The Fourth Stall
By: Chris Rylander
Summary
The Fourth Stall
If you have a problem or need something done at school, Mac is your guy. He can get you test answers, hall passes, doctors notes, and an occasional restricted video game. He and his best friend Vince run a business in the fourth stall from the high window in a little-used boys bathroom in the East Wing of the school. Their methods may occasionally run afoul of the school code of conduct, but if you can pay, either in cash or favors, Mac and Vince are on your side and on your case. They are earning money to save up for tickets to what could be the first World Series game for their beloved Chicago Cubs in seventy years. On one particular Monday though, a third grader comes to Mac in need of protection and a huge can of worms is opened. By the time their ordeal is over, they've gotten involved with a legendary high school crime boss named Staples, his intramural gambling ring, a sixth grade surveillance expert, the nine most dangerous bullies in school.
About The Author
Chris Rylander is a popular author and obviously creator of The Fourth Stall.
He was born and raised in North Dakota, he loves sports, movies, and books of all kinds.
He is also married to a woman named Amanda.
The Fourth Stall Review
Title-The Fourth Stall
Author-Chris Rylander
Setting- usualy takes place in the fourth stall of the east wing in their school
Genre-Realistic Fiction
Main Characters (With Desc.) - Mac is the boss of the company they created and the one the kids ask favors.
-Vince is Macs right hand man and the guy who gets the troublemakers away from Mac.
-Fred came to the Fourth Stall with a problem that Mac nor Vince was expecting. Staples was thought of as to be gone, but apparently not. Fred is a little third grader who has a lot of will and courage. Mac and Vince say that they can solve any problem. They are being put to the test with this one.
Staples is one of the toughest high schoolers you'll ever see. Practically everyone in the whole middle school is extremely affraid of him. He has a posse of tough kids that make bets with middle schoolers to get their money. He is bullying people like Fred but he'll be facing a unexpected challenge that will put his strength to the test.
My Impression
I personally think its a great book, it reminds me of The Godfather as if it was a version for kids, and obviously the story is diffrent, i think its well worth reading and you should give it a look.
There are also three books in the series right now so if your looking for a nice long read i would read these boks.
Chris Rylander And Such
Chris Rylander Interview With Schoolastic news
Chris Rylander: It took me about a month to write the first draft, [and] then after I wrote the first draft, you have to do a lot of revisions. After that it took two or three months. About four months total.
KR: Was it easier or harder to write The Fourth Stall Part II?
Rylander: It was easier in some ways because I had the characters already made, but it was also harder because I wanted it to be like the first one. But it can't be too similar, otherwise people would think I was doing the same thing over again.
KR: Since the names of the characters are fairly unique, how long did it take for you to come up with the names?
Rylander: Some of them came right away, others were changed so many times, I would think about it for 10, 20 minutes, then I'd change it later. But most of them came pretty quickly.
KR: Are the names based on people you know?
Rylander: Some of the names are. I put some of the names of my friends in there, none of the main characters have names of my friends, but a lot of the minor characters had names of my friends.
KR: Is there any symbolism of the red 'O' on the cover of The Fourth Stall?
Rylander: I don't know. That would be a question for the cover designer.
KR: How much time do you spend writing everyday?
Rylander: It varies. Sometimes I go, like, three months without writing anything, but sometimes I'll write for, like, three hours. It can be completely different.
KR: Where do you get your inspiration when you write?
Rylander: It comes from a lot of places. A lot of it comes from other books I've read, TV shows, movies, things I've seen, kids I went to school with. It can really come from anywhere.
KR: How did you become interested in writing?
Rylander: A lot of it had to do with how much I loved to read and how much I loved movies and video games as a kid. They all told stories, and I loved to take part in the stories and the best way to take part of the stories was to make your own.
KR: Are you currently writing anything?
Rylander: I just finished The Fourth Stall Part III and pretty soon I'm going to start on my fourth book, which is about a kid secret agent.