The Amazing Flight of Darius Frobisher

A young orphan’s hopes and an unusual bicycle bring about magical results in this imaginative middle grade adventure from award-winning author Bill Harley.  

Out of stock

  • ISBN: 9781561454945
  • Publication date: 08/01/2009
  • Page Count: 160
  • Size: 6" x 8-1/2"
  • Age Range: 8-12

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Description

A young orphan’s hopes and an unusual bicycle bring about magical results in this imaginative middle grade adventure from award-winning author Bill Harley.

“This pleasant blend of melodrama and fantasy will make youngsters frown over Darius’s misery and then smile in anticipation of the predictably happy ending.” ―School Library Journal

Life is an adventure for ten-year-old Darius Frobisher. His eccentric father Rudy sells insurance four days a week. The other three days he goes on exotic journeys. But when his father flies off in a hot air balloon and doesn’t come back, Darius’s happy, carefree life suddenly comes to an end. He is sent to live with his notoriously nasty Aunt Ida, where he has to sleep alone in a cold, damp basement and dodge the horrible teenage boy next door.

Darius sees a ray of hope when he finds a rusty old bicycle in the basement and begins to repair it in secret. Then one day he is startled to see an old man with long flowing hair riding a bicycle across the sky! That gives Darius a strange and wonderful idea. Now he knows what he has to do to get away from his miserable life.

Grammy-winning storyteller Bill Harley tells an offbeat, broadly drawn story about loss and hope, escape, injustice, and magic, featuring a cast of curious and unconventional characters that will easily capture the attention―and imagination―of young readers.

Awards:

Best Children’s Books of the Year ―Bank Street College of Education
Kansas State Reading Circle Recommended Reading List (Intermediate) ―Kansas National Education Association
Georgia Children’s Book Award (Nominee) ―University of Georgia
Keystone to Reading Book Award (Intermediate Nominee) ―Keystone State Reading Association
Volunteer State Book Awards (Master List, Grades 4-6) ―Tennessee Association of School Librarians

Author/Illustrator

Bill Harley

Author

Bill Harley is a two-time Grammy Award-winning storyteller, musician, and writer who has been writing and performing for kids and families for more than twenty-five years. He is the recipient of Parents’ Choice and ALA awards. He won a 2007 Grammy Award for his children’s storytelling album Blah Blah Blah and a 2009 Grammy Award for his children’s spoken-word album Yes to Running! Bill Harley Live. He lives in Massachusetts.

Reviews

“This pleasant blend of melodrama and fantasy will make youngsters frown over Darius’s misery and then smile in anticipation of the predictably happy ending.” ―School Library Journal

“Harley’s easygoing storytelling style will engage readers who like a mildly intrusive but not overly clever ironic narrator. Suspense builds steadily for the perennially appealing put-upon orphan, beset on all sides by the vicious injustice of mean people, and the climax is spectacularly delivered by a miraculous trip on a flying bicycle built in a basement workshop; oh, yeah, this taps into some classic mechanic-geek fantasies.” ―Bulletin of the Center for Children’s Books

Awards

Best Children’s Books of the Year ―Bank Street College of Education, 2007

Kansas State Reading Circle Recommended Reading List (Intermediate) ―Kansas National Education Association, 2007

Georgia Children’s Book Award (Nominee) ―University of Georgia, 2008-2009

Keystone to Reading Book Award (Intermediate Nominee) ―Keystone State Reading Association, 2007-2008

Volunteer State Book Awards (Master List, Grades 4-6) ―Tennessee Association of School Librarians, 2008-2009

More Details

AR Level: 4.4
F&P: GRL T, Gr 5, Genre F
Lexile: 660L
Themes: Mythology, Inventions, Bullies, Bicycles, Fantasy
BISAC 1: JUV001000 JUVENILE FICTION / Action & Adventure / General
BISAC 2: JUV005000 JUVENILE FICTION / Boys & Men
BISAC 3: JUV019000 JUVENILE FICTION / Humorous Stories