Itch: The Explosive Adventures of an Element Hunter Paperback – August 5, 2014

I heard about this book in chemistry circles and was intrigued by the idea of an adolescent adventure in which the hero's knowledge of chemistry starts him on a great adventure and allows him to prevail against terrible odds. Simon Mayo's execution, however, fails to live up the potential of this premise. The plot revolves around a set of mysterious, intensely radioactive rocks that land in the possession of a teenage boy called "Itch." The rocks are given to him by a dealer in elements named Cake, who in turn got them from an unnamed source who is supposed to have found them in a slag heap. The origin sequence is bizarre, and serves to set up a mystery about the ultimate source of the rocks, a mystery that is not resolved (and really, barely even addressed) in the text. They may as well have been handed down from a UFO.The book mostly takes place after Itch has the rocks, and describes the efforts made by evil energy company scientists and executives to steal them, and the inanity of this book is most painful when we follow these antagonists. Evidently, one of the largest and most powerful petroleum companies in the world (it seems to be based on Royal Dutch Shell) had fired one of their chief scientists for his role in a drilling accident off the coast of Africa. However, rather than just firing him, they banished him to teach science in a small town in Cornwall. Why? Improbably, he maintains an elaborate scientific laboratory in his cottage, including equipment for handling and analyzing radioactive materials. Why? Anyway, he gets his hands on Itch's first rock and is almost instantly able to identify it as the hitherto never seen element 126 (sure.) His employers are impressed by the potential this substance has to revolutionize the world, and decide their best move is to steal it and give some to terrorists. Sigh.It gets dumber from there. Itch and his companions suffer from radiation sickness that gets stronger or weaker in response to the demands of the plot. The totally inadequate shielding that leaves them all near death is nonetheless adequate to prevent any sort of tracking by authorities afterwards. A mysterious party (perhaps the same one who produced the rock in the first place) helps Itch near the end (but why not sooner?).It's a muddle. There are better books out there for scientifically minded youth.

Good debut effort from BBC Radio 2 presenter Simon Mayo. Has some good science-related content, but not so much that it would turn off people who aren't interested in that kind of thing. Even though it's a young adult novel, older folks should find it to be a good read as well. Looking forward to the next book in the series!

The book is readable and the characters have their own personalities which leads to involvement in the plot and a curiosity to find what happens next. The best judges are the students of our book club who met at an 'Itchfest' after school, arranging English refreshments and planning to meet again in September to review the second book in the series.

This book series was recommend by Jason Issacs on his Twitter account. My daughter loves this series. It should have received more attention from book readers.

it is a amazing book with no boaring parts and has alot of action and always keeps u guessing.P.S. u learn science

Wonderful books to read with kids, loved the science geek character, a refreshing change. As good as Harry Potter. Looking forward to reading the next.

Love this new series. It is like the Alex Rider Series, Jason Steed Series. If you like them you will love Itch.

Unless the author wrote a separate version of the text for an American audience, I was disappointed to see so many American English words and expressions throughout this very British novel.

My 9yo son had an itch to scratch after finishing the Harry Potter series and a friend of his suggested the Itch (see what I did there?) Series of books for him. He loved all of the books and now seems to be in the process of memorising all the facts from a big periodic table of elements we had to buy - a side effect of reading this book. While I cannot claim to have read more than the first chapter I can give a full and whole hearted recommendation of a none year old who loved the books

I bought this book as a present for my granddaughter who is 8. She loves it, reading time has to be rationed!

Chemistry is widely considered as one of the most difficult subjects to make exciting, but Simon Mayo, radio presenter of the BBC's Drivetime and Kermode and Mayo's Film Review, seems to have discovered the perfect formula for doing so: (explosions x noxious materials) ÷ sinister global corporations. And, utilising this winning equation, Mayo has penned his debut novel, Itch; the story of fourteen year old Itchingham Lofte who, whilst attempting to collect every element in the periodic table, comes into possession of a curious new element with world-changing potential.At its core, Itch revolves around the relationship of Itch, his younger sister Chloe and his cousin Jacqueline (Jack) as they cope with the problems associated with possessing a radioactive substance the world and his dog would do anything to obtain. And what a charming and absorbing relationship it is; despite being the youngest, Chloe is the most sensible of the trio and keeps her likeable brother in check as his escapades teeter on the verge of disaster. Jack brings an abundance of smarts to the dynamic, helping Itch see through his more risky moments with a tomboyish expertise. Mayo has written all three of the central trio brilliantly, and you can't help but wonder if some traits of his own children have contributed to the mixture.As for the chemistry included, it's well measured, clear and undeniably fascinating; from learning how the household objects you own relate to the periodic table, to explanations of explosive reactions, there is enough here to justify Itch as an informative text without ever suffocating the exciting plot. I recently wrote a piece arguing that the Pokémon games successfully communicate biological principles to their target audience, and I think it's fair to say that Itch does the same for Chemistry.Being set in modern-day Cornwall (and being a young adult title), a good proportion of Itch takes place in the central trios' school. Mayo has always been vocal of his love of the Harry Potter series and some of the disastrous goings on at Cornwall Academy echo some of the more memorable happenings in the classrooms of Hogwarts. However, whilst there was always the healing properties of magic to help smooth things over in Rowling's universe, the potential consequences of Itch's exploits are more serious, and this is perhaps the book's greatest strength: whilst tremendous fun, there is the constant, underlying feeling that the main characters in Itch may well be about to come to serious harm.

I reviewed my own knowledge of the elements and the periodic table whilst reading this entertaining book. It was fun, well paced, and well written (the vocabulary was appropriate and fun; the spelling and punctuation didn't cause me to cringe or snarl). I wish books like this could be used in school - e.g. What emotion do you think Jack experiences when listening to the elements according to Itch? Explain why you think that.

I thought I would read his first book to see what he was like, comparing him to J K Rowling, and after having heard some interesting reviews. Well the comments that I heard and read were not wrong. Simon Mayo certainly has an ability that compares with great thriller writers, and I will certainly be reading more of his books.