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Mort Ziff Is Not Dead

Author Cary Fagan

Hardcover

$15.99 US

Tundra Book Group | Puffin Canada

5.7"W x 8.6"H x 0.7"D (14.5 x 21.8 x 1.8 cm) | 10 oz (281 g) | 12 per carton

On sale Aug 01, 2017 | 176 Pages | 9780143198475

Age 8-12 years | Grades 3-7

Reading Level: Fountas & Pinnell P

Sales rights: World

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Children's Books > Children's Middle Grade Books

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A humorous coming-of-age middle-grade novel set in 1960s Florida. Battling obxious siblings, sunburns, and a corporate millionaire, Norman is determined to help an old comedian save his career.

It's the winter of 1965. Norman Fishbein is enduring not only a cold winter but also the usual torments and annoyances from his two older brothers. When Norman wins a thousand dollars in the "Count-the-Doozy-Dots Contest" his parents let him choose how to spend it, strongly suggesting a new car is what the family needs. But Norman decides what his family really needs is their first vacation that doesn't mean camping in a tent--a trip to Miami Beach.

A snowstorm almost wrecks their plans, but in the end Norman gets his first plane ride (with both brothers air-sick on either side of him). Miami strikes him as a paradise--warm weather, palm trees, beaches, and ocean. They stay in luxury at the Royal Palm Hotel, owned by the mysterious millionaire Herbert Spitzer.

One day at the pool Norman spots an old man in a black suit, who his father tells him is a once-famous comedian named Mort Ziff. (Norman's father thought that Mort Ziff had died years ago.) Holding onto the remains of his career, Mort Ziff is performing every night in the hotel dining room. A chance meeting begins an unusual friendship between Norman and the old comedian. But after hearing that Mort Ziff has been fired, to be replaced by "The Centipedes," a pop group imitating the Beatles, Norman takes matters into his own hands, resolving to save Mort's job and in the process, coming to realize an innner strength he didn't know he had.

WINNER | 2019
The Joan Betty Stuchner - Oy Vey! - Funniest Children's Book Award
SHORTLIST | 2019
The Joan Betty Stuchner - Oy Vey! - Funniest Children's Book Award

One of CCBC’S Best Books for Kids & Teens (2018)

"Fagan delivers a witty, heartfelt character study complete with bullying siblings and sweet first crushes. . . . A wonderful read told with elegant simplicity." --Kirkus Reviews

"A quirky, understated, and dryly comedic story . . . Fagan manages to make gold, turning an old fashioned vacation adventure into something more subtle, even graceful. Highly recommended." --CM Magazine

"This delightful story for middle-graders is a great romp through life in the ´60s as its delightful young hero stretches his wings and learns that kindness has many rewards." --Historical Novel Society

CARY FAGAN's numerous kids' books include The Collected Works of Gretchen Oyster, which was a JLG selection, the Kaspar Snit novels, the Wolfie & Fly chapter books, and the picture books Water, Water, Little Blue Chair, What Are You Doing, Benny?, King Mouse, which was shortlisted for the Governor General's Award, and Bear Wants to Sing. Mr. Zinger's Hat, another of his picture books, was awarded the Marilyn Baillie Picture Book Award and the IODE Jean Throop Award. He has also won the Vicky Metcalf Award for Literature for Young People for his body of work. Cary was born and raised in Toronto, where he continues to live with his family. View titles by Cary Fagan

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Awards

WINNER | 2019
The Joan Betty Stuchner - Oy Vey! - Funniest Children's Book Award
SHORTLIST | 2019
The Joan Betty Stuchner - Oy Vey! - Funniest Children's Book Award

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