The Kid Who Became President Review

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(More customer reviews)Let me put it out on the table right now, right up front--this book is not to be taken seriously. Dan Gutman wrote the wildest, most implausible, fun book he could think of. Why? How have adult presidents done in office? Great? Really good? Horrible? Just to stir the waters a bit, Gutman published his book in time for the campaign season. Through the story he asks hard questions about presidential campaigns and candidates. Who do we elect as our President?
Gutman goes into the story with the proposition that even a kid could do as well as an adult in presiding over a country. Here are two give-aways that Gutman was spoofing: (These are obvious--I just wanted to have fun writing them)
1. What adult with even half a brain would vote for a 12-year-old kid, especially if that adult has a child that age or near it. Kids would put pressure on their parents to vote for Judson Moon? Parents would given in? Ya think?
2. Another wildly improbable idea is legally changing the age for president. It takes about nine months in the book. Congress is going to do this? No way. That's how you know that Gutman is pulling your leg.
That out of the way, we can examine the novel. I'm an old folk, a librarian to be sure, but still an old folk, and I thoroughly enjoyed this book. It was fun to watch (in my mind's eye) a mere child--no less President of the United States-- who still has parents tell him to clean up his room in the White House. As Judson tells voters during the campaign, he doesn't know anything.
What do you think one of the first acts of a 12-year-old kid would be? Did you guess that he flies in all his friends from his home in Wisconsin over for the weekend in the White House? Can you imagine 30 unsupervised 12-year-olds roving all over the White House?
Because he does "not know anything," several local and international events occur, with one of utmost importance, involving a nasty, despicable South American dictator. Another of great discouragement is that Judson's Chief of Staff resigns and goes back home to a normal school life in Wisconsin.
His First Babe, uh, First Lady is beautiful (at 12?) Chelsea Daniels, who does know her etiquette, and style, and flair. Judson's style is light-hearted even though it makes him enemies (that South American dictator). One of my favorite scenes involves Chelsea morphing from a social butterfly into a worker bee--drab in sweatpants, ponytail, but devoted to helping hurricane victims--sincerely so.
Underneath the fun and work of being President, Judson, too, learns the seriousness (he ran as a lark), dedication (he did want to do good), passion (has it, does get to use it), and experience (a dead end). Gutman laces the story with civics and government mini-lessons, but only enough to clue in a reader who might not know this information yet. It's well-done and certainly not offensive.
How it ends is left for the reader to discover. Trust me, everyone is satisfied and even happy. A truly fun reading experience. Not to be missed. As an older woman friend would say, "A hoot!" As my fifth-grade niece would say, "Snap!"
As Judson Moon said in his inauguration: "Let's Rummmmbbblllee!!"


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Just in time for election season, Dan Gutman's hugely popular sequal to THE KID WHO RAN FOR PRESIDENT is back. Humor, adventure, and excitement will draw kids into the world of white house politics.
Judson Moon has done a big flip-flop. Immediately after being elected President of the United States, he resigned. Now, after a heart-to-heart with his running mate (and ex-babysitter) June Syers, Judd has decided to take office after all: He wants to make a difference.
Being President is anything but easy. Between dealing with a crazed South American dictator and people who are trying to kill him, Judson starts to wonder if it wouldn't be better just to go back to being a kid in Madison, Wisconsin. But with a lot of help from his friends, Judson might just figure everything out.

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