Vinnie is faced with making many difficult decisions in his life. He is being bullied for his lunchtime sandwiches; his mother has chickenpox; his father doesn't know how to cook or clean; and Vinnie is being blackmailed into making a date with a girl he doesn't even like. Vinnie and his friend Gaz decide upon a course of action that includes the 'Frankenstein Revenge Plan'. Along the way, Vinnie discovers that life doesn't always go to plan, and learns to face the consequences when his ideas backfire.

Josie Montano writes a hilarious tale about life, where readers discover and compare similarities and differences between the characters and their own real-life experiences.

Josie Montano lives with her family in Brisbane, and works as a full-time writer. Her love of fiction writing began at age eight, when she would shelve her self-published stories in her primary school library. Josie has worked in the primary school environment as a teachers-aide, a secretary and a library aide. Her published works include the very successful Wogaluccis, Stuff They Don't Teach You at School, Who's Wheelie the Fastest, Snot Fair, Snot Funny, Snot Cool and Pop Starlets.

Find out more about Josie Montano on the Internet.



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• How does Josie Montano use humour to describe Vinnie's concerns for his mum? (p 7)



• What imagery does Josie Montano use to describe the 'beast'? What does she mean? (p 19)



• Why is Frank Stein a bully? Where does his nickname come from? Have you faced a similar situation a school? (p 19)



• Why is Vinnie enjoying Mum being sick? (p 31)



• How is Grandma Annie 'cool'? (p 47)



• "How do you put bullies 'out of business'? Why are Vinnie's ideas dangerous? How is Gaz a positive role model for Vinnie? (pp 50-52)



• How does Vinnie and Gaz's plan backfire? Should Vinnie be worried about the situation he has caused for his sister? (p 70)



• What does the author mean by 'Scab Boy, Son of Scab Woman'? Why is Vinnie embarrassed? Have you ever felt this way before? (p 78)



• How does Vinnie feel about the note incident? What is 'blackmail'? Have you ever been in a similar situation? How did you cope with it? (p 95)



• What dilemmas is Vinnie facing? How would you resolve them? Predict the consequences of your actions.



• Why do 'girls always work in packs'? What does the author mean by this? How do boys and girls differ when they bully someone? Or are they alike? (p 112)



• How does Vinnie use humour to get rid of Alithia? (p 144)



• Why is Nonno upset with Vinnie? Is it his own fault? Have you faced a similar situation? (p 138)



• How would Mum's and Mrs Carter's viewpoint be different to Vinnie's regarding the parent-teacher interview?



• How has Vinnie changed through facing these different problems? How has he dealt with the issues? Could he have handled them better?