The Calamari Code: An Agatha Pixie Mystery

Very visual and lively. Also intelligent which is refreshing - a lot of writing for children tends to be variations of similar hackneyed theme[s] . I can see that The Calamari Code ... would be considered 'cool'. Gotta think about the marketing strategy as publishers tend to want readership age stated from the outset, and with this project the span could be quite broad.
Chap 1 - I think 'will'?

This is so wonderfully visual! I can see all the characters.
Great bit of writing.

This is crying out to be made into a feature-length cartoon movie. The characters are full-formed, and the dialogue is truly excellent. My only fear is that the ironic tone of the writing may be above the head of the younger readers... it takes a lot of labour to make a script work on the level of child and adult at the same time... But it's brilliant. That's a problem for the scriptwriters to solve. Shelved.
Frank

The Calmari Code: An Agatha Pixie Mystery

Hi Larry, Just wanted you to know how much I am enjoying this silly and wonderful romp through such an ecletic mix of genres. You have got the Curious Reader pegged completely, proudly on my shelf where it will now stay for a few days. You should do really well here, best wishes

Andrew W
(Sanctuary's Loss)

Fantastic... i think i would have to read this aloud though, with pleasure i might add, to my nephew. I am definately looking at a mature 10+ market for your book, but i am no expert with either children or fiction aimed at them.

Wonder character's and side splitting dialogue... i just thought this Agatha Pixie Mystery utterly fantastic. Obviously one of many. But, my only critism, needs ferrets, lots of ferrets, everywhere.

BACKED

Delightfully bizarre.
This is clever and I love how you use pop cultural references but disguise them.
I actually had a fun time reading this. This is entertaining, which si what a book should be, especially one for a child.
The way your characters thing, the things said. The Rooklyn Bridge, the Omma Lisa and even Agatha Pixie just made me smile away like damn food. Great stuff.
Backed.
T.L Tyson-seeking Eleanor

I love the voice of this story. I haven't been able to read much but consider it backed.
Jenny

Just read the first two chapters. I really like the idea here and the story seems to be progressing well. The only things I would suggest is going through and tightening the sentences and taking out some of the repetition, there's a fair bit of it and should be easy to spot.

I'm having difficulty pinning down what age it's aimed at, you say YA but I think a lot of the writing has a younger feel. I think it might work better aimed at the 8-13 (although primarily the higher end of that range).

Good Luck, Shelved!

Anne

Oh, this is...clever...and superbly written.
Backed.

Hi Larry
I've got to say that this Roger Rabbit world of yours had me chortling almost from word one - shelved

Difficult to know how to crit this. I wonder if your language is too advanced for younger readers, but I suppose this fits into the Artemis Fowl readership which is YA by and large. Provided you have a clear idea of its market it doesn't really matter. I didn't spot any technical errors.

Good luck with this

John Booth (Shaddowdon)

Clever and entertaining. Very easy read.
I think my kids would love it.
Nice job.
Shelved.

Very entertaining first chapter. You obviously have found your YA voice and it shows in this chapter. I didn't think the overuse of the word particular and particularly "particularly" worked though. And the double use of "Curious Reader" felt a little jarring.

The image of the a chimpanzee (in a monkey suit) threatening the cat was quite a picture. Lots of great visuals to keep the kids captivated and based on the first chapter and the pitch, a nice story to hold their attention.

Looking forward to reading more, if this site ever lets me have a few minutes to read beyond a chapter or two.

Backed.

My book is also a children's novel, but usually used as a form of punishment.
Adam Sifre
"I've Been Deader"

P.S. My backing was premature. Some glitch on the site preventing me from shelving at the moment. Go grab a cup of tea, watch the news and by the time you come back I'm sure it will all be sorted out.

Not sure I've ever used the term "charming" on this site, but I'm going to use it here. I love the voice the Cat has - the clever way she thinks. I wonder about marketing it as a childrens story, because there are so many references a child will never get. But then again, do they have to? In the first chapter I was slightly overwhelmed by too many of the references, so I looked ahead a few and found that you'd leveled off, and were mentioning far fewer. I was more comfortable then.
Anyway, I thought this was really original and fun.
backed
Genevieve
Under The Same Sky
p.s I'd love to see what you think of my story when you get a chance.

A very interesting tale! He he he! This is fun and I like the way you weave your journey. Agatha is funny and interesting. I'm not sure young teens will want to read about animals. I know its been done when they act like real animals, but not people animals. But thats what we need, different. Different is good and so this could fly.

Good luck!

Backed by SD Gillen

This is a lively funny read. I love the play on.... well on everything. Very clever. Nice work.
Glad to back you.
Sandy
Orphan and a Half

happy to be your second backer. SHELVED!

I can use your comments on my book when you get the chance. Cheers!

JC
The Obergemau Key

I love this, great fun and although the references and puns are relentless, I'm sure older children and YAs will enjoy the ones they 'get', and the adults will enjoy the rest. Good luck with this promising story, shelved, Carolyn.