THE PRIME MINISTER'S BRAIN: RETURN OF THE DEMON HEADMASTER (PUFFIN BOOKS) - Softcover

Gillian Cross is one of Britain's most prominent children's authors. She has won both the major awards - the Whitbread Children's Novel Award and the Carnegie Medal - and many others.

Grade 4-7 A sequel to The Demon Headmaster (Oxford University Pr, 1983), The Prime Minister's Brain continues a similar story line with the same young children seeking to thwart the evil Computer Director's plan to gain access to the Prime Minister's computer. In a robot-controlled tower, the Director holds the children, including Dinah Hunter, against their will by hypnotizing them with octopus designs on their screens. Dinah's friends come to her aid after she cracks the Prime Minister's computer's code with a "knock-knock" joke. They evacuate the children through the garbage chute and alter the course of the Director's helicopter before he lands at the Prime Minister's office. Dinah can't bring herself to kill the evil Director, so he will probably resurface in a new but equally sinister role in a sequel. There is little characterization or plot development in this British computer adventure story. There are a few amusing scenes, but in general the book has too few comic touches. However, because it is an adventure involving robots and computers, the novel may have some appeal to young readers seeking simple escape adventure stories. Yvonne A. Frey, Peoria Public Library, Ill.
Copyright 1986 Reed Business Information, Inc.