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If a Tree Falls at Lunch Period
Gennifer Choldenko
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9780152057534 Hardcover
0152057536
$17.00
224pages
Available
Trim Size:
5-1/2 x 8-1/4
Copyright Year:
2007
Territory:
US, C, I, O
Ages: 10 years and up |
Read an Excerpt
Teacher Guide
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Synopsis |
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Kirsten's parents are barely speaking to each other, and her best friend has fallen under the spell of the school's queen bee, Brianna. It seems like only Kirsten's younger science-geek sister is on her side.
Walker's goal is to survive at the new white private school his mom has sent him to because she thinks he's going to screw up like his cousin. But he's a good kid. So is his friend Matteo, though no one knows why he’ll do absolutely anything that hot blond Brianna asks of him.
But all of this feels almost trivial when Kirsten and Walker discover a secret that shakes them both to the core. Fast paced, marvelously funny, and brutally honest, If a Tree Falls at Lunch Period touches on universal truths about human nature.
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Praise |
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"Choldenko has a flair for titles: Notes From a Liar and Her Dog, Al Capone Does My Shirts, now this. But books don't fly on titles alone. Choldenko also has a spiky wit, an empathetic eye for kids' foibles and fears, an ear for their distinctive voices and an impressive range. . . . If a Tree Falls unfolds in the less exotic setting of a fancy private school, but it treads more explosive ground as it switches between the viewpoints of two seventh-graders there -- Kirsten, who is white, and Walk, who is black. That catchy title is a metaphor for the uprooting that takes place when Kirsten and Walk learn they have a whole lot more in common than their "brilliance." At the same time, it signals this book's real appeal for pre-teens: While it treats issues of race, class and marital discord fearlessly, it's also one of the funniest they'll read this year. "
The Washington Post Book World,10/7/2007
“Choldenko's talent for characters and conversation brings the two voices instantly to life in alternating points of view...This will appeal to a wide range of middle-school readers and would make a great book-club or classroom discussion."
Kirkus Reviews,8/15/2007
“The issues raised are spot-on for this age group. . . . (an) under-the-microscope examination of the often cruel, always dramatic dynamics of junior high.”
Publishers Weekly,7/1/2007
“Choldenko convincingly covers the middle school scene . . . sparkling characterization and touches of humor . . . tumultuous twists that ultimately convince Kirsten that, indeed, she does matter.”
School Library Journal ,8/1/2007
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Biography |
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GENNIFER CHOLDENKO is the author of Al Capone Does My Shirts and Notes from a Liar and Her Dog as well as several picture books. She lives in the San Francisco Bay area.
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General Subjects |
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Juvenile Fiction- Family/Marriage & Divorce
Juvenile Fiction- Social Situations/Adolescence
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Rights Details |
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Harcourt Children's Books
A Division ofHarcourt Trade Publishers
A
Harcourt Education Company
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