312. Dear Dork.

This is the fifth book of the ‘Dork Diaries’ series.  This book started with Nikki, Chloe and Zoey having a sleepover at Zoey’s house.  It was New Year’s eve.  They were playing the game Truth or Dare while eating some snacks.  It was Zoey’s turn to assign Nikki a dare.  The dare was to toilet – paper the house of Mackenzie Hollister, their no.1 enemy.  Nikki bravely took some toilet paper and went to Mackenzie’s house.

When they were halfway toilet – papering, suddenly the door opened and Mackenzie came out with her dog.  The three friends freaked out and quickly hid behind some bushes.  Just then, Mackenzie’s dog spotted them and started barking.  Seeing that, the trio got afraid and admitted that they were the ones who toilet – papered her house.  But, Mackenzie told them that someone liked her a lot and did it to show that they liked her.  So, the next day, in school, Mackenzie started a gossip about Brandon, Nikki’s friend. 

Nikki wanted to keep an eye on her.  So, she joined the school newspaper committee where both Mackenzie and Brandon were working.  There were many kids who wanted to join the paper.  When the sign-up sheet was passed, Nikki signed her name next to Photo Layout Artist.  The teacher, Mr. Zimmerman called out the names.  To Nikki’s amazement, she found that Photo Layout Artist position had been given to Britney Chung, Mackenzie’s friend, and not her. 

Nikki knew that it was Mackenzie’s trick.  Mackenzie did not want Nikki to be in the newspaper department, so she crossed out her name and wrote her friend’s name instead.  Nikki tried to talk to Mr. Zimmerman about it but he kept on ignoring her.  When she told all this to Chloe and Zoey, they encouraged her to go to the teacher again and explain to him properly.  When Nikki went in, the teacher, for once, listened to her properly.  He planned to bring back the advice column, which was not there in the paper for a long time, for her.  Nikki became really excited and asked him what to do.  Mr. Zimmerman told that she should have a nickname and all the letters from the people asking advice will be in the box outside the newspaper office.

So, from the next day onwards, Nikki started working with the nickname of ‘Miss Know-It-All’.  At first, there were no letters in the box, but as days went, the box was overflowing with letters and Nikki was finding it difficult to answer all of them.  So, Chloe and Zoey helped her answer them.  Her answers were a hit.  Whoever sought her advice followed it and ended up getting what they wanted.  When the number of letters increased, Mr. Zimmerman told that she can maybe seven to eight letters a day.

Brandon’s birthday was nearing.  He had invited Nikki, Chloe and Zoey to his party.  Mackenzie and her friends were not invited.  Mackenzie threatened Nikki that if she did not get invitations to Brandon’s party for her and her friends, she would tell about the toilet – paper incident to the principal and get Nikki suspended.  But, however hard she tried, Nikki could not get invitations.

One day, in the middle of their class, Nikki, Chloe and Zoey were called to the principal’s office.  They saw Mackenzie sitting there and were afraid that she had told about the incident to the principal.  Suddenly, the new student, Marcy, came out of the principal’s office and told that she wanted to interview Mackenzie.  Mackenzie thought that Marcy wanted to interview her about the toilet – paper incident and got ready to speak.  But she was wrong.  Marcy wanted to interview her about the incident of locking the trio up in a locker during the ‘Holiday on Ice’ ice – skating event. 

Mackenzie became very humiliated and Nikki, Chloe and Zoey breathed a sigh of relief.  Just then, the principal came out and asked what they wanted.  Mackenzie was shocked and could not tell anything.  So, she made up an excuse and the principal sent all of them back to their classes.  The trio also asked Marcy, who had no friends before, to be their friend.

It was Brandon’s birthday.  The party was at a friend’s house.  Nikki left a note, that contained the address of the house, so that her father could pick her up.  But, the one humiliation was his van, which had a large plastic cockroach on its top as her father was a bug – exterminator.  So, Nikki told her father to park his van a few blocks away from the house.  Nikki gave her gift to Brandon and he was very happy.  Nikki, Chloe, Zoey and Brandon spent their time chatting, playing, etc., and had a blast.  Finally, it was time and Nikki’s father came to pick her up.  But, there are still incidents going to happen the next day.  All these incidents will be there in Nikki’s next ‘Dork diary’.

                                      

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311. Frozen Fiasco.

This is the latest book of the Thea Sisters.  In this story, the latest mystery book of a famous writer, Vigmar Ratsson was being sold.  All the mouselings of Mouseford Academy were in the bookstore, trying to buy a copy of the book.

The Thea Sisters – Colette, Nicky, Pamela, Paulina and Violet – were a huge fan of Vigmar Ratsson.  The writer’s motherland was Iceland.  They remember their friends, Roska and Arna from Iceland and e-mail them, asking them how they were and if they liked Vigmar Ratsson’s books.

They get an e-mail back from Roska and Arna, inviting them to Iceland.  So, the five of them pack their bags and go to Iceland.  Their friends meet them there and take them on a tour of the place.  The Thea Sisters were surprised to hear that Vigmar Ratsson was Roska and Arna’s uncle. 

The next day was the reading of his latest book ‘The Volcano Chase’.  Everybody, including the Thea Sisters, Roska, Arna and their friend Stefan, were waiting for the writer, but he did not come there till the end.  The program got cancelled and everybody became worried.

Roska and Arna said that if there was any program featuring their uncle, he would be sure to be there and would never be late.  So, the Thea Sisters, Roska, Arna and Stefan plan to find out where the writer was.

At first, they went to his house – a wooden one with many plants on top – and to their astonishment, they find the door half opened.  Someone had cracked the lock.  Inside, his rooms were ransacked.  They were sure that whoever ransacked it had been searching for the manuscript of his latest novel ‘The Black Tide’.  But, the writer had been sure to hide it safely somewhere.

He had left clues for them to find him.  His clues were brilliant.  With each clue, there was a USB drive, which had a chapter from the upcoming book.  Violet, being the bookworm of the group, read the chapters and explained them to her friends.  His book was based on ecological mystery.

And finally, they all found where he was.  When they were getting closer, two rats captured them and locked them inside a dark room.  Those rats told that if only the friends gave them the USB drives containing the chapters would they let them go.  But when the friends refused, the rats locked them up in a dark room.  Inside the room, they found Vigmar Ratsson.

He explained that he wanted to do some research on ecology and the threats to the environment, when the criminal rats caught him and locked him up.  The friends also find Bryndis, the writer’s editor, who too had wanted to get hold of the manuscript.  She had been following the friends on their journey and now, she also was trapped along with them.

Suddenly, Orri, a journalist who had always followed the eight friends for the manuscript, opened the door.  He told that even though they told him not to follow them, he still followed them and found out that they were trapped.  So, everyone planned to trap the two criminal rats.  They called out to the rats saying, ‘We will give you the manuscript, if you free us.’

When the rats came to receive the manuscript, the friends push the two rats inside, lock the door and escape.  After the police had taken their statement, everybody was free to go.

It was parting time.  The Thea Sisters were a little sad to leave Iceland and their friends.  They came back to Mouseford Academy and one day, in the middle of their class, the postmouse interrupted and gave a package for the Thea Sisters.  When they opened, they were surprised to see that they got five brand – new copies of the new book ‘The Black Tide’.  Inside the book, in the page 125, there was a surprise for them.  They were five of the characters in the book.  In the note attached to the package, the writer had written that without the Thea Sisters, he would not have been able to write and publish this book, and so, as a token of thanks, he had made the five of them characters in the book.  The Thea Sisters were excited and happy that they have helped someone.

                                    

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310. 'Dork Diaries': Skating Sensation.

This is the fourth book of the ‘Dork Diaries’ series.  This book was awesome.  Nikki Maxwell writes all her experiences in her ‘Dork’ diary.  She has three friends, Chloe, Zoey and Brandon.  A mean girl, Mackenzie Hollister, always picks on her.

This book started with Nikki’s gym teacher announcing a skating competition called ‘Holiday on Ice’ to raise funds for charity.  Each team has to choose a charity to raise funds for.  Mackenzie was participating in the singles skating event and brags that so many charities are begging her to skate for them.  But, Nikki, Chloe and Zoey, who form a team, have still not found a charity.

Just then, Brandon informs Nikki that he was volunteering to work for a pet charity after called ‘Fuzzy Friends’.  The charity was in need of money.  So, the trio decide to skate for them.

Nikki visits the place with Brandon one day and loves all the pups there.  But, unfortunately, a couple of days later, they found out that the owner of the place, Phil Smith, broke his leg and was in the hospital.  His wife, Betty Smith, was not able to manage the place single – handedly and they were planning to close it.

Nikki visit Betty in person and explains to her all about the skating competition and how they have planned to skate for them.  Betty was very grateful and she told that, if they don’t have any money to run the place, they would soon close it and move to Florida.  This would affect their grandson too.

When Nikki was going home, she found a boy playing with some dogs in the charity’s backyard and thought that she recognized him.  When the boy suddenly turned, Nikki found that it was Brandon!!  That’s why he was so keen on helping the animals in the charity and raising funds for it. 

Nikki did not want to let down Brandon, so she decided to skate for the charity, even though she could not skate at all.  There were two practice sessions before the big event, which would be monitored by a professional figure – skater, Victoria Steel.  She was so strict, that during practice sessions, if anybody falls down during their skating routine, she would reject them from the event.

Fortunately, Nikki, Chloe and Zoey made it through the practice sessions, by distracting the judge and giving all sorts of excuses.  The big day had come.  The prize was $3000.  Additionally, $10000 would go to the team which was crowd favorite.

The trio were to be dressed up as fairies.  Their costumes had been selected by the costume director.  But, when they went somewhere and came back, their three fairy costumes were replaced by three ugly clown costumes and clown wigs.  Nikki immediately found out that it was Mackenzie’s stupid prank.  Still, they did not lose hope and wore those clown outfits.

Soon, they got a note that their costumes had been found and are told to come to a certain locker to collect their costumes.  When the three of them enter the locker, they realize that it was a trap because someone had locked the door behind them.  Only Chloe had her cell phone with her, so she tried to contact their parents, but no one picked the call.

Suddenly, Nikki remembered that her phone was in the dressing room and her little sister, Brianna, was begging to play games in her phone.  Nikki knew that Brianna would still be around her phone, trying to snatch it.  So, Nikki told Chloe to call her phone and within five rings, Brianna picked the call and asked them where they were.  She also told that Brandon was there.  So, Nikki told Brianna to give the phone to Brandon and when Brandon got the phone, she explained everything to him and when she was about to tell him to rescue them, the phone went off without battery.

The three of them thought that they won’t be able to participate in the event, but just then, the door opened and to their surprise, Brandon and Brianna were standing there.  Nikki, Chloe and Zoey thanked both of them for rescuing them and hurried to the event.

In the event, the first show was Mackenzie's routine.  She performed beautifully and Nikki thought that she would be the crowd favorite.  The next show was the trio’s routine.  Just then Nikki got a brilliant idea.

Nikki did not know to skate.  When she did her first movement itself, she fell down.  She thought that Victoria Steel, the judge, would shout at her and asked them to leave the place.  But, to their surprise, the crowd was laughing and Victoria did not shout at them.  Nikki realized that they were wearing clown costumes and the job of clowns was to make people laugh.

They did their routine very funnily, with the three of them falling down and bumping into each other very often.  At the end of the routine, there was a surprise for everyone.  Brianna jumped out from a box, like a jumping jack.  This was Nikki’s brilliant idea.  The crowd gave them a standing ovation.  When the results were announced, they were shocked to hear that they were the crowd favorite and got the $10000 cash prize, while Mackenzie, being only the winner, got only $3000.

Brandon was also very happy.  Somehow, the four friends had helped Fuzzy Friends charity to function again.  I liked this book very much. 

                                                      

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309. The Boss Baby.

This was a wonderful movie.  Babies are made somewhere above in the sky.  Babies who are ticklish go to families, and babies who are not ticklish go to another place called ‘MANAGEMENT’ where they are dressed in coats and given suitcases.  There are millions of babies like this and they all are given assignments to do in the Earth.  The Boss Baby and his gang of Management friends are also given a job.  That job is to stop the development because people want pets more than babies.  So, the population of babies is lesser than the population of puppies.  The Boss Baby and his gang was going to stop this development.

Meanwhile, on the Earth, a boy called Tim Templeton was living happily with his parents.  He couldn’t ask for better parents.  His parents gave everything he wants and did everything he wishes.  When his dad asks him if he wants a brother, he says ‘no’.  But, the next day, Boss Baby comes to their house in a taxi, which is sent form the baby – manufacturing centre in the sky.  The Baby can talk like a man.  He acts like a baby in front of the parents, but like a man in front of Tim.  Tim hates the Baby and wants to get rid of him.

One day, Tim decides to record Boss Baby’s man – voice and give it to his parents.  His parents gave a lot of attention to the Baby rather than Tim and he does not like this.  The next day, the Baby’s gang of Management friends come to his house for Play Day.  They all can also talk like adults, but act like babies to their parents.  They all plan the way to get into the place where more puppies are being produced and how to stop the development.  To his luck, Boss Baby finds out that the parents work in the Puppy – manufacturing company. 

Tim records all this when he ran to his parents to show them, Boss Baby and his friends attack him.  At last, Tim decides to throw Boss Baby out the window.  And when he was about to do it, his parents find him and Tim ends up throwing the tape out the window.

Then, Boss Baby explains to Tim why he and his friends are here and also tells that if Tim helped him with his assignment he would go back to the sky.  And Tim agrees.

It was ‘Bring Your Kids To Work’ Day in Tim’s parents’ workplace.  His parents take him and Boss Baby to the company and let them play in the play area.  But both of them go into the puppy manufacturing place and steal the document which contains the secret formula for producing puppies.

But, suddenly, the owner of the company, Francis Francis and his body guard capture Tim and Boss Baby.  To Tim’s surprise, Boss Baby recognizes Francis Francis.  He was one of the Bosses in the Management centre.  In that centre, if the Bosses do not finish their assigments within a certain time, they are fired and sent to Family, where they are like all normal babies and do not remember any incident from the Management centre.  Francis Francis was also fired and sent to Family, but he remembers everything.  To take revenge, he invented a formula that makes puppies live forever.

When Tim and Boss Baby decide to stop it,  Francis Francis kidnaps their parents, put them in a box and lock them up.  Both the children overcome all the obstacles and finally rescue the parents and stop the development of Everlasting Puppies.

The time came for Tim and Boss Baby to finally bid goodbye to each other.  Both of them become sad but do not express it.  Up in the sky, Boss Baby gets promoted because he finished his assignment successfully.  Down on the Earth, Tim gets back the happy life alone with his parents.  But, both of them are still sad.  Alien – like creatures that come from the sky erase his parents’ memory of Boss Baby, so they don’t remember anything about him and even that he existed.

Tim gets and idea.  He writes a letter to Boss Baby telling him to come back to Earth as a normal baby.  So, Boss Baby goes to the place where babies are seperated into Management or Family, shows his tickle spot (his leg) and comes back to Tim’s place as a normal baby.  The parents name him Ted Templeton.  So, they all live happily ever after.

                                   

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