Language: G (0 swears); Mature Content G; Violence: G
BUYING ADVISORY: MS – OPTIONAL
AUDIENCE APPEAL: AVERAGE
Ben Bellows, Ben B, has failed the language arts section of the middle school Florida Rigorous Academic Assessment Test, commonly referred to as the FART. He and three other literacy challenged students have to take a summer school class so they can pass. Their teacher, Ms. J, doesn’t quite know how to engage them until they make a deal with her that for every minute they read aloud in class they can play Sandbox (a type of Mine Craft). Upon discovery, the administration is less than thrilled, and Ben B and friends must figure out a way to save their teacher’s job.
The students express themselves in different modalities, so the text ranges from free verse to gaming texts to drawings. I liked that this book addressed the difficulties of reading and how diverse learning styles don’t always work in regular classrooms. The ending was fairly predictable, but a fun journey.
Michelle in the Middle
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