287. Tony Hawk's 900 Revolution #1 by Donnie Lemke

Drop In by Donnie Lemke. Illustrated by Caio Majado (US) - (Canada)
Tony Hawk's 900 Revolution, Vol. 1

Pages: 121
Ages: 10+
Finished: Dec. 27, 2011
First Published: Aug. 1, 2011
Publisher: Stone Arch Books
Genre: children, YA, sports, fantasy
Rating: 3/5

First sentence:

"Bleck! You call this a fish taco?!" shouted Tommy Goff, spitting out chunks of tortilla and battered sea bass onto the Imperial Beach Pier.

Acquired: Received a review copy from Capstone Press.

Reason for Reading:   I'm always willing to give a Stone Arch book a try.

I wasn't quite sure what I was in for with this book as I know nothing about skateboarding.  The book is most certainly written for a targeted audience of skateboarders and the whole lingo is there, leaving me scratching my head at times but I'm sure those in the know would find the characters authentic.  This did take me a while to get into the story but once I got used to both the skateboarding and Southern California slang "gnarly ollie, dude!" I settled into the book and actually enjoyed the story.  We have realistic teens, two boys both living with a single parent mother, one whose father just took off one day when he was small.  The other, our main character, Omar, whose father was presumed killed in a dangerous surfing accident  a few years back.  The boys find themselves the target of a secret organization who have chosen Omar to be the one to collect the pieces of a magic skateboard, once belonging to Tony Hawk, and put them back together again.

Surprisingly, I had a fun time reading this and am sure the targeted audience, pre- and young skateboarding teens will love the fast-paced adventure and classic fantasy quest.  The first four volumes have been published and each one focuses on a new recruit to the organization called "Revolution".  The book is all text except for a short graphic sequence at the beginning and a much longer graphic sequence as the plot nears its climax.    Fun and recommended for reluctant readers.