S.W. Lothian – Author

| by Tyler Whitesides |

| Young Adult |

|Fantasy |

| 288 pages |

| Published August 3, 2011 |

---

The magical, secretive society of JANITORS swept the country in the fall of 2011. Have you ever fallen asleep during math class? Are you easily distracted while listening to your English teacher? Do you find yourself completely uninterested in geography?

Well, it may not be your fault. The janitors at Welcher Elementary know a secret, and it s draining all the smarts out of the kids. twelve-year old Spencer Zumbro, with the help of his classmate Daisy Gullible Gates, must fight with and against a secret, janitorial society that wields wizard-like powers. Who can Spencer and Daisy trust and how will they protect their school and possibly the world? Janitors is book 1 in a new children s fantasy series by debut novelist Tyler Whitesides.

You ll never look at a mop the same way again.  [Goodreads]

---

Janitors is original and entertaining.

The first thing that attracted me to this book, and (in due course) the others in the series, was the cover. I think it’s awesome, and it successfully grabbed my interest in the ocean of books that circle the globe. Janitors is a story that I find very original. It takes an occupation that we all know exists, that we don’t take much notice of, that we all take for granted, and turns it on its head and presents it in a way that I would never have imagined.

Armed with some quite traditional cleaning tools, three teens (Spencer, Daisy, Dez) become embroiled in a bitter battle between two opposing teams of Janitors at their school. One side trying to ensure the kids have the best chance of learning, and the other trying its best to stop them from learning.

Each of the main kid characters are unique, they have their own set of struggles to deal with from day-to-day. None of them are friends with each other – quite the opposite, actually. They are brought together following Spencer’s discovery of some rather creepy critters that inhabit the school, sapping the thoughts from the kids.

Notice to parents: This book reveals the truth behind why many kids don’t learn to their full potential. Parents who read this will learn something – it’s not the kids being lazy at all, it’s actually invisible pests called Toxites (Rubbish, Filth, Grime) that are the problem. I bet that until now, you all thought it was the kids’ fault.

Who ever thought that the humble school Janitor could actually be a magical wizard who is protecting our kids from harm. This book reveals that Janitors are actually like silent superheroes that linger in the background stopping the baddies. Sadly, it also demonstrates that they never get any credit for their heroics against the Toxites (it must be hard to be taken for granted). This is the very original and amusing concept of this book.

The plot has a few twists that may catch lazy readers out if they aren’t paying attention, but there’s plenty of action to keep the reader engaged. Some unanswered questions will undoubtedly be expanded upon in plots for subsequent books for the series.

---

I enjoyed the originality of the story. Never before have I read about (or even contemplated) janitors having such amazing powers. I’ll never look at a janitor in the same way, I’ll always be wondering which side they’re on.

---

---

Note: I don’t claim to be a pro-reviewer, I am a reader. My reviews are based on my personal thoughts around the story that the book is trying to tell. I try to focus on the story (which is the reason I read) rather than dissect the book and pass comment on typos, writing style or structure.

---

Want to know more?
Click below to check out this great website for the Janitors series.

---