I looked at the drop-down thesaurus attached to my word processing program (WordPerfect for those keeping score) to make sure the word floored was appropriate to the headline here. The synonyms included shocked, stunned, taken aback, cold-cocked, decked, dumped, knocked down and leveled. No, no, eight times, no. But there was another... blown out of the water. Close enough.

About a month or two ago, I was talking to a local bookseller who suggested I really might want to come and hear Patrick Carman speak at the store’s event. His book, Floors, was one she recommended alongside mine. If that’s not an enticement, nothing is. Except maybe really good cookies. Or cake.

I came. I listened. I bought. I read. Then I had to write Patrick Carman to find out when book two (of three planned) would be available. I felt like a kid, impatient for late next year. Yes, this read was that great of a ride.

Ten-year-old Leo Fillmore and his father live among the jumble in the basement of the Whippet Hotel, acting as its caretakers. This is no ordinary hotel. Built by eccentric Merganizer Whippet, each floor -- consisting of only one suite of rooms -- is an experience. The first floor we get to see up close and personal is the Pinball Room. Not only does it have 23 pinball machines lining the bedroom, but the entire floor is a “Pinball Machine, with giant molded pinball bumpers that doubled as couches and chairs, all of them lit up with bright lights and springs. The slanted floor was covered in lights and arrows and circled numbers, just like a real pinball machine. At the far end of the room was a hole as big as a tire, which had a flipper on each side.” Not only does this look like a pinball machine, you need to watch out for the giant balls that come barreling through.

To that, add other ingenious floors, a host of weird hotel guests, an annoying pocket-sized robot, a hotel totally falling apart, a developer who’ll stop at nothing to get the large plot of New York City land on which the small hotel stands, the owner who’s been missing for 100 days  ... and especially the series of boxes, instructions and clues our hero, Leo, receives in order to save the hotel, his dad’s job and their home.

I often have books signed to give away. And I almost did the same in this instance, but something stopped me. I had Patrick Carman sign this one to me. It was the right decisions. This is one for the bookshelves.

As always, my reviews are in conjunction with the lovely Barrie Summy's Book Review Club. Check out others here.