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    Maximum Magic: The Save Our School Summer: Maximum Magic, #1
    Maximum Magic: The Save Our School Summer: Maximum Magic, #1
    Maximum Magic: The Save Our School Summer: Maximum Magic, #1
    Ebook112 pages1 hour

    Maximum Magic: The Save Our School Summer: Maximum Magic, #1

    By Karleen Tauszik

    ()

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    About this ebook

    Ten-year-old Will has big plans for a fun-filled summer break. But those plans unravel when he finds out his school is closed – not just for the summer, but forever. The mayor claims the building, a beloved centerpiece of the town, is too old and expensive to maintain. But closing it means Will and his friends will have a super-long bus ride to the new school in the next town. And even worse, it means Will’s mom has lost her job in the school office.

    Can the school be saved? Will leads his friends to the local magician, Max Goodman. Together, can they find the real reason for the closure? And can Max and the kids save the school with the demolition date looming and Max at risk of losing his powers?

    THE SAVE OUR SCHOOL SUMMER is the first book in the Maximum Magic series of chapter books for ages 9-12. Look for Book 2, MAYHEM AT THE NEW MUSEUM, and Book 3, THE INFATUATION INFECTION to continue Will’s adventures into Max’s world of magic.

    The Maximum Magic books are contemporary adventures written in under 20,000 words, with fast-moving chapters and best of all, magic!

    NOTE TO PARENTS:

    My goal as an author is to get your kids to LOVE reading as much as I did when I was their age...and as much as I still do! My husband is a professional magician. Based on the fascination I see children have with him and his tricks, I wrote the Maximum Magic series.

    My promise to you: my Maximum Magic books are clean, with no offensive language, no sketchy innuendos, and with strong family units. I realize that our children are bombarded daily with messages we’d rather they didn’t learn (at least not at their young age). It happens, but I don’t believe it needs to happen in my books. My job is to have your children enjoy reading.

    The Lexile levels for this series fall between 550 and 650.

    The categories for the Maximum Magic series are:

    Action & Adventure / Fantasy & Magic / Art, Music & Photography / Performing Arts Literature & Fiction / Chapter Books /  Intermediate Readers

    LanguageEnglish
    PublisherKarleen Tauszik
    Release dateSep 25, 2011
    ISBN9781533786494
    Maximum Magic: The Save Our School Summer: Maximum Magic, #1

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      Book preview

      Maximum Magic - Karleen Tauszik

      This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents are the product of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, events, or locales is entirely coincidental.

      ––––––––

      Text Copyright © 2011 by Karleen Tauszik

      Cover Illustration from Bigstock.com

      Cover Design Copyright © 2016 by Karleen Tauszik

      Revised copy 2013

      All rights reserved, including the right of reproduction in whole or in part in any form.

      ––––––––

      Summary: Ten-year-old Will leads his friends to local magician, Max Goodman, for help when they find out their school will be sold and demolished.

      ––––––––

      TO PARENTS: Visit author Karleen Tauszik on the web at www.KarleenT.com, where you can sign up to get her FREE book:

      50 Simple Steps for Reading Success:

      Parent-Proven Tips to

      Make Reading Exciting and Fun,

      Improve Reading Skills and Comprehension

      Engage and Encourage Your Reluctant Reader.

      You’ll also get her newsletter with more tips, the latest news in the world of reading for children, and her latest releases and promos. My goal is to get your child to LOVE reading. Is that your goal too? If so, click the cover!

      For Lowell:

      husband,

      magician,

      and the inspiration for this series.

      1

      "Glad we’re outta there," Josh shouted over his shoulder. He pedaled hard past the elementary school, pumping fast as if he could catch cooties if he lingered too long.

      Yeah, me too, Will called back, trying to keep up. But truth be told, he’d miss the old place over the summer. The friends, the routine, and even math class. Especially math class. He glanced at the school as he passed.

      Hey! Wait up, Josh! Will slammed on his brakes, his back tire squealing to a stop.

      Josh slowed and U-turned in the street. What? Let’s get going. We got stuff to do.

      Look! Will pointed at the front doors. A heavy silver chain hung through the handles, held together with a large lock. Above it, there was a bright yellow sign:  CLOSED. NO TRESPASSING.

      Yeah, so what? School’s closed. We knew that, Einstein.

      But the sign? The lock? They never did that in the summer before. Besides, the teachers are still working another week. So is my mom, finishing up stuff in the office.

      Will went to the doors and cupped his hands around his eyes to peer through the glass.

      It’s all dark in there. I don’t see anybody.

      So maybe they got off early for the day. Went out to celebrate getting rid of us kids. Josh put a foot on his pedal, eager to push off.

      But if they’re coming back tomorrow how will they get in? Will wondered, looking at the lock and chain.

      Josh rolled his eyes. Maybe they have to use that back entrance by the cafeteria. Who knows? C’mon! We got better things to worry about. We gotta get to the pool before it gets all crowded with those whiny little kids.

      Will’s questions about the school were soon squashed by the June-perfect day spent outside with Josh. They swam at the Rec Center, then biked out to the woods. As they came and went, they were somehow able to avoid the giggling group of girls hanging out over at Courtney’s house. They followed their plan to make sure this summer was the best ever.

      It had to be. When they went back to school, they’d be in fifth grade. Kings of the school. But Josh told him they’d need to be different for middle school. That meant next summer it would be time to...to grow up? To change? To start acting more like teenagers? Will wasn’t sure. But Josh had older brothers. He knew. And according to Josh, this was their last summer to be kids and to have fun.

      For now, the summer break stretched out in front of the boys and as Will pedaled up his driveway, he was tired but satisfied with his first day off. He jumped off his bike, letting it drop on the grass, its front tire still spinning as he bolted up the front steps.

      Mom? I’m home!

      Will swung open the screen door and froze. His mother jolted to attention, grabbing the box of tissues that sat beside her on the couch and quickly hiding them behind her back. But Will could see she had been crying—black trails of eye makeup were smeared on her cheeks.

      You’re home early, Mom said, her voice jagged as she tried to breathe normally. A blizzard of used tissues littered the floor, and Will noticed Mom trying to shove them under the couch with her foot. His brain shouted NOT GOOD as a grey blanket of dread smothered his mood

      Mom, what’s the matter? What happened? He forced the words out over the rock-hard lump of fear in his throat.

      She shook her head. Nothing. No big deal. I’m OK. Just had a hard day. That’s all.

      A hard day? Will was certain there was more.

      Are you sick? Do you need me to call Dad?

      No, really. I’m OK. Mom leaned down to clean up the tissues, but Will suspected she was more interested in hiding her blotched face and red eyes.

      Suddenly he noticed a box on the couch, packed with a haphazard jumble of items that had been on her desk at the school office. His framed fourth grade photo peeked out from the top. Then he remembered. The lock and chain. The yellow sign. CLOSED. NO TRESPASSING.

      Um...Mom? Why’d you bring all your stuff home from your desk? Can’t it stay there all summer?

      Uh...well...I guess it could have, she said, not looking up from the floor.

      Then why didn’t you leave it there? You’ll be back in a couple months.

      Finally Mom looked up and blurted, I-I-I...I lost my job! Breaking the news let loose another storm of tears.

      What? What happened? Take a deep breath, Mom.

      She tried again, settling down into a whimper. It’s the school. They’re closing it.

      Will gasped as the news seeped through him. What do you mean? We were just there yesterday. They didn’t say anything.

      He tried to ignore the feeling of panic that was crowding his chest. Maybe it’s a mistake, a mix up, some kind of end of the school year prank.

      Mom wiped her red eyes and let another crumpled tissue drop to start a new snow drift on the floor.

      They just announced it today. Immediate closing. She grabbed another tissue and blew her nose. Will squirmed, wishing her to go on.

      It’s too old and costs too much to repair and maintain, Mom said. So the city decided to close it and sell it, or knock it down or something.

      They can’t do that!

      Well, obviously they can, she said with a sigh, because they said it’s official. Believe me, it was a shock to us all. No one knew it was coming. Her tears slowed down now that she was talking. Of course we knew the old place was falling apart, and there were rumors. Plenty of rumors. But who’d ever dream that they’d close it. It’s the centerpiece of this town.

      Hey, wait! So where are we supposed to go to school? Will demanded.

      She nodded, hearing him but continuing in her own sad thoughts. "And since the glass factory closed down, Oak Grove Elementary has been the one constant here. Everything’s changing so fast, with the highway going in and

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