Monday, September 24, 2018

Who's Who in America honor

Received this distinct honor today. I've been included in several of the Who's Who volumes including Who's Who in America.


Dear Max,

It's your Anniversary as a Marquis Who's Who Biographee! 

Since 1898, Marquis has remained dedicated to celebrating the individuals who define the highest standards of success and achievement. In addition to our cherished publications, we strive to continually enhance the personal branding needs of our individual listees.
On this special occasion, we wanted to present you with a small anniversary gift. It's our way of showing you our sincere appreciation. This badge can be added to your social media profiles or personal website, letting all of your followers know that you are one of our distinguished listees.

Wednesday, September 19, 2018

Heart-Pounding Football Action, Bullying, Peer Pressure, and Middle School Angst

Synopsis_________________________________

Last Chance

Author: Max Elliot Anderson
Audience: Middle School; especially boys
Words: 34000
Derek Snyder is about to begin his last year of middle school. This is the last chance he’ll have to feel in charge, before beginning at the bottom of the ladder called high school. He plans to be the captain of his football team, and everyone at school pretty much did as he said. Although his teachers were allowed to call him Derek, everyone else at school had to call him Snyder.
On the day he arrived for the first day of school, Derek was in for a huge surprise. He found his friends crowded around a new student. Even though Derek hated to admit it, this new guy was attractive in every way. Yet, he was not at all what he seemed to be.
Through this story, we learn that Chip used to live in a large city. There, he had been involved in gangs and had even been the cause of the death of another boy.
Derek is determined to push Chip off center stage; a place that only Derek rightly deserved.
This story captures the nuances of junior high identity struggles. Everything Derek had imagined unravels one after the other. Plus, there is plenty of exciting football action.
Readers will learn what is truly important in life as they witness the concept of a person being willing to give up his life for a friend.

This story is funny, exciting, sad, and touching, all at the same time.

Customer review #1

When I saw LAST CHANCE on my to-read-pile, I thought, football season has started. What an appropriate book for this time of the year. So I settled in for a footballish read written for tween boys.

Mr. Anderson's mission is to write for reluctant reader boys and teach them the love of reading and he is good at it. I was introduced to his books back when my (now adult) sons were tweens, and they were totally drawn into his books. Adventure, excitement, sometimes scary, all things that appeal to tween boys.

So that brings me to LAST CHANCE. Derek starts out to be a major jerk. In fact, I took an immediate dislike to him. He is arrogant, cocky, full-of-himself, bully, and king-of-his-world, but I kind of learned why when I met his dad. Wow, what pressure the kid was under. Plus, his family life was pretty sad too.

Chip is the new kid in town. A handsome, friendly, totally lovable chap who doesn't seem to be at all like a street-smart, gang member mentioned above. I fell in love with Chip. But when his story comes out - wow. I cried like a baby. What a testimony. A wonderful faith message, and a heartfelt ending ... Wow. My opinion of the book did a complete 180 and I can't say enough good things about the book.


Review #2

Another wonderful mid-grade Christian book by Mr. Anderson. I'm not an avid sports fan, but I did raise two boys who are. And I recognize the bully who has been bullied. Another 5-star book!

Derek Snyder is the young man in junior high who has big aspirations--egged on by his dad--for being the team captain in his last year before going to high school. That was before the new guy showed up. He's tall and good looking, and the girls are going gaga for him. Plus he is way too athletic for Derek's good. How often does a new guy in the school get elected team captain? Derek isn't worried until that remote chance became a jolting reality.

No problem. Derek and his buddies will make sure he doesn't play. Dennis--big and not really all that bright--is assigned the job of pushing the new guy, Chip, off the track when they all go bike riding over a trail known as the Devil's Backbone. Instead of wrecking, Chip makes it out of what looked like sure disaster with only a layer of dust on his shoulders. Didn't even dent the jock's bright white smile.

Derek doesn't quit trying, but everything he does backfires. Instead of the new guy looking bad, instead Derek does. And Chip still has his smiling teeth gleaming at everyone. What tops the cake is Chip's invitation to Derek to go to church with him. And it all goes downhill from there.

If you have a football enthusiast in your family, you might want to get them a copy of this one. It's worth the price.

Order

Find this and other exciting middle grade titles by Max Elliot Anderson at https://www.amazon.com/s/ref=nb_sb_noss_1?url=search-alias%3Daps&field-keywords=max+elliot+anderson 

Thursday, September 06, 2018

Help Kids to Remember 9/11


“When The Lights Go Out” is a middle grade adventure / mystery that will help kids appreciate what happened on 9 /11 so we never forget.

Unfortunately, the original publisher closed recently so the book is only currently available used. A new publisher had picked it up and new copies will become available soon.

Synopsis_________________________________

When the Lights go Out

Author: Max Elliot Anderson
Audience: 8 – 12; especially boys
Words: About 36,500 
Peyton Aldrich has just moved to a new army base with his parents and younger sister. He doesn’t understand why his father has been sent to such a rundown place in the middle of nowhere. After all, his father was a colonel, with top security clearance, who completed the elite Ranger school. And his training had been in Army Intelligence. Yet, here they were.
Peyton was never allowed to ask his father anything about what he did in the army. Nor was he allowed to ever get in the way. There were many secrets that his dad couldn’t even tell his own family.
Peyton idolized his father. One day, he hoped to grow up to be just like him. His father had told him that the army may not be for everyone, but after what happened on 9/11, somebody had to help keep the country safe.
Peyton finds two friends. Gill is the son of the base’s motor pool sergeant, and Dave’s father is the base chaplain. Together they decide to train like Rangers, and search for some kind of mission they could do. Little did they know that a mission was about to put the boys right in the crosshairs of a dangerous terrorist plot, when a secret weapon would be delivered to the base on its way across the country.
There was no way Peyton could tell his father what he knew. After all, it could cost him his job. Peyton, Gill, and Dave have to take matters into their own hands, and they do.
Will the terrorists find out who is trying to expose their evil plan? Will the boys be able to stop them? And what will happen to Peyton’s father when the general finds out what the boys did?
When the Lights go Out.” A story for kids, and their parents, so we never forget 9/11.



REVIEWS
As a 6th grade teacher, I am always on the look out for good books for my boys who are reluctant readers. They went nuts over this one. Exciting, quick-paced, with good lessons - Anderson has written a book that middle school boys will gobble up in a night or two! What's even better is he's written even more books, and now my boys are seeking them out. Parents and teachers, if you have a boy who doesn't enjoy reading, try this book out on him. It might ignite a new passion for the written word!

      I thoroughly enjoyed this book - and all of Mr. Anderson's books, as has my son. Thanks to Mr. Anderson, my son went from being a very reluctant reader, but when he read the first book he was hooked, and has read every one of his books to date. He still reads Mr. Anderson's books, even though he's now in college. (He also reads Ted Dekker, so that says something about the excitement level of these books!)
If you are looking for a book for your reluctant reader then WHEN THE LIGHTS GO OUT or any of Mr. Anderson's books will be excellent to pick up. Highly recommended.