I LOVE THIS BOOK!!!! It is so interesting, and it has AMAZING facts about Harry Houdini!!! If you LOVE fantasy and nonfiction combined, and if you love the imposible, this is the right book for you. There is a series about only fiction but it is for 4th graders and up. And the first book of that series is called, Gregor the Overlander. I even think it is better than this book!!
Houdini and Me
By Gutman, Dan
Harry has always admired the famous escape artist Houdini. And when Houdini asks for help in coming back to life, it seems like an amazing chance...or could it be Houdini's greatest trick of all?
Eleven-year-old Harry Mancini is NOT Harry Houdini--the famous escape artist who died in 1926. But Harry DOES live in Houdini's old New York City home, and he definitely knows everything there is to know about Houdini's life. What is he supposed to do, then, when someone starts texting him claiming that they're Houdini, communicating from beyond the grave? Respond, of course.
It's hard for Harry to believe that Houdini is really contacting him, but this Houdini texts the secrets to all of the escape tricks the dead Houdini used to do. What's more, Houdini's offering Harry a chance to go back in time and experience it for himself. Should Harry ignore what must be a hoax? Or should he give it a try and take Houdini up on this death-defying offer?
Dan Gutman is the award-winning author of series including My Weird School, The Genius Files, and the baseball card series, including Honus & Me. He uses his writing powers for good once again in this exciting new middle grade novel.
Publisher: Holiday House
ISBN-13: 9780823445158
ISBN-10: 0823445151
Published on 3/2/2021
Binding: Hardcover
Number of pages: 208
Book Reviews (16)
Abracadabra! Abraca-don’t? Do you believe in magic? Well, you just might after you read Dan Gutman’s “Houdini and Me”. Harry Mancini, an 11-year old amateur magician, has a unique connection to Harry Houdini, an infamous escape artist. And his story will have you wondering, “How did he do that?” Not only do the two share the same first name, but Harry Mancini was born and is living in the same house that magician Harry Houdini lived in the last years of his life. This New York City house has a sign posted outside that Harry boastfully shows off and Harry even becomes a Houdini historian by reading and learning as much about Houdini, as well as a few tricks of his own. What else do these two Harrys share? Communication. After waking up in the hospital, Harry’s adventure begins. Amongst his get-well cards, candies, and gifts, he finds an old flip cell phone. Was this a gift? Was it a prank? Either way you answer, the flip phone becomes a time machine between two worlds, Harry’s and Houdini’s. Houdini had found a way to communicate after death! Harry eagerly wants to learn the secrets to some of Houdini’s escapes; and he does- through their text messages. With some persistence, Harry agrees to be a part of a magic trick. For one-hour, Harry switches lives with Houdini. Harry finds himself in the 1920’s in one of Houdini’s famous straitjacket escape tricks and Houdini is excited that, in the 21st century, people still know who he is! Is this the beginning of a bigger magic trick? What happens next will leave you applauding for more! This is a page turner read with each chapter’s cliff hanger leaving you grappling for more. The story is filled with historical facts about New York City, Houdini’s life, and tricks. The illustrations are original photographs and posters of Houdini and New York City. This give a hint of realism, sprinkled with a little magic dust to the book.
I have wanted to read this book, I have met dan!
spokky scary skelliotions!!!
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I love this book 5 stars
I will admit, I did have my own doubts when I began to read Houdini and Me. Our protagonist, 11 year old Harry Mancini, was born and raised in the home that Harry Houdini himself lived in for the last twenty something years of his extraordinary life. Like most 11 year olds, Harry copes with typical struggles of tweens: not being given a phone, too much homework, friend drama, and the looming fact that Harry Houdini wants to switch places with Harry Mancini for the rest of eternity. Harry Mancini and his best friend Zeke decide to one day test out whether placing a penny on a train rail would flatten the penny or derail the train (Spoiler alert: It flattens the penny). Harry, after placing the money on the train rail, gets his shoelace stuck in the train rail and barely avoids being crushed by the train. However, Harry also sustains a concussion on the way down and falls into a week long coma. When he wakes, Mancini discovers that someone has sent him a flip phone as a get well gift, and Harry is less than thrilled. But all of his feelings swap when he begins to receive texts from someone; they claim to be Harry Houdini communicating from the dead. Harry Mancini enjoys his nightly text exchanges with Houdini until the latter Harry suggests that both of them switch places for one hour. Harry Mancini complies, and afterwards Houdini suggests that they do the switch once again, but they will both never return to their original form. The story ends in an amazing plot twist with Mancini waking up from another week long coma, only to find a flip phone inside a get well present. I enjoyed reading this book, and would really love to learn about what being stuck in this time loop means for both Harrys. A true page turner, I would recommend this book to anyone who enjoys thrills and mysteries.
This book is perfect for fans of thrills, chills, and a little bit of magic! Dan Gutman perfectly combines real historical events with a shimmering fictional world to tell the thrilling story of Houdini and Me. The book follows young Harry Mancini, who lives in the house once owned by Harry Houdini, the most famous magician and escape artist of all time. Harry Mancini is somewhat of a local celebrity for living where Houdini once did, but that's about it—that is, until someone tries to communicate with him through an old flip phone, claiming to be the spirit of Harry Houdini himself! Intrigued but not convinced, Harry Mancini decides to ask the person a series of questions only Houdini would know the answer to. And yet, to his surprise, the mysterious texter answers accurately and believably. Could Harry Mancini really be communicating with the spirit of one of the most famous entertainers of the 1900s? At first, he looks forward to his conversations with Houdini eagerly. But as time goes on, Harry Mancini realizes that there was only one thing Houdini could not escape from: death. Houdini has already proved that he can reincarnate into the 21st century by swapping places with Harry Mancini. So what if Houdini decides that he'd like to swap places...forever? Once again, Dan Gutman brings forth relatable characters, slapstick humor, and quick-wit storytelling to tell a fascinating story. As a person who grew up reading his My Weird School series, it was nostalgic and undeniably refreshing to read another work of his. You won't regret reading this up and coming masterpiece! (Book was sent to me by DOGO for purpose of review.)
Have you ever heard of Harry Houdini, the most famous magician and escape artist ever? 11-year-old boy Harry Mancini has always been fascinated with Houdini's life and tricks, especially because he lives in the same home that Houdini lived in New York City, and even his name sounds like Houdini's! But Harry Mancini never thought he would ever communicate with Houdini, especially because Houdini died in the 1920s... After Harry Mancini wakes up from a coma following an accident near the train tracks, he finds a mysterious box amidst the towers of flowers and candy, and it holds an old flip phone that doesn't even seem to work. But when Harry Mancini gets home that night, it begins to buzz and he gets a text from Harry Houdini himself! He doesn't believe it until Houdini offers to perform his most mind-boggling act, Metamorphisis-- but between Harry Mancini and Houdini! He wants to attempt his biggest trick ever-- to switch bodies from the dead! I loved this book and it was so interesting! So everyone should read it!
Have you ever heard of Harry Houdini, the most famous magician and escape artist ever? 11-year-old boy Harry Mancini has always been fascinated with Houdini's life and tricks, especially because he lives in the same home that Houdini lived in New York City, and even his name sounds like Houdini's! But Harry Mancini never thought he would ever communicate with Houdini, especially because Houdini died in the 1920s... After Harry Mancini wakes up from a coma following an accident near the train tracks, he finds a mysterious box amidst the towers of flowers and candy, and it holds an old flip phone that doesn't even seem to work. But when Harry Mancini gets home that night, it begins to buzz and he gets a text from Harry Houdini himself! He doesn't believe it until Houdini offers to perform his most mind-boggling act, Metamorphisis-- but between Harry Mancini and Houdini! He wants to attempt his biggest trick ever-- to switch bodies from the dead! This book was so entertaining and I couldn't stop reading! If you're curious about how Houdini did some of his most puzzling tricks, you should definitely read this book! I personally have always been super interested in Houdini and have even read some other books about him, but I still learned new things about Houdini from this book! I had no idea what was going to happen next and it kept me turning the pages into suspense and a crazy plot twist! I would recommend this book to ages 10+!
I was thrilled to receive this book in the mail from DOGO, and as soon as the package arrived, I ripped it open and started reading. The premises sounded interesting—I love how Dan Gutman incorporated history into a fictional story. The characters were realistic and multi-layered, the plot enjoyable—Houdini and Me is a fantastic story that will keep you reading late into the night. Summary: If you got the chance to switch places with your idol...what would you do? This is the question eleven-year-old Harry Mancini must ask himself when a mysterious person starts texting him, claiming he’s the famous magician Harry Houdini, back from the dead. Houdini offers him a once-in-a-lifetime chance to switch places...so that Harry Mancini becomes Houdini and travels to his time period, while Houdini transforms into an eleven-year-old boy in the twenty-first century. But Houdini isn’t who he seems, and he may perform his biggest magic trick yet—coming back from the dead...forever. Overall, I really enjoyed this book, and rate it 4/5 stars. I would recommend it to readers who like fantasy mixed with realistic fiction, magic, and adventure, creating the perfect combination!