Parenthetical.net

As a desperate attempt to engage his lazy, inattentive 7th grade math class (hey, Hauntmeister, this one’s for you!), Mr. Collins forms an afterschool club at his inner-city Cleveland school. Their mission? Build a 7-level tetrahedron, to beat the 6-level record. Four African-American kids (two boys and two girls) join for a variety of reasons; the book is told through their points of view, in alternating chapters.

Of course the real story is about what they learn and how their lives change in the process of achieving their goal. My favorite thing about this book is how realistic the kids’ lives are, without seeming over-the-top. It’s common to write stories about inner-city kids in which every character is abused or neglected. Some of the tetrahedron kids are, of course — it would be unrealistic if they weren’t — and those issues are handled sensitively. But some also have strong families. The characters are working-class, but that doesn’t mean they don’t share challenges with wealthier kids (how to get along with their parents, for instance).

The other thing I loved, as a teacher, is that Mr. Collins isn’t a young superhero teacher like in that craptastic Michelle Pfeiffer movie. He’s a middle-aged veteran teacher who drones on about math and gets frustrated with his bored students… and finds himself a little bit in the project right along with the kids. I wanted more from his point of view, but then I am not the target audience.

I would recommend this as a great book for reluctant readers, as I read it in a day and the story and vocabulary are simple, yet engaging — but experience has shown me that reluctant readers have trouble with books that shift point of view. If you can get your kid past that (and I plan to try with my favorite reluctant reader), give this one a try!

Read-alikes: Seedfolks, by Paul Fleischman (simple story about an inspiring urban project told by multiple characters), though All of the Above is more plot and less series of vignettes.