Freddie Ramos Takes Off

By Jacqueline Jules and Miguel Benítez

One day Freddie Ramos comes home from school and finds a strange box just for him. What's inside? ZAPATO POWER-shoes that change Freddie's life by giving him super speed! But what will Freddie do with his fast new skills? Weird things are happening at the Starwood Park Apartments where he lives, and his friends at school need his help. Is Freddie Ramos ready to be a hero? In this imaginative story by Jacqueline Jules, an ordinary boy in a city neighborhood learns how to use his new-found powers for good. Illustrations by Miguel Benitez lend just a touch of comic-book style to this chapter book adventure.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Albert Whitman & Company
• Release date: Mar 1, 2010
• ISBN: 9780807594780

Jacqueline Jules

Jacqueline Jules is the author of fifty books, including Freddie Ramos Takes Off, a Cybils Award winner, and Never Say a Mean Word Again, a Sydney Taylor Honor Book. She lives on Long Island, New York. A former school librarian, she loves to interact with young readers and teachers.

Book preview

1. A Box Changes My Life

A box changed my life. It was sitting outside Apartment 29G when I came home from Starwood Elementary.

My name, FReDDIe RaMOS, was written on it in big black letters. I’d never gotten a package like this.

What did you get? a deep voice asked.

I looked up to see Mr. Vaslov. He had a paintbrush in his hand. Mr. Vaslov takes care of Starwood Park Apartments, and he is always fixing something.

I don’t know yet, I said. I can’t open the box. It’s taped up like a mummy.

I’ll look in my toolshed, Mr. Vaslov said. I’ve got scissors there.

I followed him with my mummy box.

Be careful, he said, as we walked. The paint is still wet.

The toolshed looked bright, white, and all brand new. The last place Mom and I lived didn’t have someone like Mr. Vaslov always trying to make things look nice. When big kids wrote bad words on the walls, the words stayed there a long

Reviews for Freddie Ramos Takes Off

[thach_2 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

Characters: FreddySetting: At school and around neighborhood in inner cities. Theme: Anyone can be a heroGenre: multicultural development Summary: This story is about a boy who stumbles into a box, but little did he know that when he opened the box, there would be a pair of shoes that would change his life. His life is now changed from being an ordinary kid to being a kids with super powers of being extremely fast. His curiosity and adventurous personality sends him into many duties.Audience: children learning about multiculturalism. Curriculum ties: Learning about language and multiculturalism Personal response: I think it great and important that children are exposed to see many different cultures and ethnicities. I think that this book does a great job as presenting how a child who is different takes up a huge role and conquers his role. First of all, the art and the length of the book helps young readers to easily go through the pages and enjoy the art. The art is colorful and is engaging to look at. What is interesting is that it brings up the death of the father and how the child lives in a single parent home. This idea really helps those kids who have this kind of living situation cope with what they are going through and have something they can relate to. IT also gets children exposed to the chapter book tpe of reading. Overall, this book is great for young children who are learning about the different adventures they can experience.

[sullywriter_1 · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

Great to see a story with a young Latino superhero. Freddy Ramos is an appealing character.