Ever wanted to ride your tricycle through the carwash just to see what would happen? Yeah, me neither. But that's exactly what happened in an early scene of Gordon Korman's latest middle grades read, Restart. And that scene is how I'm going to start my Book Talk for Restart when school starts up again. Just the image of a boy riding through a carwash on a tricycle with a GoPro on his head, while his friend videos from the observation window! I laugh every time, and it's what got my son interested in the book.
Restart isn't really about insane children, although there are other funny scenes involving middle school YouTubers. (Leaf Man, anyone?) It's actually a refreshing story about a boy who wakes up with amnesia after being knocked out by a head injury.
Your heart really goes out to the kid - until he gets home and starts looking at the pictures on his phone. There's a heart sinking moment for both the reader and the character as he realizes that although he doesn't remember it, he is the school's worst bully. He knows that he needs to change his ways - but the question is, will he be able to? Most kids in the school are terrified of him and may not give him another chance. And the worst part is that he doesn't remember what he's done to kids, so he doesn't know what problems he needs to fix.
The point of view is what makes this story great. I think that it would have been tedious to read the book from the sole perspective of the bully. However, each chapter is narrated by a different character - Chase the ex-bully, his former bully friends, and his former victims. Each character has a different take on "old Chase" vs. "new Chase," and it's fascinating to watch his relationships with his classmates change.
Plus, there's that tricycle scene....
Highly recommended for any middle grader. Most of them are going to react well to all the YouTube references. And I think that boys especially are going to get a kick out of this book. This would be great for either a read-aloud or a read-alone.
Superstar is Mandy Davis' debut middle grades novel about a boy with high functioning Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD). Lester is a fifth grader who is starting his first year of public school after being homeschooled. The book explores the challenges he faces as he adapts to new surroundings.
I felt that the description of Lester's reactions to his world were accurate. In that sense, there are students who would find this book interesting. Lester has a very black and white take on everything, interpreting idioms such as "hold onto your hat" literally. At the beginning of the novel, he really doesn't show any interest in the feelings of others. His emotional outbursts in class are certainly reflective of his frustrations.
Other parts of the book just didn't ring true for me. First, a school cannot diagnose a child with any medical condition, let alone ASD. That appears to be what happens in this book. Coupled with the fact that it's vague as to whether Lester's mom knew he had ASD to begin with, the parts pertaining to Lester's IEP seemed strange to me. Then there are oddities that don't happen in schools in my area - teachers leaving the class alone in the room, the resource teacher having a lot of free time with zero or one student. That's the kind of thing my students question when we read a book together.
One reviewer called parts of the book funny, but I'm not sure which parts those were. The themes in this book are pretty intense, and I was just mostly concerned for Lester throughout the book. On top of Lester's frustrations at school, his home life is also tough. Lester's father, an astronaut, has died in a reentry accident. His mother is overly protective of Lester as a result, and is dealing with grief and anxiety of her own. These are tough themes in a middle grades book, and at times it seemed to be too much.
I originally thought this book might be good to give to students who are themselves on the spectrum, or who have befriended students on the spectrum. However, I felt that the book wrapped things up a little too neatly at the end. Lester shows a remarkable turnaround after his IEP, and by the end of the book is acting largely like his autism is nearly cured. The same goes for his mother's anxiety. That might be frustrating for someone who is really struggling with autism and isn't getting such a happy ending in real life.
Who is the right student for this book? This all being said, I think the book still has value in a classroom. We're seeing so many more cases of ASD, and a book told from the perspective of an autistic student will help spread awareness. It might serve better as a read aloud, since the issues in the book warrant discussion. Beyond a read aloud, I'd reserve this book for students who are more mature, who are sensitive to the feelings of others, or who specifically want to know more about autism.
All in all, I applaud Mandy Davis for stepping out and writing a novel about this subject. It is much needed.
I've read quite a few books this summer, as teachers do. But I don't think that a book has quite nudged my heart the way Real Friends did. I read the whole thing from start to finish - not tough, as it's a graphic novel. But I doubt I would have put it down even if it had been a 400 page tome complete with index.
But I'm glad it wasn't. The graphic novel format is perfect for this book, because the message in this book should be accessible to every girl in grades 4-6. And honestly, parts of the story were better because they were in graphic format. Pham's art melded so perfectly with Hale's words that the story had a more powerful impact.
Shannon is your typical middle grades girl - unique in her own way, but socially awkward in a way that all girls of that age are. She really just wants one good friend, Adrienne. But Adrienne joins up with a clique of girls. Shannon must do what she can to fit in, or she'll lose her best friend.
What follows is close to the heart of probably every girl. Sometimes Shannon fits in, and other times she doesn't. Sometimes the clique's bully is kind to Shannon, but other times she isn't. Not only that, but Shannon deals with the same struggles within her large family. She becomes extremely anxious, with stomach aches, time off from school, and OCD to go with her anxiety.
Shannon uses everything she can think of to help her through her situation, including her faith, but nothing prevents her from reaching the point of critical mass. She finally decides to stand up for herself and be the person she's always wanted to be. In the process, she learns how to be more comfortable with who she is.
This book had a real impact on me. I wish this book had been around when I was in the middle grades. And I suspect that most girls and women would feel the same way. This book reaches out to that hurting girl in all of us, the one who just wishes people would like her for who she is. A book like this validates the emotions that every girl feels, and allows girls to realize they are not alone.
Real Friends should be required reading for every girl in the middle grades. It's definitely finding a special place on my classroom shelves, and I plan on making this one my first Book Talk on the first day of school this year. It's a great book for parents and teachers to read and discuss with their girls.
