Soon to be an animated series from Nickelodeon! For fans of the hilarious Diary of a Wimpy Kid series, here comes the eighth novel in the New York Times bestselling series Big Nate. BIG NATE IS BLASTING OFF! Nate has a crush on Ruby. But after his scrap with Randy Betancourt makes headlines in the Weekly Bugle , he's got a problem WAY worse than detention! Can Nate bounce back? And will the annual Mud Bowl be a blast . . . or a bust? Meet BIG NATE, P.S. 38's coolest doodler and definitely NOT the teacher's pet.
Lincoln Peirce is a cartoon artist from Portland, Maine. He lives with his wife and two children, and occasionally gives lectures to students about cartoon creating. Peirce writes the comic strip "Big Nate". Peirce's comic strip, Big Nate, is featured as an island on the famous children's website, Poptropica. Big Nate appears as the first cartoon on The Maine Sunday Telegram in the comics section.
He studied art at Colby College in Maine were he began cartooning. He also studied at the Skowhegan School of Painting and Sculpture before teaching art and coaching basketball at a New York highschool for 3 years. He currently plays hockey with "an old men's league" and describes it as his best sport as a child. In an interview with the Washington Post, Peirce stated that his last name is pronounced "purse" and is not a misspelling of "pierce."
Lincoln Peirce was a member of the "Surviving as a Print Cartoonist" Panel at the Maine Comics Art Festival with fellow cartoonists Corey Pandolph (Barkeater Lake, Toby: Robot Satan, The Elderberries), Norm Feuri (Retail, Gill) and with Mike Lynch moderating. On the panel Lincoln revealed he is currently working with some animation and licensing projects including the addition of a Big Nate island to the online game Poptropica.
Lincoln Peirce can effortlessly make you laugh by presenting a good solid plot, believable characters and great life lessons that was cleverly wrapped with giggles that melt your heart.
The only thing that i didn't like is unnecessary jokes that were made on the expense of some helpless characters. Like making fun of some students/teachers appearances.
5 stars. Big Nate has always held a soft spot in my heart, since 2011 when I first read this series. And, as he always has in the past, made me grin like an idiot and wish the book was longer.
In a nutshell? This book has a very basic plot: Nate is elated to hear that his new crush Ruby is seating next to him in his social studies class. But! He has competition. The school bully, Randy, also has a crush on Ruby!
Yep there's a love triangle. But the book was so cutesy and funny and it didn't matter one bit! And I enjoyed the way Nate and the rest of the characters are developing as well!
Big Nate Blasts off is a hilarious book. It's the next book in the Big Nate series and is probably the funniest yet. Nate is preparing for the Mudbowl. The game PS 38 plays against Jefferson Middle School (which Nates dad invented). He also has a crush on a girl named Ruby which Randy Betancourt has a crush on too. during the book, Nate and Randy grow closer and closer friends, and soon they become great friends, but Ruby kisses Nate then Randy gets upset because he had a crush on her too. Then, Nate goes on the verge of moving to California but then his dad finds a job.
I enjoyed this book because I was Practically laughing the whole time! it was so funny. My favourite part is when Nate makes the winning catch against Jefferson in the Mudbowl.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
Audio: This was my first Big Nate audiobook. I liked the narrator, he did a really good job.
Story: I've enjoyed all of the other books in the series. In this one, Nate and Randy both like Ruby and they get in trouble for fighting over her. They have to go to peer counseling and are stuck being partners for different activities. In the end, they aren't really friends, but they do figure out how to get along with each other.
It's always fun to come back to this series. It's fun, it's juvenile, and yeah, sometimes Nate is actually kind of an asshole, but I was pleasantly surprised here. He actually has to deal with some of his assholery. Not only that, but there's a really sweet plotline of conciliatory friendship between former enemies that took me by surprise. It probably doesn't go into depth as much as it could, but what more do you expect from this book? Relatively mature themes and emotional highs and lows really raise the Big Nate bar here. I loved it.
This book is one of my favorites in the series. I liked this book because it was funny and it had a good story line. This story is told in Nate's point of view and some crazy stuff happens. In this book Nate has a crush on the new girl named Ruby but so does his nemeses Randy. After they fight they have to go to work out their problems, but it after school so he can't practice for the mud bowl with his friends. This book is not that hard to read. I would definitely read more of his books and I would encourage you to try and read them.
If you like funny books with lots of pictures and book with comics i would recommend reading it. This is such a good book i read it over and over so many time because it was super good.
Personal Response: I thought this book was really good, because it was really funny and had some action in it as well. I wish that Lincoln Peirce would right even more Big Nate books, because I would read it as soon as I can get it from the library.
Plot: Big Nate Blasts Off by Lincoln Peirce is the eighth and final book in the Big Nate series. The book starts off with Nate talking to Francis, Dee Dee, Chad, and Teddy about why he is so happy to go to social studies. The only reason he is excited for social studies is that the seating chart has been changed. Instead of having Gina sitting behind him, he will now have Ruby sitting behind him. Ruby is a new student who just moved and now goes to P.S. 38. When class starts, Mrs. Godfrey tells the students to get out their assignments. Nate tears through his notebook and he can't find it. Ruby notices the comic that Nate is hanging on to, takes it from him, and starts reading it. When she finishes, she tells Nate that it was funny and can recognize some people in the comic. Mrs. Godfrey walks by, grabs it, and starts to read it. After she is done reading it, she gives Nate detention for making fun of a teacher. After school, Nate goes to the detention room. He sees Gina and asks why she is in there. Gina says that she is interviewing Ms. Czerwicki. Nate hands Ms. Czerwicki his detention slip and sits down. After Gina is done interviewing Ms. Czerwicki, she tells Ms. Czerwicki that the readers of the newspaper will like the interview. Nate asks Gina about the readers of what newspaper. Gina says that it is for The Weekly Bugle . Nate laughs at the sound of the name, because he thinks The Weekly Bugle is really bad. After about thirty minutes, Ms. Czerwicki tells Nate that he can leave. Nate then explains three reasons why he doesn’t like The Weekly Bugle . Reason number one is that it is boring. Reason number two is that there is no comics in it. The last reason is that the name doesn’t make sense, because it comes out only once a month, not every week. After Nate goes to locker to put his stuff away, where he is greeted by his friends, Francis and Teddy. They ask how detention was, and Nate answers sarcastically. Teddy and Francis say they are going to go to practice for the Annual Mud Bowl, which is ultimate frisbee in the mud and rain. Teddy tells Nate to catch the frisbee and chucks it about one hundred feet. Nate is about to catch it, but a door opens in front of him and he runs into Randy, the school bully. Randy is about to beat up Nate, but Ruby walks by and Randy acts all friendly to Nate. After that, Randy gets out of school as quickly as he can. Ruby wants Nate to say something to him, but he can’t say anything. Ruby leaves and Dee Dee appears from around a corner and starts walking with Nate, Teddy, and Francis out of the school. Dee Dee tells the three that Randy likes Ruby, Nate, Teddy, and Francis look really surprised. Dee Dee also says that Nate likes Ruby. Teddy and Francis sound surprised, but Nate says that it is true and that they should never tell them anyone. Nate, Francis, Teddy, and Dee Dee arrive at Nate’s house and they tell Nate’s dad that they are going to practice for the Mud Bowl. Nate’s dad tell the Nate, Francis, Teddy, and Dee Dee how he invented the Mud Bowl. He pulls out a piece of paper that states what happened for the first Mud Bowl and how Nate’s dad was the hero of the event. The next day, Nate is in school and Chad walks up to Nate and tells Nate that he heard about him and Ruby. He sees Dee Dee and tells her to come with him. They go to the library to talk in secret. Dee Dee tells Nate that she only told three people and not everyone will find out. Two kids walk up to Nate and ask him how is Ruby doing. From around the corner, Randy walks up behind Nate, throws everything out of Nate’s backpack, and walks away. Mrs. Hickson walks up to Nate and Dee Dee and asks them who did the mess. Nate is about to tell that is was Randy, but Dee Dee takes the blame. All day, Nate has images of getting beaten up by Randy. Lunch comes and Nate tries to trade his lunch for something else. Kayla from The Weekly Bugle walks over to Nate and asks Nate about a comic she found. It happens to be Nates and Kayla asks Nate if he would like to have a column for The Weekly Bugle . Nate says that he will do it. After that, Ruby walks up to Nate and hands him a root beer. When Nate opens it, it explodes all over Nate. Nate thought that Ruby did it for a little bit, but Dee Dee says that she knows the whole story. Ruby is going to give Nate her root beer, but she has to throw away her trash. Randy walks over and shakes it up, and Ruby gives Nate the soda. Dee Dee is going to stop him from opening it, but is stopped by Mrs. Colletti. Dee Dee tells Nate to go clean off in the bathroom and Nate meets Randy in the bathroom. Nate starts yelling at Randy for doing that dirty deed, but gets stopped by Principal Nichols. He tells Nate that he needs to stop picking on Randy or he will have to disciple him. After school Nate heads straight home and sees his dad putting a jacket for a suit. Nate asks him where he is going to go, which he replies that he has to go to the office. Ellen, Nate’s sister, tells Nate that their father never dresses up when he goes to the office. Nates asks Ellen how Gordie, Ellen’s boyfriend, and Ellen got together. Ellen suspects that Nate likes someone. Nate yells at her and tells her that he doesn’t like anyone. He starts working on his column for The Weekly Bugle . The next day, Nate hands his finished column to Kayla. Everyone in the school loves Nate’s column, except Randy. Randy starts a fight with Nate, but the two get stopped by Principal Nicholas. Principal Nicholas asks what happened, and Nate is about to answer, but Randy starts to act all innocent and tells Principal Nichols that Nate started it. He tells the two to come with him to his office. Principal Nichols tells Randy that he got some information some a teacher and that that teacher saw that Randy started the fight. Principal Nichols asks Nate how Randy got so angry, which Nate says that he made fun of Randy in a newspaper. Principal Nichols tells the two that they have to go to peer counseling and Gina will be the peer counselor. Nate walks out of the principal’s office and to his locker. Teddy and Francis were angry at Nate, because they heard that he has to go to peer counseling. Nate gets called over to Ruby, who asks Nate if he and Randy got into a fight, which he replies that he did. After school, Nate goes to peer counseling. Gina tells Nate and Randy to write all the good and bad things about the other person. After a couple minutes, Gina tells Nate and Randy to exchange papers. They read what the other person wrote, which makes both of them really mad. After peer counseling is done, Gina tells Nate and Randy that she is going to make sure that they are partners for the fieldtrip to the science museum. Nate needs to get his permission slip signed, so as soon he gets home, he asks his dad to sign the slip. He tells his dad that he put their home phone number for work. He tells Nate to get his sister for a family meeting. Nate’s dad tells Nate and Ellen that he got laid off and is currently looking for a job. They also might have to move to California. Nate goes outside and sits on the ground. He gets hit in the head by a frisbee. Francis, Teddy, and Dee Dee walk over to Nate and Francis tells Nate sorry for hitting him in the head with the frisbee. Dee Dee tells Nate that she has a little talk with Ruby and Ruby told Dee Dee that she likes Nate. Nate says that he thought he likes Ruby, but doesn’t anymore. The next day, the sixth grade class goes on the field trip to the science museum. They have to fill out packets that Mr. Galvin handed to them. Randy tells Nate that each of the will do a page. As Nate is walking over to find a beetle that he has to draw, he sees students from Jefferson getting out of a elevator. Nolan from Jefferson walks over and grabs his paper. Randy comes to save Nate. Nate tells Randy that Nolan stole his paper, which Randy says that he can’t get another bad grade or he will have to talk to the counselor about it. Nate asks Randy why he has to go to counseling, which Randy says that his grades stink and his parents are getting a divorce. Nate tells Randy that he is possibly moving to California and asks if Randy has ever moved. Randy says that he moves every week from his mom’s to his dad’s. Nate decides to leave Randy alone and gets another packet. After the trip to the science museum, Nate starts practicing for the Mud Bowl. Teddy overthrows Nate and the frisbee landed right next to Randy. Randy throws a perfect pass to Nate. Nate and Nate asks Randy if he wants to join the Mud Bowl team. The team asks Nate why he wants Randy on the team and Nate says that he can help beat Jefferson. Nate tells Randy he is on the team and Randy starts to show off right in front of Ruby. Nate is about to tell Dee Dee and Francis that he is going to move, but is stopped by a honk. It is Nate’s dad and he tells Nate that he got a job in town and they don’t have to move. Nate runs back to the team and tells them that he isn’t moving. Ruby give Nate a kiss on the cheek and Francis tells the team that they are going to celebrate over ice cream. The rest of the team starts going, but Nate sees Randy sitting by a tree. Nate talks to Randy and cheers him up. It starts raining and Nate tells Randy that this is the perfect weather for the Mud Bowl. On Friday, the 38th Mud Bowl starts and Jefferson gets a fast lead. P.S. 38 comes back to tie the game 19 to 19. Jefferson is about to score, but Nolan drops the frisbee. Randy tells Nate to go as far as he can and Nate catches the frisbee to win the game. The next day, The Weekly Bugle tells the story about the Mud Bowl and how P.S. 38 won. After reading the story, Nate tells the people surrounding that he ending his column for the school paper. The book ends with Nate saying that his career writing comics is about to begin.
Recommendation: I recommend this book for males and females ages 10 and up, because the book is an easy book to read, and will keep the reader interested until the very end. Another reason is that the book is full of funny jokes and even has a secret code with messages to figure out.
This book is humorus and wacky as it has many jokes that hit and has a great story. This book gives the characters reasons why they are doing what they due, one example is how they gave a reason why the bully was a bully unlike most media which just has a bully do bad stuff just because. As i read the book it gave me good reasons to keep reading with questions such as will they succeed, why is this happening, or will they just give up? I like this book for many reasons like characters, story, and suspense. I do have to criticize, there was a problem the character had no control over near the end of the book feeling rushed and the way it was solved was also rushed as well, but this was only one minor problem that doesn't effect the book to bad. I would recommend this book to big nate fans and casual readers that don't want to get into longer books just yet.
Mud Bowl, comics, a new crush, say hello to Nate as he navigates school, friendship, love, and more!
So, this is my very first Big Nate novel. I have read a few Big Nate comic books, but never managed to read any of the novels. I have to say that I really loved this one. It is a mix of text + comics, so a graphic novel, which fits perfect with the character.
I feel like Nate has a lot to learn about his comics. I agree with the principal and other characters. Nate's comics are quite often about making fun of people, in a mean and rude way. And sorry, I get that he isn't happy with these people, but making fun of them makes you just as bad as they are (especially in case of Randy). I do hope that Nate learns to make comics that are fun for everyone, without hurting anyone.
I loved that Nate has another crush! Yep, no more Jenny. Thank heavens. I was already not seeing that having a future, and I was hoping that Nate would also see it. In this one Jenny clearly has found another guy she likes (and we also see how they met up). Thankfully, there are more fish in the sea, as Nate meets with Ruby. It was enormously adorable to see them get closer. Even if that got him into trouble with Randy, who also likes Ruby.
Randy was a terrible character, and frankly, I just couldn't care about his sobsobstory that we learn about later on in the book. I guess we are supposed to feel sympathetic because his life sucks, but sorry that just doesn't excuse you from being a crappy person and all the bullying you do, and have done, throughout the years. Because this isn't the first time he and Nate go head to head, apparently it has been going on for years. :|
The Mud Bowl? I just love it, plus the revelation of Nate's father about it. I wish I could participate in Mud Bowl. Frisbee is fun, and not caring about cleanliness is also fun at times.
Then there is the newspaper and Nate's feelings on it. I can understand his feelings, that newspaper does sound extremely dull. And who decided it should be a named Weekly Bugle when it is only monthly? :P
Of course, there is also enough friendship. Nate has some terrific friends, even if one of them *looks at Dee Dee* has a lot to learn about secrets and not spreading them around.
There was also some stress for Nate regarding his family. I won't spoil what is going on, but dang. Poor Nate.
Also nice that Nate's comics and the normal illustrations differ. It took me a bit to get used to them though, but after a while I could appreciate it.
All in all, I definitely want more of these Big Nate novels! They are just too much fun to read, I had quite a few laughs, and I also flew through the book. Before I knew it I finished the book! I would recommend it to everyone looking for a fun book.
The book "Big Nate Blasts Off" by Lincoln Pierce is about how Nate has a huge crush on a girl but his enemy does too. Both of them hate each other deeply and fight over the girl. Also, they have to play in a huge school game of Mud Ball so what will happen in the end? Will they become friends? Or stay as enemy's?
I liked this book because it had the sort of 'thought' a middle schooler has so I could really connect with the characters and everything. Also because I've read all these books so I knew I would like this one also.
I would recommend this book to anyone that like comics or still has a childish way of seeing things. I would also recommend this book to people that are actually in middle school because you could probably connect to this book a lot.
For my book I read Big Nate Blasts of by Lincoln peirce. This book is one of my favorites in the series. I liked this book because it was funny and it had a good story line.
This story is told in Nate's point of view and some crazy stuff happens. In this book Nate has a crush on the new girl named Ruby but so does his nemeses Randy. After they fight they have to go to work out their problems, but it after school so he can't practice for the mud bowl with his friends. If you like funny books with lots of pictures than you should consider reading it.
This book is not that hard to read. I would definitely read more of his books and I would encourage you to try and read them.
Both boys are BIG - Big Nate fans. The 11 year old gave this installment 4.5 stars and the 9 year old gave it 5.5 stars. They talked about Nate's Dad having a big secret for a year while we waited for Big Nate Blasts Off to come out. Good to know the secret and no longer be in suspense. They are a little nervous that the next book's title was on the back cover of this one like usual. They are questioning if this was the last Big Nate book. I've been asked to email the author to get an update. I think it's awesome that they came up with that solution. Hope we get an answer that says it's in the works.
"Big Nate Blasts Off" by Lincoln Pierce is a very funny book. In this book Nate finds out something that he never knew about his dad and he wants to participate in what he did. Also, he likes a girl but does not want to say it because there is no point in telling her because of something that you will need to read to find out.
I like this book because it was very funny. It has a nice flowing story and I always wanted to keep reading to see what would happen next.
I recommend this book to anyone that has read the previous ones. It is as good and maybe better than the others. Also if you read "Diary of a Wimpy Kid" you should read this book