Rocket Summer

By Chip Street

4 kids. 3 rockets. 1 bad idea.

Lacey Patterson is thirteen years old, and her life in the tiny desert town of Alice, Nevada is boring and predictable. Her mom died three years ago, and her dad's been so busy working that she's pretty much been on her own ever since. For her and her friends Kenny and Charlie, it's looking like another summer of washing dishes, fixing irrigation pipes and poking sticks at armadillos.

Until they make an exciting - and dangerous - discovery.

Lacey's stumbled across a crate filled with surplus military rockets. So she and Kenny have decided to do what any kid would do... build a rocket powered car on the outskirts of town. Of course, they know nothing about cars, and have no way to move the rockets.

Oh, and they'll probably get killed in the process.

Luckily, Kenny's delinquent older sister Darlene does know cars, and she has a pickup. So they scrounge for small change to keep her in hush money, and she helps them steal parts and tools.

With enough duct tape and baling wire, and a healthy dose of not-knowing-any-better, they're bent on making this a summer to remember... if they can just stay alive long enough to enjoy it.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Chip Street
• Release date: Feb 21, 2013
• ISBN: 9781301452941

Chip Street

Chip Street wrote and illustrated his first books in elementary school, on lined paper, stapled together and shared with his friends. They were about a boy who really really wanted a dog, and a boy who had a lizard for a pet. He went on to write poetry and short stories all the way through high school. In college, he majored in creative writing -- specifically children's literature -- and art. He was lucky to study with an award-winning children's author who was also a Poet Laureate and a Pulitzer finalist, who inspired him with her friendship and kind guidance. Having children -- and now grandchildren -- has given Chip lots of opportunities to tell bedtime stories and draw pictures. Now, he's able to share his stories and drawings with everyone. His books are all rated 5 stars on Amazon; film rights for one, "Rocket Summer," have been sold.