School Of Possibilities by Seita Parkkola

This was a curious book. I would have pegged it as targeting middle school kids even if it didn’t say so on the back cover. Storm is a troubled child sent to a school for troubled children where he meets Stepford Wife types of kids. Outside of school he meets India who is a self professed guard. How Storm interacts with his peers, family and school comprises the gist of the book.
This is a dark book. There are no adults portrayed with any redeeming characteristics. For some reason I was reminded of “Brave New World, 1984 and Lord of the Flies”. As an adult I found it very depressing and I can’t imagine it wouldn’t be worse for a kid. Parents with no back bone, an evil guidance counselor and mindless kids abound. The few redeeming characters are other “lost” kids. There are either a lot of confusing elements or symbolic references that I am missing.

I was under the impression that Finland had a high suicide rate and I was attributing the dark nature of the book to the nationality of the author. It didn’t take much research to discover that while they are suggested to be a bit dour, the Finns fall in the midrange of suicide statistics.

The characterizations and descriptions were well done. Storm’s despair was poignant and painful.

This book is worth reading but I think that high school might be more appropriate. The total lack of any adults of value is disturbing, in that a child at risk may find it entirely too easy to slip into the despair that Storm experienced.

Body of work of Seita Parkkola

Web Site: none found

Keepers of the School-We the Children by Andrew Clements

This is a middle school focused book. It sets the stage at a converted factory that serves as a school. Left to the community, the eccentric ship captain that founded the school leaves an interesting legacy. Ben and Jill delve into the mystery of how to save the school from developers.

The character Ben is dealing with personal issues that are going to be quite common to the current generation of kids. His feelings and frustrations are clearly expressed and should make it easy for kids in similar situations to find common ground. The tentative relationship between he and Jill also seem quite realistic. This is an age where dawning awareness begins to show itself.

I recommend the book. I think it will be a good series.

Body of work of Andrew Clements

Web Site:

Two pals play pirate and have unusual friends. Of course the fact that one of the pals is a fireless dragon and the other nerdy lizard does play a part in their unusual friends. This is a delightful story of homework avoidance and dealing with peers.

I enjoyed the repartee of Danny and Wendell. It could have been my grandson and his buddy bantering back and forth. Their adventure was cute and age appropriate for the target market. I gave the book to my 11 year old grandson and his first question after reading it was when could he get the next one.

I enjoyed the book and my 11 year old grandson enjoyed it, we both recommend it.

Body of work of Ursula Vernon

Web Site: http://www.ursulavernon.com/

Review: http://100scopenotes.wordpress.com/2009/08/03/book-review-dragonbreath-by-ursula-vernon/

Charisma by Steven Barnes

Sometimes a book is truly scary due to it’s plausibility rather than it’s intent to be frightening. Barnes did an excellent job in portraying a situation that could arise. He set up characters that were believable and portrayed them with wide emotional brushes. You really dislike the bad guys but are somewhat confused by your emotions for the “good” guys. Kids are involved and if even fictional harm to kids is hard for you, this may not be your cup of tea. I have a tendency to get emotionally overwrought if kids are threatened so you may want to have a calming glass of wine at your side as you read. I found the book an excellent read and frankly quite different from the rest of Barnes’ stuff I have read.

Body of work of Steven Barnes

Web Site:  https://stevenbarneslife.wordpress.com/