• Age: 12 to 18
• Grade: 8 to 12
• Reading age: 12 to 18

It’s the first week of summer and former army brat Jake Ballard is spending it alone at his uncle’s cottage while his mom gets treatment for PTSD.

Jake's boring day gets flipped upside down when a beautiful stranger asks him to help play a prank on her friends. But when an angry crime boss turns up at the cottage the next morning, Jake is sure of two things: the night before was a big mistake, and that girl was no prankster. And she is nowhere to be found.

Jake has twenty-four hours to return the stolen goods...or else. He has no other choice but to find the girl—and hopefully not find himself in any more trouble than he’s already in.

This short novel is a high-interest, low-reading level book for teen readers who are building reading skills, want a quick read or say they don’t like to read! The epub edition of this title is fully accessible.

With close to three million books in print, Sigmund Brouwer writes for both children and adults. In the last ten years, he has given writing workshops to students in schools from the Arctic Circle to inner city Los Angeles. One of his latest novels, The Last Disciple, earned Sigmund an appearance on ABC's Good Morning America. Sigmund and his family live half the year in Nashville, Tennessee, and half the year in Red Deer, Alberta.

The Talk:
Reach For Your Dreams
It doesn't matter where you come from, it's where you decide to go in life that is important. Sigmund Brouwer encourages students to reach for their dreams, giving them fun and practical advice for the reading and writing skills that are the foundation of future success.

The Presentation:
Sigmund's presentations are an hour of high-level energy. He especially reaches out to reluctant readers and gears the talk to engage their attention. Audience size varies; often his presentations take place in the gym for the entire school, including kindergarten. (After the first half hour, the K-2 grades are dismissed, and the remainder of the presentation is focused on the older students.) There are no restrictions on audience size except for the space limitations of the gym. Smaller schools are welcome to invite another school to share in the cost of the presentation.

Booking:
For presentations that involve travel, Sigmund appreciates it if two or three schools in the area make bookings on the same day. For more information on booking, fees and expenses, please email Sigmund: rockandrollliteracy@me.com

Sigmund Brouwer's profile page

“A teenage boy inadvertently crosses dangerous people in this pulse-pounding thriller…Short chapters and thrilling action scenes render this book compulsively readable, while the dialogue is realistic and snappy...A quick, engrossing pick that’s ideal for reluctant readers.”

Kirkus Reviews

“The narrative is packed with plot. Worth a look for reluctant readers who like action movies.”

School Library Journal (SLJ) Series Made Simple