The Big Splash

In his first novel The Big Splash, Jack D. Ferraiolo shows readers what we've always known - that middle school hallways are filled with thugs, bullies, and criminals out to extort the lowly. Franklin Middle School seems to be under the control of seventh-grade boss Vincent Biggio ("Vinny Biggs"), who has his hand in a ring of candy smugglers, forged hall passes, and most notoriously can easily have someone who displeases him condemned to "The Outs" by means of a squirt gun aimed in a place that would cause dreadful humiliation. But when Nikki - once Vinny's greatest squirt-gun assassin and one of the toughest, most feared people in the school - is herself put on The Outs, kid detective Matt Stevens is on the case. But who could have possibly done this to Nikki? Any of the hundreds of kids tormented by her or Vinny's gang had a motive. Matt must follow a series of clues to uncover exactly whodunnit.

This book was written in a style that imitates classic film noir - picture an old black and white movie involving a hard-boiled gumshoe, a gangster, and girls who are both beautiful and deadly - but is set in the halls of a middle school. As such, the narration is laden with crazy similes ("I felt like a diabetic at an ice cream buffet") that will make readers either laugh or groan, depending on their tastes . This book is a little over the top and and the characters are just a bit superficial, but readers who are willing to sit back and enjoy the show will likely revel in Matt's detective skills and the powerful mafia that controls his school.

Overall Grade: A-