Sleepless

Mickey is bored because he doesn't sleep. He and his hairless dog, Baldie, because of his bad allergies. They often go out at night, because his parents are working a lot after losing money in a bad real estate deal. With nothing better to do, he takes up running. Skye, on the other hand, uses her sleepless time for art projects, knitting, and reading. Levi, who has asthma, has several different social media accounts, and claims that some of them live in other countries, since he's posting in the middle of the night. Thea gets tired of sitting at the peanut free table but loves theater, and practices singing in a sound proofed treehouse, and Levi invents things. After Skye beats Mickey at the local science fair, the two meet when Baldie sneaks under Skye's fence. The two kids compare notes about their sleep, and eventually meet Levi when is out walking his dog, Bub. Mickey tries out for the football team once he's good at running, and after saving a game (and irritating Carlo, a teammate who bullies him), he stays out all night with the team and sees Thea outside in the week hours of the morning. Levi has posted a video of Thea singing, and she manages to flush him out by posting a Sodoku puzzle on social media. Once the five kids all know about each other, they convene, and try to figure out what they all have in common. It turns out that all five get allergy shots from the same man, Dr. Malachi. Since Skye has an appointment, all the kids go, and ask the doctor what has caused their sleeplessness. Malachi admits to giving them a special shot, but says that it is for the good of humanity, so that they can have an Uninterrupted Life and do great things. Everyone but Thea wants to stay on the shots, but Thea is adamantly opposed. When Dr. Malachi's office is empty, the group tries to hunt him down. They find an address, but there is a rather angry man there who yells at them about Spindle-Top. This turns out to be a luxury apartment building, but the doctor is gone. They go back to the former apartment and find out that the angry man is Dr. Malachi's son, James. When someone tries to break into the tree house, Mickey identifies the culprit as Beans, another member of the football team. He admits to getting the shots, and the kids sneak out to try to confront Dr. Malachi. He's gone again, but at least James, who has met the children there, is taken away and gets some psychological help. The kids have found the serum, but have to decide whether or not to have it analyzed so they can keep taking it, and eventually decide to destroy it, dumping it on the tree. Mickey and Skye are worried that they won't get to spend time together, since Skye's mother was the real estate agent whose actions caused Mickey's parents to lose their money, but Mickey's parents tell him that none of that is Skye's fault. The children still don't sleep for a while, but eventually the serum wears off. The tree at Thea's house, however, is permanently changed by the serum!

What worked:
This plot answers the question, “What if there were more hours in a day?” The characters not only don’t need sleep; they never get tired. It’s interesting to consider their five different viewpoints, as they’re presented in alternating chapters. Mickey is tired of being bullied at school, so he starts running and lifting weights at three o’clock in the morning. Levi likes to make posts on social media, so he creates multiple personas for different time zones around the world. Skye is already an outstanding student, but she uses her extra time to expand her learning and develop impressive projects. Cyrus uses the night hours to create new inventions, and he starts by trying to perfect his family’s toaster.
Readers will notice that the characters all use the same allergist before they do. This revelation leads to the main conflict in the plot. Most of the characters don’t view sleeplessness as a problem, but one of them thinks it’s cheating. Her position reminds readers that there are always multiple ways to view a situation. The characters eventually discover there are other sleepless kids, and it’s a relief to share their experiences and feelings. They eventually get together to question Dr. Malachi about how this happened, but his answers aren’t what they expect.
Readers who enjoy Gordan Korman books may enjoy the story's mysterious twist. Sleeplessness is treated as a huge secret, so the kids don’t tell their parents or friends. The early chapters will have readers wondering how it happened, but the answer may be more troubling. Then, they begin to notice clues indicating someone else knows about their secret. Who is this person, and what do they want? Is it a stalker out to harm them? Again, the answer only creates more questions.
What didn’t work as well:
A conflict involving Mickey and Skye develops, and its resolution comes out of the blue. Even Mickey is shocked when it happens. Even though it seems plausible, it feels like a step is missing from the process.
The final verdict:
Fans of the author will be pleased, and the alternating chapters sharing the characters’ five points of view provide a familiar format. I recommend all readers give it a shot.