Hover Car Racer - Matthew Reilly - Reviewed by David Rockman

Matthew Reilly’s Hover Car Racer is an action packed, extremely fast paced, exciting book about two brothers from Australia trying to make it big in one of the most dangerous sport ever created: Hover Car Racing. From the writer that brought you Ice Station, Temple, Area 7, and Scarecrow, this is a must read book.
Imagine twenty fighter jets racing around a tight track, ducking, weaving and blasting through low metal archers at insanely high speeds… you have just imagined a hover car race…
Hover Car Racer is a story about two young brothers from rural Australia. Jason and Bug try to make it in the Hover Car Racing industry, with Jason as the driver and Bug as the navigator. They fly their home- made racing hover car the “Argonaut”. It is there story of the long climb to the top, through racing school, the most prestigious school in the world, based in Tasmania, facing the best races in the world. Struggling against all odds, they try to be the best they can, even though getting set back and dealing with cheaters, they meet friends as they go along. Jason and Bug show their determination and courage that we all should show in our lives.
This book is my favorite book and is a must read, with its easy-to-read, but still descriptive language. Hover Car Racer has left a big impression on me being one of the most entertaining books I have read. I found myself not able to put it down, always fixed to the pages, absorbing in every action packed bit of every page. I will always remember Matthew Reilly’s Hover Car Racer as one of my all time favorites.
Reading the author’s view of the story, Matthew Reilly explains that the way he sees the book, is that it is about doing your best, not winning, like when Jason and Bug in the Sponsor’s tournament. Jason loses, he comes second, and yet the crowd cheers for him more than they do for the winner, because winning and coming first are not the same thing - you don’t have to win to come first. As Bug says,
“You don’t have to be the best, you just have to do your best.” I agree with it even though it’s sometimes hard to do your best, you should always be looking to come first against yourself.
Throughout the book, it was easy to see what issues the writer was trying to bring up with the character. A character named Oxzavia is always cheating and using dirty tactics in racing courses, with his faster car and endless supply of money he was seen as the bully in the story. Jason never tells on him or tries to get back at him in a mean way. Jason just deals with all the problems that Oxzavia brings up and overcomes them. He never try’s to fight with him, and deals with it in a mature way. I think this is the writer trying to get a message across, that if someone is mean to you, being mean back will never solve anything. Instead, don’t get angry and work away and deal with it in the right way.
This book is much like many of the other Matthew Reilly books because even though he usually writes about war and fighting, he has written in a way that it sucks you in, making you not won’t to put it down. It is written in the same fast pace and emotion provoking way as all his other books and it leaves you wanting more to read.
This is one of my all time favorites suitable for people aged between 12-15 years old. It easy to read and very entertaining. It will leave you hanging on the edge of you seat and you’ll never won’t to put it down. Matthew Reilly’s Hover Car Racer is a must read book.