Module 7: Realistic Fiction

No More Dead Dogs by Gordon Korman   

Summary: Wallace Wallace, a member of the school football team, is put into after school detention by his English teacher for not writing a book summary/review on his English teacher’s favorite book, Old Shep, My Pal. Because he is in detention Wallace can’t play football.  Unfortunately for Mr. Fogleman, the English teacher, detention is held in the same place as the play rehearsal - which is an adaptation of Old Shep, My Pal.  Events begin to snowball as Wallace makes suggestions to improve the play, somebody tries to sabotage the play, and Mr. Fogleman tries to keep everything together.

My Impressions: When I first picked up this book, I was under the misguided impression that it somehow involved dogs.  The only dog involved in this book is Shep, the one in the “play/book” Old Shep, My Pal. I actually picked the book up because like Wallace Wallace, I think that dogs die in books much too frequently.  I ended up enjoying this book; I thought the twist at the end was neat, and enjoyed reading about frustrations of putting on a school play (especially as I’ve been involved in theatre for the past 15 years).  As I was would take the book to school with me, some of my students saw it and commented that they had read the book and also really enjoyed it. 

Reviews: This was one of the funniest books I have ever read! The main character, Wallace, an eighth grader and a football player, is well known for never telling a lie. His English teacher, Mr. Fogelman, assigns the class to write a book review of his favorite book, Old Shep, My Pal (1951). Wallace doesn't lie but says he thinks the book is awful; besides, you know that the dog will die before starting page one "because the dog always dies." This makes Mr. Fogelman angry and he gives Wallace a detention. Wallace is to write and turn in a good review. Detention ends up meaning that Wallace cannot play or practice football until the proper "review" is written, and the detention must be served with the drama club, which is directed by Mr. Fogelman. Not only is Wallace extremely honest, he is very stubborn. The next review he writes is still not acceptable, so he must continue coming to the drama club practices as part of his "detention." Middle school kids will enjoy this book because it is so typical of their language, actions, and ideas. It would make a good book to read aloud to a class. Recommended. - By Jo Clarke, Media Specialist, Northeast Middle School, Midland, Michigan, Kansas Hampshire County, Ohio on; Cathy Hart, Perry Middle School, Worthington, Ohio and Patricia L. Kolencik, North Clarion High School Library, Tionesta, Pennsylvania

Library Uses: I would create a book trailer for this book to get students interested in reading it.  Another idea could be to read an excerpt, such as the part where Wallace Wallace is explaining why he didn't like Old Shep, My Pal and have students discuss books where the dog dies and their feelings on it.

References:

Clarke, J. (2001). [Book Review of No More Dead Dogs by G. Korman] Book Report, 19 (5), 60.

Korman, G. (2002). No more dead dogs. New York, New York: Hyperion Books

The Astonishing Adventures of Fanboy and Goth Girl by Barry Liga

Summary: Donnie is a typical, angst-y teenager who lives in his comic-book world.  Kyra is the goth girl at school - she doesn’t like anyone…except Donnie.  Kyra pushes Donnie to finish his graphic novel in time to show it to his hero who is going to be at the local comi-con.  Things don’t go as planned, but the experiences help Donnie to realize what’s important, and they help him grow up just a little.  But will he see Kyra’s demons in time to be able to help her too?

My Impressions: I thought the story was very well written and managed to stay interesting with very few slow points.  Realistic fiction is a difficult genre for me for some reason, but reading this book has made me want to read its sequel.  I liked the slow evolution of Donnie - the reader sees him go from being insulated and letting people walk all over him to him being able to stand up for himself.  We also see him as he not only learn to handle disappointment, but also learns to care  about others, and it was that evolution that I enjoyed watching unfold.  Overall, I think this is a great book to have in a school library, and will definitely be recommending it to my students.

Review: Life is pretty dismal for the geeky 15-year-old narrator of Lyga's debut novel, who will quickly win over readers. He is mostly ignored by his beer-guzzling, gun-toting stepfather (aka "stepfascist") and pregnant mother (who still calls him Donnie), and harassed at school. His only friend; Cal, ignores him whenever the popular guys come around. Then a goth girl named Kyra sends him a surprise email, and he finds someone to talk to about everything from comics to their disdain for their classmates ("Someone could walk through the halls with a machine gun and kill ninety-nine percent of the people in that place and I wouldn't care," Kyra says). He even shows her the graphic novel he is hoping to publish so he can "get away from here. Start new somewhere else." But while Kyra is always blunt and angry, "fanboy" (as she calls him) begins slowly to piece together just how troubled she is. The story unfolds slowly, and a few resolutions seem scripted, such as the narrator making sudden peace with the step-fascist. But fanboy's comic book obsession feels authentic, in the way he describes famous authors, the difficulty of creating a comic ("You have to decide if the words are important enough to cover up the artwork that's telling half the story"), and even life inside a comic-book convention. His relationship with Kyra seems real, too; they are both truly outsiders, full of confusion and pain ("I don't know how I got here," he says during their big fight. "I don't think she knows, either"). In the end, there is plenty here to keep readers engaged. Ages 14-up. (Oct.) Agent: Kathleen Anderson, Anderson Literary Management.

Library Use: I think that this would work well in a library book club.  It would also be a great book to use for a discussion on bullying.  A part from the beginning of the book where Donnie is picked on could be read aloud and then students could discuss how they think he should react and what you should do if ever you find yourself in a similar situation.

References:

Anderson, K. [Book Review of The Astonishing Adventures of Fanboy and Goth Girl by B. Liga] Publisher’s Weekly (2006). 253 (42), 52-53

Liga, B. (2006) The astonishing adventures of fanboy and goth girl. New York, New York: Houghton Mifflin Company