Smoke Jumpers

Smoke Jumpers (Choose Your Own Adventure #29)

By R.A. Montgomery

Published by Chooseco (2009)

Reading Level: Ages 9-12 years

Pages: 144

Genre: Realistic Fiction

Summary: In this book you get to choose your own pathway. This is the story I chose. I am an environmentalist training to fight forest fires. I am scheduled for my first jump test, or a test involving jumping from a plane. That is sometimes required when fighting forest fires. During breakfast I notice smoke from a nearby forest fire. A man named Henry comes to tell us to prepare for our jump. We go up in the plane and reach the drop zone. I jump from the plane and focus on landing which I do well. When an instructor get a call to help with a couple small fires I volunteer even though it will delay my training for a couple days. We get to the site and they need help immediately, I decide to help fight the fire immediately. We check our gear and get necessary supplies and walk along an unfamiliar trail. I see a man far off waving and decide to get the experienced fighter, Stamos, for help about what to do and leave Finn there. I tell him then go back to Finn, we are surrounded by smoke and Finn retreats. We see the helicopter and get in to help find a family that got lost shooting a documentary. We spot them and make successful jumps and save the family. We become famous because that family makes a documentary based on our work as firefighters and I have to appear on talk shows, but I claim that I would rather fighting fires.

My Reaction: I liked the end result far better than the Titanic choose your own adventure story. I don't mind reaching celebrity status. It was fun. Not as thoroughly involving as regular books, but I still enjoyed it.

Potential Problems: The danger expressed could be scary.

Recommendations: I would recommend this to second grade boys. I think second grade was when I first heard about these books and I think boys would enjoy them more than girls. Firefighting is usually something boys like to learn about.