Born to Rock

Though Hammond gets off to a slightly bumpy, halting start, he soon catches the fun rhythm and youthful energy of Korman's latest novel, a fresh spin on the fish-out-of-water tale. Leo Caraway leads a charmed life as a fairly straight-laced Young Republican and A-student headed for Harvard on a scholarship. But then he finds out that his biological father is none other than Marion X. McMurphy (aka King Maggot), lead singer of the wildly popular punk band Purge. As Leo expects, this shocking bit of information brings with it some bad karma, and a misunderstanding costs him his Harvard scholarship. Only one out-there option makes sense at this point: Leo will work as a roadie for Purge, and get his father to cough up the tuition money. But life on a rock tour is even freakier than Leo imagined, and the truth he learns about dear old dad is freakiest of all. Rock fans will appreciate the short riffs at chapter breaks and the intriguing music-centric premise. Ages 12-up. (Apr.)