Pete Larson (aka "Liar") spins a whopper about the summer he was 12 and met the beautiful Justine. Together they witness the crash of a space probe which, having passed through a wormhole, returns to earth before its launch carrying a disk with images of future issues of the New York Times. Reading the news (thanks to his brainy but OCD friend Bobby Ray), Pete learns of a train disaster that will wipe out their tiny southern town. Can Pete save the town, make the Oprah stage and have his first kiss inside the giant heart in the Museum of Science and Industry in Chicago? This joint creation by a pair of screenwriters has fast-paced cinematic action and exaggerated humor often based on stereotypes. Fast-talking Liar has a southern drawl, but northern cynicism and language beyond his years, thanks to the careful attentions of his New Yorker parents. Middle-school readers looking for humor in any part of the country will enjoy the familiar flavor and topical references in this modern tall tale. (Fiction. 10-14)Read full book review >