Dustin Grubbs

After his breakthrough performance in last year's school play, Dustin Grubbs gets the taste of fame he dreams about. He's even recognized in the streets. (OK, so his hometown of Buttermilk Falls is small and everybody knows everybody... even so!) Fresh into seventh grade, he is ready for his acting career to take off in his school's upcoming musical production of Oliver! The twist is that phys-ed funds are being cut to do it, sparking grounds for an all-out war of the worlds: athletes vs. drama geeks. Even worse, Dustin discovers he's tone deaf and has two left feet! Just when things are looking grim, Dustin gets his big break when a field trip to Chicago teams him up with his wacky show biz dad for an opportunity of a lifetime--a shot at a national TV commercial! Will Dustin jump at the chance at all costs? Dustin Grubbs: Take Two! is full of the same hysterical one-liners and slapstick middle graders saw and loved in Dustin Grubbs: One-Man Show. Beneath the "show" is deeper story--that of a boy who longs to reunite his parents and will do anything to see them together.

Dustin is a drama geek--and proud of it. Though he's at least half-nerd, and full of insecurities, he doesn't melt in the face of conflict--like when the sixth grade play he's assistant-directing and starring in, The Castle of the Crooked Crowns, seems doomed to failure at every turn. Then Jeremy Jason Wilder, international star of Dustin's favorite sitcom of all time, moves to Buttermilk Falls. Is it a blessing--or will Jeremy steal the show? Dustin Grubbs: One-Man Show is full of hysterical one-liners and slapstick that middle graders will love. And yet there's a deeper level beneath the "show" that will resonate with young readers--such as Dustin's difficult choice between a new and old friend; the guilt he feels for blowing off his adoring neighbor; his crush on his schoolteacher; his love for yet embarrassment about his oddball family; and Dustin's curiosity about--and longing for--his absent father.