Everyone knows
Curtis "Sully" Sullenburg is the toughest kid at Higgins Elementary.
For years, he and his gang have tormented students and teachers alike with
their pranks. And for the most part, they’ve gotten away with it. But all that
changes when a strange little creature appears on the scene. From that point
on, pranks start coming back like boomerangs, smacking Sully's gang right in
their fifth grade butts!
Sully is the only
one who can see this creature, which he names Karmack. The little guy claims to
be a nature spirit whose job is to balance all the bad karma the boys have
amassed over the years. Because if Karmack fails, these boys will undoubtedly
suffer "dreadful, awful doom". Just like that kid who shot at crows
with his BB gun – one day he crashed his bike into a pigeon coop and emerged as
the Abominable Snowman of bird poop! That
kind of doom.
Sully soon
realizes he must save not only himself but his gang from Karmack's doom, even
though his friends have no idea why they keep getting boomeranged. Of course, calamity and hilarity follow. But
in the end, Sully and the guys learn a valuable lesson about the consequences
of being a bully, and what it takes to be a true leader.
The book is for children ages 8 to 12, but is also
a perfect read-aloud for classrooms. It is available at all major online stores such as
amazon.com and barnesandnoble.com. For other purchase links, scroll down.
Author J.C. Whyte discovered a love for
writing while in elementary school in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. Back then of
course, she wrote only children’s stories. But as a grownup, she had to face
the harsh reality that such writing seldom pays the bills. So she got her
degrees in Journalism and Communications, and turned to Public Relations, where
for many years she focused her creative energies in feature writing.
Then after marriage, kids, several more
degrees and occupations (including stints as a travel agent and paralegal), J.C.
entered law school. While there, she became a columnist for the student
newsletter and one of her humorous articles was even published in The National Jurist.
After graduating and passing the Bar, J.C.
realized within a few years that creative writing was still what made her heart
sing. So now, as a grandma, she’s returned to writing for children. And with the
publication of Karmack, J.C. has
truly come full circle, back to where her writing journey began.
______________________________________________________________________________
Excerpt:
Through front yards, backyards, and down the main road,
the pursuers continued to chase the squealer into town. Sully, Breeze, and
Gonzo (also known as Curtis Sullenburg, Matthew Brezinski, and Carlos Gonzalez)
were the toughest dudes in fifth grade. Everyone knew these three were
definitely trouble. And the worst was Sully, their leader.
The old Statewide Bank building lay just ahead, on the
corner of Main Street and Railroad Avenue. And that was where the squealer ran
out of gas.
Sully immediately pinned him to the ground, right there at
the corner. Lying in the snow, the squealer looked petrified. Sully laughed and
let go of the boy—just knowing he scared the living daylights out of the kid
was enough for Sully. But not Gonzo—he dropped his backpack on the left side of
the squealer’s face. “That’s for making us chase you,” he said.
Sully let out a loud “Hah!”
Then the boys heard a rumble. It came from above them—from
the pitched roof of the bank. Sully looked up in time to see a bundle of snow drop
from the roof. It fell downward, toward Gonzo, who was still hovering over the
squealer.
“Hey, look out,” Sully shouted, but not in time. Gonzo did
look up, just as the pile of snow hit his face. The squealer managed to squirm
out of the way and take off down the road. Breeze began to dig out his friend.
But Sully was frozen to his spot, still gazing at the roof
of the bank. Because he saw something up there—a small figure no bigger than a
two-year-old. And was it… laughing?
Sully knew it couldn’t be a child. Not with that long, fat
nose. Definitely not a child.
Was it just his imagination? Or maybe…a reflection…from
ice on the roof? After giving his eyes a good rub, Sully changed his view of
the roof by walking around the corner. And there—there was that little guy,
laughing again! The creature in the funny green outfit saw Sully too. Then came
a flash of light as it darted to the other side of the roof, beyond Sully’s
vision.
“Breeze…did you…see that?” Sully wanted to know.
“Yeah, Gonzo got dumped on. Lucky break for the squealer.”
“No, I mean…ah, forget it.” Sully knew he’d seen someone.
Yet…
Never the shy one, Sully next ran into the bank to
question the first teller he saw. “Is some guy up on the roof?”
“What?”
“You got some guy shoveling snow off the roof? My friend,
he got dumped on.”
“Uh, not that I’m aware of.” The female teller turned
around and asked the branch manager the same question. Then she returned to
Sully. “No one’s on the roof. What’s the problem?”
“I saw…somebody…up there.”
The manager came to the counter. “There’s no one up there,
son. Some snow must’ve fallen from the roof. Is your friend all right?”
“Yeah, I guess. But I coulda sworn I saw someone up
there.”
The teller smiled. “Probably just glare from the sun. Nice
to have some sun today, isn’t it?”
But Sully only shrugged and walked out of the bank.
The guys were waiting for him outside. Gonzo was dusty
with snow. And he was cradling the left side of his face. It was red and
starting to swell.
“What’s going on?” asked Breeze.
“That’s what I wanna know.” Sully frowned as he committed
the creature’s face to his memory. Anyone crossing Sully usually lived to
regret it.
That is…until now.
* * * *
Karmack is for sale at:
Bookstrand – http://www.bookstrand.com/karmack
Giveaway
The author has very kindly offered a free e-book version of this book to one lucky winner. You can pick which format suits you best (prc, epub, or even pdf).
If you would like to win just leave a comment below with a way of contacting you. If you don't want to leave your e-mail address etc in the comments below, you can send me an email with your entry.
