By: by Roland SmithInteractive Novel

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After Peak Marcello is arrested for scaling a New York City skyscraper, he's left with two choices: wither away in Juvenile Detention or go live with his long-lost father, who runs a climbing company in Thailand. But Peak quickly learns that his father's renewed interest in him has strings attached. Big strings. He wants Peak to be the youngest person to reach the Everest summit--and his motives are selfish at best. Even so, for a climbing addict like Peak, tackling Everest is the challenge of a lifetime. But it's also one that could cost him his life.

          Roland Smith has created an action-packed

adventure about friendship, sacrifice, family, and the drive to take on Everest, despite the incredible risk. Peak is a novel readers won't be able to put down.

Based on the cover of the book, answer the following questions:

In what time period does the story take place, in your opinion? Why?

What can you predict about the main character in the book? Why?

What can you predict about the themes in the book? Why?

Why do you think the author used this color scheme?

Why do you think the author used this font for the title?

The story mainly takes place in and around the area of Mount Everest.

It begins in New York City at the Woolworth Building.

Most events of the story take place in and around Mount Everest. Other settings include: the Peak’s home, the courtroom, and Kathmandu.

How does the setting (the when and where of the story) effect the main character? Why?

Number of people to attempt to climb Mt. Everest: approximately 10,000.

Number of people to successfully climb Mt. Everest: approx. 2,000.

Number of people who have died trying to climb Mt. Everest: 189.

Height: 29,028 feet, or 5 and a half miles above sea level. This is equivalent to the size of almost 20 Empire State Buildings.

Location: part of the Himalaya mountain range; straddles border of Nepal and Tibet.

Named for: Sir George Everest, a British surveyor-general of India.

Age: approximately 60 million years old.

Other names: called "Chomolungma" by Tibetans and Sherpas, which means "Mother Goddess of the Earth.“ Also called Sagarmatha.

Countries visible from the summit: Tibet, India, and Nepal.

First to climb to summit: Edmund Hillary and Tenzing Norgay (Sherpa) on May 29, 1953.

In May of 2010, a 13-year-old American boy became the youngest climber to conquer Mount Everest, the world's highest mountain, a climbing website said.

Jordan Romero from Big Bear, California, scaled the 8,850 meter (29,035 feet) summit from the Tibetan side, on the same day a Nepali man broke his own world record for the most number of successful Everest attempts.

"The team has just called in and confirmed that they are standing on top of Mt. Everest," Romero's blog said.

"Their dreams have now come true. Everyone sounded unbelievably happy."

The ascent has put Romero one step closer to reaching his goal of climbing the highest mountains on all seven continents.

Do you think children should be allowed to climb Everest? Why or why not?

http://www.reuters.com/article/idUSTRE64L0TV20100522

What is it? The events or actions that set further events in the story in motion.

• The initiating event in the story occurs in the beginning few chapters. It is when Peak is caught climbing the skyscraper and is punished by the court for his actions.

• The rest of the story is focused upon the development of this situation and how it impacts the characters in the story.

• Why is this such an unusual situation? Do you think it could happen? Why or why not?

The main characters are Peak, his father, Sun-jo and Zopa.

Other characters include: the other climbers, Yash and Yogi, Peak’s family, Holly, and Captain Shek.

Choose one character to describe in as much detail as possible and draw a sketch of this character. Include a border of objects associated with this character.

Character Description

Character Sketch

*Don’t forget to add a border of objects associated with the character you choose to describe and sketch!

What is the protagonist?The protagonist is the main character of the story, everything in the story revolves

around him/her/it.

Who is the protagonist of this story? Why?

What is the antagonist?The antagonist is the character (or force) that opposes the protagonist.

Who (or what) is the antagonist of this story? Why?

Some would argue the antagonist of this story is a force acting against the characters and not a person. Why is this? Which do you think it is? Why? Could it be both? Why or why not?

What is it? The series of events that lead to the climax of the story, usually the

conflicts or struggles of the protagonist. Rising actions occur between the Initiating

Event and the Climax.

Work with a partner and answer the following question:

What are at least 4 rising actions that lead us toward the climax in this story? Why?

What is it?The climax of the story is when the conflict of the plot is resolved. It is often the most exciting part of the story. It is sometimes referred to as the “turning point” of the story, when the plot changes for better or worse for the protagonist, or main character. Often, the antagonist is defeated in the climax.

What is the climax of this story, in your opinion? Why?

What is it?Falling action is what results from the

climax and how the characters deal with it.Falling actions occur between the climax and

the resolution of the story.

Work with a partner and answer the following question:

What are at least 2 falling actions that lead us away from the climax in this story? Why?

What is it?It is the end of the story and it occurs after the climax. It is when you learn what

happens to the characters after the conflict has been resolved.

What happens to Peak and Sun-jo at the end of the book? Why?

Do you think the relationship between Peak and his father will remain the same? Why or why not?

Write a short epilogue for this book explaining what you think will happen to Peak and Sun-jo after the story ends.

What is it? It refers to the general feeling the reader gets

when reading the story. What is the mood of the story, in your opinion? Why?

What is it? The theme of a story is what the author is trying

to convey — in other words, the central idea of the story. Short stories often have just one theme, whereas

novels usually have multiple themes. The theme of a story is woven all the way through the story, and the characters' actions, interactions, and motivations all reflect the story's theme.

What are the themes in this story, in your opinion? Why?

Themes

This book is a work of Realistic Fiction. What is Realistic Fiction?

They are stories which take place in the present time.  Often the basic setting is real, or very similar to a real setting, but the characters are fictional. A book is considered realistic fiction if events in the story did not really happen but could have. The characters are similar to real people and their problems mimic real-life..

What other books of this genre have you read?

I was born and raised in Portland, Oregon. When I was five years old my parents gave me an old manual typewriter that weighed more than I did! It was my favorite possession. I spent hours in my room clacking away on that old typewriter. Of course, when I was five I didn't know how to spell and I barely knew how to read, but I loved the sound and the look of the letters on the crisp white paper.

Things haven't changed much since then. I still spend several hours a day in my room clacking away and I still love the sound of the keyboard and the look of the letters and words that eventually turn into stories. The only difference is that I can read now and I spell a lot better.

What else would you like to know about this author?

After reading the book, re-evaluate the cover and answer the following questions:

1.Is this a good cover design, in your opinion? Why or why not?2.Why do you think the author chose this particular cover design?3.What clues about the story does this cover provide?

One of the reviews written for this book, is: "'Here's the perfect antidote for a kid who thinks books are boring. In his latest, Smith

(Cryptid Hunters) introduces 14-year-old Peak Marcello (named by his mountaineering parents) as he's arrested for scaling Manhattan's Woolworth Building, in an attempt to graffiti his tag — a blue mountain peak — high on the side of it. Peak is headed for a long stint in juvie when his estranged father swoops into the courtroom with a solution that will get the media's newest darling — the papers have dubbed Peak 'Spider Boy' — immediately and far out of sight. Before the trek to China, where Peak's father runs a commercial climbing operation on the Tibetan side of Mount Everest, Peak's English teacher, Vincent, gives him two notebooks to fill, which will complete his requirements for the school year. This conceit allows Peak to tell his story in his own wry voice and to share lots of Vincent's advice. 'A good writer should draw the reader in by starting in the middle of the story with a hook,' Peak recalls. 'I guess Vincent thinks readers are fish.' The hook here is irresistible — Peak will try to become the youngest person ever to scale Everest — overcoming Chinese bureaucrats, resentment of his father, rivalry with a Nepalese teen who has the same goal, avalanches, icy crevasses, howling winds, searing cold and many, many frozen corpses to reach the 29,028-foot summit. The nifty plotting, gripping story line and Peak's assured delivery give those who join this expedition much to savor. Ages 12-up.' Publishers Weekly (Starred Review)

Write your own recommendation for this book. Who do you think should read this book? Why?

Give a star rating:

If you would like to explore the world of Roland Smith and see the other books he has written, you can visit the author’s website!

There are many areas to explore, including: information about his books, a bio of the author, and ways to contact him. This is a great website!

http://www.rolandsmith.com/

Take a good look around. I love to hear from my readers. You can email me here. Receive my e-newsletter to learn whenever I have a new book coming out, or something interesting to report.