King Dork

Loved the book, recommend it!

He knows what he is. He knows WHO he is. Though he can't make up his mind what his band name (or first album) should be called.A simple enough story at heart, it pulls lots of strands together into the general plot of 'teenage geek tries to discover more about his dead father while pursuing girls and rock 'n' roll fame'.Tom refers to himself as 'King Dork', and discovers one day a book owned by his father containing notes and codes. Wanting to learn more about the dad he doesn't know, he tries to solve the puzzle. It's amusing that it happens to be the book that every teacher raves about - Salinger's 'Catcher in the Rye' - not one of Tom's favourites...King Dork is a protagonist who doesn't really care what you think of him, unlike many you read about, he's pretty happy within his own skin, but he does want to know about his dad, and he DOES want to know more about girls!I found the talk of 'Catcher' hilarious, we all know teachers who rave about certain books or their own passions as if they are life and death. And I almost laughed out loud at the constantly-changing band names and albums that the group come up with. The end of the audiobook had a bonus - several of their songs sung for us! Brilliant.There are some great secondary characters, with one teacher who likes to confront misbehaving students in the school toilets a particular standout.The audiobook is a great format for this kind of story and narration, a 'first person', with a friendly and knowing (yet still likeable) young male voice as Tom/Chi-Mo (I won't explain that nickname).With some sexual content, this is one for older readers, aged 13/14 and above.

A witty coming-of-age story, but not one that had me completely hooked from start to finish.

I got this for christmas and it's a fantastic read. Frank Portman has a great way with words and has obviously taken a course in 30 days to a more powerful vocabulary.The characters are as well described as you would expect from a 14 year old boy who doesn't really talk all that much. The great thing about this book, as I've said in my title, is that it keeps you guessing right up to the end of the book and after - but in a good way. When I was about 1/3 of the way through it, I was thinking "What the hell is this about?" and really, it's just about the trials and (devil head) tribulations of a 14 year old social misfit.Definitely a book for everyone who likes music and a good old mystery

Right after I finished KING DORK, the debut novel from author Frank Portman, I sat down to write my review--and stared at my computer for fifteen very long minutes wondering exactly how to explain this book. KING DORK will do that to you--leave you speechless, not quite sure of how to put what you feel into words. I guess if I could only use two words to describe this book, I would choose "wonderfully odd."If I met Tom Henderson in real life, and had a one-minute conversation with him, I would undoubtedly wonder 1) what the hell this guy was talking about, or 2) what the hell I was talking about when talking to him.Yes, it's that kind of a book. A story that starts with the simple task of Tom trying to find any old copy of THE CATCHER IN THE RYE and instead finding a marked-up, footnoted, annotated, high-lighted version his dead father once owned. It all goes downhill--or over the proverbial edge--from there.I've decided that there's simply no other way to accurately describe this book. I can't give you a plot outline without giving away the entire story, so you'll simply have to pick up a copy of KING DORK for yourself. I guarantee you won't be disappointed, and I can also guarantee that you'll never find better band names than Baby Batter, Ray Bradbury's Love-Camel, The Mordor Apes, or We Have Eaten All the Cake. Just as you'll never find a better one-liner than "Talk Won Ton to Me, You Crazy Asian Superstar."And that's all I've got to say about that.Reviewed by: Jennifer Wardrip, aka "The Genius"

Twisty book - it is often very, very, funny and the whole Catcher in the Rye myth slaying is highly commendable. Musical references make sense, reveal someone with the right musical inclinations, which does not spoil anything in my opinion. Overall this is an enjoyable read with a touch of a let down towards the end though.Oh it is also very inventive in places.3 star only because of the ending.