Stay Where You Are And Then Leave

Stay Where You Are And Then Leave by John Boyne is a 245 page historical fiction novel set in London, England during World War I.  Historical fiction is such a great genre because you get a great story AND a history lesson all in one novel.  There are LOTS of historical fiction novels out there about World War II, but surprisingly not near as many about World War I.  This is a great read to learn more about what life felt like for civilians NOT fighting in the Great War, particularly children, and what they also did to help the war effort.  The book also sheds light on original diagnosis of "shell shock," (which we now call PTSD) and how doctors were noticing that while some soldiers came home physically scarred from the war, others were mentally scarred.

Alfie is a young boy growing up in London, England when war is declared on his 5th birthday, ruining his birthday party.  Suddenly Alfie realizes the grown ups are acting strange and not getting along - some support the way, some are against it.  Alfie's parents are immediately in disagreement when his father, who drives the milk cart for the community, says he wants to enlist.  Alfie's mother and grandmother are furious with him and beg him not to.  But Alfie's father shows up one evening in uniform and the family is torn apart.  Alfie's world flips upside down in a matter of days when his father leaves for war and suddenly Alfie's best friend across the street is plucked from her home with her father since he was born in Prague and a threat of being a spy.  Four years slowly pass and Alfie's five year old life is only a memory of better times.  His best friend is still gone and his mother is never home.  She now works long hours as a nurse at a hospital while taking on other odd jobs to help ends meet, like laundry and mending clothes.  Alfie and his mother never hear from his father anymore and Alfie is convinced he has died, but his mother continues to tell him his father is on a secret mission for the government, but Alfie senses something is not right.  Alfie begins skipping school most days a week to head to the King's Cross train station to shine shoes to help earn extra money for their family.  He meets all sorts of people at the train station, even shining the shoes of the Prime Minister.  One day a doctor has his shoes shined while waiting on his train. While having his shoes shined and reading through some of his medical records, the doctor drops the files and papers begin to blow through the train station.  Alfie helps to quickly collect them and as he hands them back to the doctor, he notices his father's name, birthday, and ID number on one of the files.  Alfie is shocked and now more determined than ever to find out the truth about his father and if he is still alive.

Stay Where You Are And Then Leave is a great read for anyone looking to learn more about World War I (which is covered in 6th grade history standards).  It is a male narrator, so I encourage this one for the guys as well as the girls.  Although this book is about war, it does not have a lot of graphic content.  However, I would still recommend this for older readers (not younger than 5th grade) because John Boyne does jump around in time quite a bit.  It will take a more avid reader to follow along with the story's action and properly follow the events.  It is also set in London, so there are some words and phrases common to the British language.  It is a very heartfelt story of a little boy who is confused about the big world events going on in the world around him, but just wants to help and do the right thing.  If you enjoy this novel, you may also enjoy The Boy In The Striped Pajamas and The Boy At The Top Of The Mountain, which are both historical fiction novels about World War II.        

The Unteachables

The Unteachables is a realistic fiction novel by Gordon Korman.  It is about 280 pages with short chapters that are about 5-8 pages each.  Gordon Korman has a unique structure in many of his books (including this one) that is all his own - each chapter is from a different character's perspective.  So while the novel is told in first person point of view, the reader gets the privilege of knowing the thoughts and emotions of many characters - and sometimes even secrets and events the other characters don't get to know.

Zachary Kermit used to be a great teacher - one of the best.  But a cheating scandal on a state test in his classroom sabotaged his teaching career.  The well-known scandal in the small town of Greenwich has haunted him through his entire career and even wrecked his relationship with the woman he was engaged to marry.  Since then, he has not been the same - doesn't connect with his students, doesn't care about the job, and generally burned out from teaching.  Now he is just one year away from retirement and just has to hang on until June until he can put this all behind him.  The superintendent of the school system has been trying to run him off for years, and now in one final, desperate attempt, he assigns Mr. Kermit to teach "The Unteachables" in room 117.  SCS-8 (the Self-Contained Special class for 8th graders) is a group of kids that have been given up on.  It is filled with troublemakers, academic failures, and social embarrassments.  The kids in this room have been put there by other teachers who see them as a lost cause - a place to put them until they can send them to the high school and become someone else's problem.  Elaine (that rhymes with pain) is the school's biggest bully and always a threat for physical torture, Parker is in the eighth grade and still cannot read a word, Aldo is well-known in the school for his anger management problems and can usually be found punching lockers or vending machines, Rahim doesn't even stay awake at school long enough to count his attendance, and "Barnstorm" Anderson used to be the school's star jock, but now that he is injured, teacher's aren't giving him As anymore and his lack of academic knowledge is certainly showing through.  Mr. Kermit walks into class (very late) on the first day to find the students with a fire in the classroom trash can and roasting marshmallows.  All they have to do is figure out how to survive each other for a year, which shouldn't be a problem, right?  Mr. Kermit isn't interested in teaching; "The Unteachables" are not interested in learning.  But it isn't that simple - especially when the superintendent is determined to run off Mr. Kermit before the end of the year.  The year certainly does not go as either group expected it to! 

I think The Unteachables is a great middle school book, especially because the events take place at a middle school.  Gordon Korman is a great middle school author that I often recommend to my classroom students.  His books are very realistic, but have a great dose of humor that often appeals to middle school readers - both boys and girls alike. The Unteachables have some interesting and unexpected characters that many readers will also enjoy.  I definitely recommend this lighthearted book for easy summer reading.  It definitely offers a great look at what can happen to a person when you find someone that believes in you!