The Cherub Series

Many of you have been reading this series for AR and loving it.  Well, I just found out that even though there are only 6 books on AR, there are actually 12 in the series!  The series is based on the idea that terrorists and drug dealers suspect other adults, but they don't give children a second thought.  The authorities decide to use this to their advantage by recruiting teenage boys to do their dirty work.  The boys spy and plant bugs and gather information about the bad guys.  It's a rip-roaring adventure book that's a lot of fun!

Robert Muchamore, the author, at first thought he wanted to be an architect, a photographer or a writer.  Since it took 7 years of schooling to be an architect, he chose photography.  Unfortunately, he hated his job at the camera store, and it turned him against photography.  So - he bummed around for a couple of years without a job until his dad threatened to kick him out.  He tried writing a book, but it was a lot harder than he thought it would be.  Eventually, he went to work for a Private Investigating firm.

While visiting his siter, his nephew complained about how there weren't any good books for teenage boys.  Uncle Robert to the rescue!  He wrote Recruit for his nephew to enjoy, and once he decided it was good enough, he shopped it around to publishers.  Eventually, he was able to quit his private investigator job and realize his dream of writing full time.

Since Muchamore lives and writes in England, the titles and publishing dates of the novels are a little different than they are in the US.  Here is the series list in order:

1. The Recruit
2. The Dealer
3. Maximum Security
4. The Killing
5. Divine Madness
6. Man Vs. Beast
7. The Fall
8. Mad Dogs
9. The Sleepwalker
10. The General
11. Brigands MC
12. Shadow Wave

Now, Brigands MC is a bit hard to find right now, and Shadow Wave won't be released until September 2010.  Also, there is a small book called Dark Sun that is considered 9.5 in the series.  It isn't availabale any longer to purchase, but it is downloadable from the internet.  I will have most or all of these in the Shaffer Library within a week or so. 

I also ordered 3 books from Muchamore's other series: Henderson's Boys.  The series takes place during World War II.  A spy named Charles Henderson recruits kids to help him in the fight against Hitler.  There are three books in the series with a fourth coming out in 2011.

Happy Reading!

Shaffer