In the sequel to Better Nate Than Ever, Nate Foster’s Broadway dreams are finally coming true.
Armed with a one-way ticket to New York City, small-town theater geek Nate is off to start rehearsals for E.T.: The Broadway Musical. It’s everything he ever practiced his autograph for! But as thrilling as Broadway is, rehearsals are nothing like Nate expects: full of intimidating child stars, cut-throat understudies, and a director who can’t even remember Nate’s name.
Now, as the countdown to opening night is starting to feel more like a time bomb, Nate is going to need more than his lucky rabbit’s foot if he ever wants to see his name in lights. He may even need a showbiz miracle.
The companion novel to Better Nate Than Ever, which TheNew York Times called “inspired and inspiring,” Five, Six, Seven, Nate! is full of secret admirers, surprise reunions, and twice the drama of middle school...with a lot more glitter.
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5 of 5 people found the following review helpful.
Deserves many, many standing ovations!
By Aeicha @ Word Spelunking
Last year, author Tim Federle exploded onto the middle-grade stage with his debut, Better Nate Than Ever...a book I lovelovelove...well, Federle is back with his debut’s sequel- Five, Six, Seven, Nate- and Federle has once again charmed, entertained, moved, and awed me with his stellar, sparkling storytelling! Broadway musical loving Nate Foster’s wildest dreams are coming true as he heads to NYC to begin rehearsals for E.T.: The Musical! But, Nate soon finds that his wildest dreams may not be exactly how he imagined them to be as he must deal with pushy co-stars, intimidating superiors, his own self-doubt, and the confusing world of first crushes and first kisses.I’m SO in love with Federle’s pitch-perfect middle-grade voice and this achingly real, endlessly amusing world he has created. Everything I loved about Better Nate Than Ever (the laugh-out-loud humor, poignant honesty, superb characters, etc) is seamlessly carried over into this sequel. In Five, Six, Seven, Nate, we the readers and Nate are plopped into unfamiliar, yet exciting territory: the world of Broadway musical rehearsals. This is a fast-past, whirlwind kind of world and Federle brings his immense first hand experience to the story, creating a wonderfully authentic setting. Like Nate, I was dazzled and mesmerized by this larger than life world, but also intrigued by the many unexpected facets of it. This musical world isn’t all shining lights, shimmering costumes, and lovely voices though, and Federle holds nothing back when exploring the heavily competitive, sometimes deceptive side of this world.Tim Federle so deftly and awesomely creates and explores this world, that it is impossible to walk away from Nate’s story NOT loving this magical musical world as much as him! But, what I love most about this sequel, and its predecessor, is, that at their core, they are about one special young boy’s coming of age and journey to find out just who he is. The refreshing honesty with which Federle writes, his perfectly delivered sharp wit, and his refusal to shy away from the complex, hard topics (extreme bullying, sexuality, alcoholism, etc), are what make his books stand out among other modern middle-grade books. And, of course, his fantabulous, unforgettable characters help too!I’m not sure I can fully stress how much I loveadoreamcrazyabout Nate and his BFF, Libby! These characters are so well-written and given such fantastic real layers and just feel so genuine. They no longer feel like book characters, but like long lost friends and kindred spirits. Awkwardly charming, always endearing, and truly unique Nate is such a relatable young character, but also one that is worthy of looking up to. His courage, compassion, and refusal to be untrue to himself are admirable, while his unexpected humorous observations, honest perspective, and contagious excitement at the world, make him amusing and utterly impossible to love. And my girl, Libby?! Oh I love and want to be this spectacular girl! You couldn’t ask for a funnier, stronger, truer friend than this lovely girl. Nate and Libby’s friendship is one of the best written and most genuine and entertaining that I’ve come across in a long time. I really enjoyed the way this friendship organically grew and evolved in Five, Six, Seven, Nate.There’s so much about the end of this book that gave me the warmest of warm fuzzies and put the biggest smile on my face for hours!MY FINAL THOUGHTS: I loved Better Nate Than Ever SO much that I was worried the sequel wouldn’t be able to live up to it, but it SO does! With its excellent characters, marvelous storytelling, and big heart, Five, Six, Seven, Nate is simply superb and deserves many standing ovations!
4 of 4 people found the following review helpful.Nate is Great
By JS
I loved Better Nate Than Ever, and was so excited to read Five, Six, Seven, Nate! This sequel delivers in a big way. By turns hilarious and touching, you follow Nate's journey as he starts rehearsals for his first Broadway show. But the road to success on the stage, like the road to finding yourself, is full of potholes. Nate makes his way through the highs and lows with a cast of unforgettable characters. You can't help loving this kid--determined, creative,self-effacing, eager, and kind to others even when it's against his self-interest. My whole family adores Nate, and we love this second book as much if not more than the first.
6 of 8 people found the following review helpful.
Gives us a sneak peak at life behind the show curtain
By Teen Reads
FIVE, SIX, SEVEN, NATE! is the sequel to BETTER NATE THAN EVER. In the first book, Nate Foster sneaks off to New York City to audition for E.T: The Musical. He doesn’t get a lead part, but he manages to end up as an understudy for E.T. This second book is the story of his experience in that role.Nate is not only an understudy for the part of E.T. (actually, he’s the second understudy for that role – a fact he finds out later), he’s also given a speaking part. A very tiny speaking part. He gets to say one line, consisting of one word, “Blurb.” But, anyone who knows anything about theater has heard the saying, “There are no small parts, only small actors.” So in his own words, Nate is going to “act the heck out of” that one line.During the rehearsals and the preparations for the big show, things don’t go smoothly. They never do, do they? Nate gets a taste of what it’s really like to be an actor on Broadway. Although he has never been to acting school or ever performed in a play other than in community theater, he has to deal with seasoned child stars who have mile-long acting resumes and a director who can’t even remember his name. Also, his natural clumsiness sometimes causes havoc and chaos during rehearsals, but he inadvertently adds life to the finished show because of these mishaps.Author Tim Federle fills the pages with humor and insight, giving us a sneak peak at life behind the show curtain. He also paints a very realistic picture of a middle grade boy who is discovering things about himself he never really knew. In the process, Federle makes us feel Nate’s pain but revel in his triumphs.I had a couple of issues with the story, though. For instance, when one of the actors spills a cup of scalding hot coffee on himself, why doesn’t he yell that it’s hot? The only thing he’s concerned about is that it ruins his shirt. Scalding hot coffee should burn too, shouldn’t it? Also, after Nate’s big performance, instead of people saying nice things about him, why are they still putting negative things on Facebook? And, if I hadn’t read the first book, I would have been lost as to what was really happening in this book. I don’t think the author did a very good job of including back story for the reader.If you read and enjoyed the first book, which I did, I would recommend you read this one. But, if you are jumping into the series with this sequel, I would recommend you read the first book so you get a better understanding of who Nate really is and how he ended up where he is.
