Kay Weisman (Booklist, March 1, 2000 (Vol. 96, No. 13))
The author of Frindle (1996) and The Landry News offers another lighthearted school story with much middle-grade appeal. Jack Rankin begins fifth grade in the same building where his father works as head custodian. Jack is embarrassed by his father's job and hopes that no one will make the connection, but when the other kids discover this secret, the teasing begins. Jack retaliates, earning a three-week detention helping his dad after school. Although at first this seems like a life sentence--scraping gum off the bottoms of desks and chairs--it turns out to be the beginning of real understanding between father and son. Clements' strength is his realistic depiction of public schools, both from the child and the adult point of view. Jack's antics and those of his classmates ring true, as do the behaviors of the teachers and administrators. Less believable are the coincidental secrets that link Jack and his father with his grandfather, though Clements' legion of fans aren't likely to mind. Category: Middle Readers. 2000, Simon & Schuster, $15. Gr. 3-7.

Beverley Fahey (Children's Literature)
Some kids' fathers are lawyers or doctors. Jack Rankin's dad is the janitor at his school. Embarrassed by his dad, Jack manages to keep his secret until the day in fifth grade when his dad acknowledges him and says hello. Angered and humiliated, Jack plots an act of revenge. He smears a desk with a huge, disgusting wad of Bubblicious gum, only to get caught in the act. The principal's punishment is for Jack to spend three weeks as the janitor's assistant after school. In quiet classrooms at the end of the day, scraping gum from library chairs, and deep in a tunnel that runs under the school, Jack has time to reflect. He discovers there is much about his father he does not know, nor has he taken the time to care. This fine coming-of-age story has a very likeable kid hero and a quiet, unassuming parent who have much to teach each other. Credible emotions and dialogue move the story to a warm and satisfying conclusion. 2000, Simon and Schuster, $15.00. Ages 9 to 12.

Kirkus (Kirkus Reviews, May 1, 2000 (Vol. 68, No. 9))
The author of "Frindle "and "The Landry News "returns with a touching novel about a boy who is ashamed of the fact that his father is the janitor at his school. Jack Rankin, 11, is a good kid who has always gotten along just fine with his parents. But when Jack starts fifth grade (temporarily located in the town high school in which Jack's father has been the janitor for many years), the trouble starts. Some of the meaner fifth graders give Jack a hard time about his father's job. "Must take a lot of talent to clean up a bunch of puke, huh? Sure wish I could learn how to do that," says one particularly obnoxious classmate. In a misguided attempt to get back at his father, Jack puts the biggest gob of bubble gum known to mankind underneath a desk in one of the classrooms. The culprit is quickly discovered and Jack is sentenced to after-school janitorial gum patrol for three weeks. During his new extracurricular activity, Jack explores the old school building, discovering an underground tunnel with a secret apartment at its end-and also discovering that there are parts of his father's life that he knows nothing about. But while the first half of this book is great, accurately capturing the voice of an 11-year-old boy, the second half works too hard to show us that Jack's father is a good man who is more than "just" a janitor. What would be wrong with being just a janitor, a wonderful father, and a good husband? An enjoyable read and a good jumping-off point for classroom discussions about class and economic status in America, but too heavy-handed to be satisfying. 2000, Simon & Schuster, $15.00. Category: Fiction. Ages 8 to 11. © 2000 Kirkus Reviews/VNU eMedia, Inc. All rights reserved.

Deborah Stevenson (The Bulletin of the Center for Children's Books, September 2000 (Vol. 54, No. 1))
Jack Rankin is having a terrible fifth-grade year, and it’s all because of location: his father works as the janitor at the same school Jack now attends. The teasing Jack undergoes makes him increasingly angry--not at the perpetrators but at his father--and he expresses his displeasure by engaging in a massive piece of chewing-gum vandalism. Caught and sentenced to janitorial duty himself, Jack finds some pleasure in exploring the hitherto hidden parts of the school, and he also finds his resentment of his father giving way to a greater understanding. Clements has an accessible style with easily digestible vocabulary, and many youngsters will empathize with Jack’s embarrassment. There’s a lot of adult-oriented wish-fulfillment going on in the rapprochement, however (and Jack’s father’s Vietnam connection is problematically treated: it’s heavy-handed and it raises some chronological questions the book never answers), and the earnestness sometimes makes the humor lugubrious. Still, this is an undemanding and easy read about that most sympathetic figure, a kid with a bad case of parent trouble. Review Code: Ad -- Additional book of acceptable quality for collections needing more material in the area. (c) Copyright 2000, The Board of Trustees of the University of Illinois. 2000, Simon, 140p, $15.00. Grades 4-6.

Horn Book (The Horn Book Guide, Fall 2000)
Teased because his father is the school janitor, fifth-grader Jack Rankin smears a giant wad of gum under his desktop, knowing Dad will have to clean it up. Instead, Jack is caught and sentenced to after-school custodial work. The novel, by the author of the popular Frindle, is resolved too easily when the priggish protagonist discovers a secret that elevates Dad to hero status. Category: Intermediate Fiction. 2000, Simon, 140pp, $15.00. Ages 9 to 12. Rating: 4: Recommended, with minor flaws.

Kathleen Roseboom (The Lorgnette - Heart of Texas Reviews (Vol. 13, No. 1))
How would you like your dad to be the school janitor? Jack Rankin's father is the school janitor, and he is not happy that this year they will be at the same school. When two of the guys in his class find out and began to tease him, Jack begins to plot revenge against his father! But it backfires...big time! This book should be recommended to all boys and their fathers. Love can be lost without communication, because love rarely speaks softly or loudly between fathers and sons. This book also shows how little children know about their parents. When Jack begins to think about where his father has been and begins to question, he finds out that his father has an interesting past. He also finds out what made him the man he has become. As it has been said before, this book was the beginning "of a beautiful friendship." Grades 4 and up. 2000, Simon & Schuster, 140p, $15.00. Ages 9 up.