Rex Zero and the End of the World

Why does everyone seem so scared? That's what the new boy in town, Rex Norton-Norton, aka Rex Zero, wonders as he rides his bike through Ottawa's streets. Is it spies? Kidnappers? Or is it because of the shadowy creature some say is stalking Adams Park? One thing is certain in this summer of 1962 as the Cold War heats up: nothing is quite what it seems. What's a boy to do? If his name is Rex Zero and he has a bike he calls "Diablo," five wild and funny siblings, an alpha dog named Kincho, a basement bomb shelter built of old Punch magazines, and a mind that turns everything inside out, he's bound to come up with an amazing idea. With its mystery, adventure, laugh-out-loud scenes of family chaos, and underlying message of hope, this wonderfully original novel explores the impact of doomsday on the imagination of one smart and funny twelve-year-old boy. And more Rex Zero adventures are promised!

TIM WYNNE-JONES is one of Canada’s premier children’s authors. His highly praised books include, The Boy in the Burning House, winner of the Edgar Award, and A Thief in the House of Memory, an ALA Best Book for Young Adults, a Publishers Weekly Best Book of the Year, and a Kirkus Reviews Editor’s Choice. His next book, Rex Zero and the Great Pretender, will be available from FSG in Fall 2010. He lives near Perth, Ontario. You can visit him on the web at www.timwynne-jones.com.

“Who wouldn’t want to spend time with the wonderfully observed, engagingly eccentric Norton-Nortons? As always, Wynne-Jones’ eye for odd and telling detail creates a fantastically charming cast of characters that demand attention as they claim to be mutant zombie hunters, photographers of the impossible, prophets of doom, and, in the case of Rex Zero, himself, just a kid trying to get along in a Cold War world gone mad.”—M.T. Anderson “Brilliant in its near stream-of-consciousness depiction of the world as Rex sees it . . . The meticulous plotting sets the enormity of world destruction against the equally cataclysmic concerns of childhood. It’s a historic narrative that resonates eerily and effectively today.”—The Horn Book, Starred Review “Wynne-Jones writes with a light, often humorous touch and maintains a perspective true to an 11-year-old's perspective. This winning hero paints a universe both hopeful and realistic, one that readers may well want to visit.”—Publishers Weekly, Starred Review “Delightfully nerve-wracking, eccentric and optimistic.”—Kirkus Reviews “The sense of looming doomsday will hold readers, as will the timeless drama of moving and trying to fit in.”—Booklist “A fast-moving, quirky romp through apocalyptic anxiety.”—The Bulletin of the Center for Children’s Books “Eccentric and charming.”—VOYA “An unusual and appealing title.”—School Library Journal