When Howie Quackenbush receives his order from the school book club, he's expecting 101 Pickle Jokes. What he gets is a copy of The Secret Guide to North Mellwood, and something tells him his life is about to change dramatically.
The guide tells him how to transport anywhere in town simply by laying his hand on a secret portal and saying his destination's true name. At first, transporting around town with his best friends is a lot of fun. But Howie is full of questions. Who sent him the book? Why? Why does every place in Mellwood have two names? And what could the mysterious Hall of Babies possibly have to do with him?
Twenty Questions About City of Names: An Interview with Kevin Brockmeier (Amy Parker & Her Son Bruno, Age 8)
Bruno: Do you know any pickle jokes?
Q: If Chuck Norris were a pickle, what would his motto be?
A: Dill or be dilled.
(I just made that up...speaking of cheap puns.)
Or better: What kind of statuary did Ancient Greek pickles create?
A: Neo-Vlasical.
Reviews
“Offbeat . . . . the contrivances are clever.”
—Publishers Weekly
“A giddy but enjoyable ride with a whiff of mystery (as well as sulfur) that may leave readers regarding their own supposedly ordinary neighborhoods with new eyes.”
—Kirkus Reviews
“The magical absurdity that permeates the rest of [Brockmeier's] work translates well into children's literature--City of Names reminded me, in turns, of D. Manus Pinkwater (Lizard Music) and Roald Dahl (The Witches, James and the Giant Peach, Charlie and the Chocolate Factory).”
—WebdelSol