Henrico Youth Book Awards 2014 discussion

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A teacher gives a 6th grade boy the opportunity to not write about Shakespeare but instead he must keep a journal and specifically write about a certain incident. This book made me think of Schmidt’s writing. The setting is the 1970’s, N.Y.C. It’s a bunch of boys and a few girls going to school, having a first date, playing on corner lots and getting in and out of trouble. The journaling brings about self reflection and helps the one boy become very aware of his feelings. Great journey, great characters, great settings.

I really loved this book. The setting was spot on, the characters were well drawn and engaging. Julian's journey of self discovery was is heart-achingly honest. I hope this one gets a lot of attention by the Newbery committee. Sue

Grateful to read about a character who seemed real. There are things I love and hate about Julian, but I was always pulling for him.

I enjoyed Julian's character development throughout the book. However, the big reveal of Julian's misdeed didn't have enough emotional payoff for me. The ending fell flat to me because I was expecting an emotionally charged incident and I didn't get it.

I also read this as an ebook and, overall, I've noticed that I tend to get antsy with ebooks near the end, so my feelings could just be a reflection of my reaction to the format of the book.

I really enjoyed this book. It reminded me of Gary D. Schmidt's "Okay for Now" & "Wednesday Wars" with the 1960's middle school setting as well as middle school issues. I appreciated the unfolding of this story and the full disclosure of the bullying incident. Even though I was totally in favor of the boys apologizing at the end I found the quick and easy response of Stanley a bit unrealistic. I think this would be a great middle school read-aloud! I'm still undecided if I would recommend it for a fifth grade read-aloud.