Gary Paulsen's new book, 'Family Ties'

The novel "Family Ties" by Gary Paul-sen (Random House) is about a boy named Kevin Spencer who tries to get his family to get along. His plan doesn't work out the way he wants it to. His uncle is getting married in his backyard, and an aunt makes it a double wedding.

Kevin ends up planning the wedding. More relatives come to stay, and everything gets blown out of proportion.

Personally, I thought the book was good for kids who love reading funny, kid-friendly stories. I would rate this book a three smiles out of five. "Family Ties" is a companion to the books "Liar, Liar," "Flat Broke," "Crush" and "Vote."