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A review by abigailbat
If a Tree Falls at Lunch Period by Gennifer Choldenko
3.0
Alternately narrated by seventh graders Kirsten McKenna and her new classmate Walker Jones, this book tells the story of two kids struggling to fit in at their private school. Kirsten has gained weight since her parents started fighting all the time and now her best friend Rory has started hanging out with the popular girls she used to hate. Walk is one of three African American kids in the whole school and faces constant pressure to be perfect, lest one slipup cost him his scholarship. Kirsten and Walk meet accidentally on the first day of school, but neither of them would ever believe what would eventually bring them together.
Short chapters and alternating narrators kept me turning the pages. It was interesting to see the same issues seen through two very different sets of eyes with two very different world views. I didn't see the twist coming, though I thought it was believable once it came. Another book about finding your true friends and discovering that we're really all the same on the inside. I haven't heard any Newbery buzz about this one, but I wouldn't be surprised if it won a Newbery honor.
Readalike suggestions: This book really, really reminded me of The Cat Ate my Gymsuit by Paula Danziger.
Short chapters and alternating narrators kept me turning the pages. It was interesting to see the same issues seen through two very different sets of eyes with two very different world views. I didn't see the twist coming, though I thought it was believable once it came. Another book about finding your true friends and discovering that we're really all the same on the inside. I haven't heard any Newbery buzz about this one, but I wouldn't be surprised if it won a Newbery honor.
Readalike suggestions: This book really, really reminded me of The Cat Ate my Gymsuit by Paula Danziger.