Book prize. The storyline is cute and exciting, but I was left thinking: is the main character, Pete Watson, not a bit mean and conceited? I'm not sure he is a good role model for students, especially the way he speaks about and treats his off-again on-again best friend Wesley.
Definitely not my favou ...more
I read this since it is a choice for the incoming 6th grade summer reading, I wanted to help them decide which of the 15 books to read and report on...
I didn't care for this book and found it very hard to get through, but I'm not the target audience... This reminded me of Captain Underpants, with the stupidity and Scooby-Doo, towards the end... I felt like this tried to be too much like Diary of a Wimpy Kid, with a main character whose best friend drives him crazy, while also making terrible de ...more
I didn't care for this book and found it very hard to get through, but I'm not the target audience... This reminded me of Captain Underpants, with the stupidity and Scooby-Doo, towards the end... I felt like this tried to be too much like Diary of a Wimpy Kid, with a main character whose best friend drives him crazy, while also making terrible de ...more
Wickedly funny and is a very fast read. Kids grades 4-7 will eat it up. Cleverly written, this book will be especially enjoyed by boys who play online games. Pete Watson finds himself embroiled in a plot to end the world. His father has been shrunk to the size of a computer game character; a retired militant English teacher is out to reform Pete's grammar; an exterminator is following Pete around; and Pete's best friend, Wesley, tries to help solve the mysterious goings on.
Joe Schreiber's humor ...more
Joe Schreiber's humor ...more
Game Over, Pete Watson is hilarious, fast-paced read perfect for middle grade readers. Fans of video games and far-fetched tales will delight in this story. The pictures and humor about the enhanced version of this book mentioned by Pete repeatedly enhance the story and hilarity of this novel. I can see many students clamoring to read this title focused on video games and an outlandish, unbelievable story.
While this book isn't exactly my cup of tea, there will be some reluctant readers, especially boys, who will like this for the light and silly reading that it provides. A dash of Diary of a Wimpy Kid with a bit of War Games and Wreck-it-Ralph will make kids want to pick it up. If it's easily available for me to purchase it - through Scholastic Book Fairs perhaps - I will definitely pick it up for them.
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Picked this one up to try to encourage my reluctant reader to dip her toes into the world of chapter books. I'm going to keep looking.
I was hoping that this would be a Ready Player One for the younger set, but it just didn't work. Some of the reviews on this book are funnier and wittier than the actual story turned out to be. I refuse to settle for children's literature that is just so-so. Onwards! ...more
I was hoping that this would be a Ready Player One for the younger set, but it just didn't work. Some of the reviews on this book are funnier and wittier than the actual story turned out to be. I refuse to settle for children's literature that is just so-so. Onwards! ...more
Trying to find books to turn my 9 year old onto reading. He liked this one. I think I'll do it as a read aloud for my fifth grade class. The language is accessible. There's some humour and even a teeny bit of romance that made my son cringe. The chapters are fairly short with some cliffhangers. These are qualities I like in a read aloud. I can take my Atari 2600 in to class as a visual aid. Not sure they'll know what a joystick is!
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Feb 26, 2014
Brandy Painter
marked it as set-aside
While I can see this book being a useful thing to include in a classroom or school library for reluctant readers, I was unable to finish it myself. It was too absurd and silly for my personal tastes, but I know kids would love it and eat up every word. It's worth checking out to see if it will work in your collection for those kids. It's a fast read with cute illustrations.
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Joe Schreiber was born in Michigan but spent his formative years in Alaska, Wyoming and northern California. Until recently, he has never lived in the same address for longer than a year. Before settling in Hershey he lived in New York, Boston, Martha’s Vineyard, Chicago, Los Angeles, Portland (OR), and Philadelphia. Becoming a parent forced him to consider a career with more reliable income, and
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Kerine Wint is a software engineering graduate with more love for books than for computers. As an avid reader, writer, and fan of all things...
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