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Publication Date: April 2016  |
SYNOPSIS: Joe and Ravi might be from very different places, but they're both stuck in the same place: SCHOOL. Joe's lived in the same town all his life, and was doing just fine until his best friends moved away and left him on his own. Ravi's family just moved to America from India, and he's finding it pretty hard to figure out where he fits in. Joe and Ravi don't think they have anything in common -- but soon enough they have a common enemy (the biggest bully in their class) and a common mission: to take control of their lives over the course of a single crazy week.
THOUGHTS: This book was a quick read, but a lot was put into
those 200 or so pages. And I don't mean a lot of action; Save Me a Seat is not
an action-adventure story. What it does have a lot of, though, is hope and
gentle lessons that there is more to people than meets the eye. This story
tackles the theme of bullying and fitting in and, importantly, compassion. The
chapters effectively alternate between the voices of the two protagonists (Ravi
& Joe), who are realistically multi-layered. They are characters to root
for despite (or perhaps because of) their faults. This is a story for Andrew
Clements fans, for sure.
CARTWHEEL AWARD NOMINEE?: Yes, definitely. A good choice on its own, but bonus points for unforced multiculturalism.
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