THE SEEMS: THE GLITCH IN SLEEP
by John Hulme and Michael Wexler
Bloomsbury USA Children’s Books
Hardcover: 9781599901299
Paperback: 9781599902982
Ages 10-14
304 pages

THE SEEMS: THE GLITCH IN SLEEP by John Hulme and Michael Wexler introduce us to Becker Drane, a seemingly average 12-year-old with a wholly unaverage job: he gets to fix the World. As one of the youngest Fixers in a parallel world known as The Seems, Becker is responsible for repairing everyday problems that go wrong in the World as you and I know it. Faulty rainstorms, bad dreams… If something goes wonky, you can bet there's a team in The Seems who’s on it to make things right again.

Having worked his way up in the ranks, Becker finds himself on his first Mission as a Fixer --- and it's a doozy. A Glitch, one of the worst types of problems to crop up, runs rampant in the Department of Sleep, keeping the World from catching any shut-eye. Despite his junior status, Becker throws himself into the Mission and soon finds himself with more trouble than he bargained for. A rash decision leads to his suspension, forcing Becker to try to redeem himself and (hopefully) determine how (or even if) this recent run of problems is linked to The Tide, a shady organization dedicated to undoing everything The Seems attempts to uphold.

With an imagination hopped up on a dozen cans of Red Bull, Hulme and Wexler take no prisoners in creating Becker's unique world and its clockwork cousin, the realm of The Seems. Reminiscent of the works of Jonathan Stroud and Jasper Fforde, this book makes use of amusing footnotes, a jargon-laden glossary and a guide to the unique tools wielded by the Fixers in their day-to-day routine.

THE GLITCH IN SLEEP has the toughest job as the first book in the series: it needs to set up the world and make it believable and fun. The authors take that challenge and create an infinitely memorable environment that will set the stage for Becker's further adventures. Although most every dilemma gets resolved by book's end, we can only hope that future installments will add more dimension to the characters and provide details about the mysterious Tide.

For fans of adventure and imagination that barrel along at a breakneck pace, THE SEEMS: THE GLITCH IN SLEEP opens the door to the next book series you'll become addicted to.

    --- Reviewed by Brian Farrey (Emohawk9000@gmail.com)

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