Friday, November 19, 2010

#40 - Surviving the Applewhites by Stephanie S. Tolan

2003 Honor Book

Another milestone - the big 4-0!! I'm slowly, but surely making my way through this very long list!!

"Jake Semple is a scary kid. Word has it that he burned down his old school in his home state. Only weeks into September, the middle school in Traybridge, North Carolina, has thrown him out too.

Now there's only one place left that will take him - a home school run by the most outrageous, forgetful, chaotic, quarrelsome family you'll ever meet. Each and every Applewhite is an artist through and through - except E.D., the smart, scruffy girl with a deep longing for order and predictability. E.D. and Jake, so nearly the same age, are quickly paired in the family's first experiment in "cooperative education."

The two clash immediately, of course. The only thing they have in common is the determination to survive the families' eccentricities. In Stephanie S. Tolan's hilarious tale, a local production of
The Sound of Music - directed, stagecrafted, choreographed, and costumed by Applewhites - brings the family together and shows E.D. and Jake the value of the special gifts they've had all along."

This was a fun book with a nice story of a "bad kid" turned good when put in just the right environment. I love how Jake found his niche in this story.

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