The Cheat Book (vol.3): Can Kamal Take Down the Robots

By Author / Illustrator

Ramzee

Genre

Funny Stories

Age range(s)

Publisher

Hodder Children's Books

ISBN

9781444973440

Format

Paperback / softback

Published

26-02-2026

Synopsis

NOT FOR GROWN-UPS!
Wish your school was a SMART SCHOOL?
With shiny, TALKING SCOOTERS to take you to your classes?
And vending machines full of delicious SNACKS?

When a new Smart School opens up, Kamal and his friends are part of the lucky first test group. With robot teachers, vending machines full of free snacks, and talking scooters that take you to your classes, what could possibly go wrong? The answer: everything. But with the trusty Cheat Book and its lifehacks by his side, can Kamal find a way to fight back?

Join Kamal on his hilarious new adventure, from brilliant author-illustrator Ramzee. Perfect for 8+ readers of Diary of a Wimpy Kid and Loki. With black-and-white illustrations throughout!

Watch Ramzee introduce The Cheat Book (vol1) Also in the series: The Cheat Book (vol 1); The Cheat Book (vol 2)

Praise for The Cheat Book (vol. 1): 'Laugh-out-loud funny. Kids are going to love The Cheat Book!' Cressida Cowell, bestselling author of How to Train Your Dragon; 'Comedy gold!' Louie Stowell, bestselling author of Loki: A Bad God's Guide series; 'Clever and hilarious ... A funny and much needed fresh voice in the middle grade arena' Dapo Adeola, award-winning illustrator; 'Move over, Tom Gates, there's a new kid on the block! The Cheat Book is an absolutely hilarious, riot of a read' Swapna Haddow, author of the Dave Pigeon series; 'Will help entice and entertain even the most reluctant reader to keep turning the pages!' - ReadingZone.

Reviews

Margaret

Well, this is a series that just keeps getting better. In this third escapade for the hilarious Kamal and his friends. In The Cheat Book (vol.3), we find them being chosen, together with many others from their school, to attend a special 'smart school' for one week, as a trial. It is like nothing they have come across before, with special uniforms, robot teachers, snack machines and scooters to drive them around the site.

However, all is not as positive as they would like and before he knows it, Kamal is needing the help of his 'Cheat Book' to cope with some of the situations. Of course, as any avid reader of this series knows, the book does not always provide good ideas and so the fun begins.

My favourite characters in the books are the two Muslim angels, Raqib and Atid, who are there to record Kamal's bad and good deeds, but I think they both love seeing him cope with the difficult situations. Of course, Kamal finds his older sister and baby brother are the real irritants in his life, but he does eventually decide that things could be a lot worse.

Once again, the author has given us this balance between humour and looking at some of the issues that young people face in their everyday lives. As always, the illustrations complement the text beautifully and up the level of fun.

240 pages / Reviewed by Margaret Pemberton, school librarian