Nothing But the Truth by AVI

Nothing But The Truth written by AVI is book that I would recommend to anyone, especially if you are looking for a quick read. I read the book in a about two hours. The one this that attracted me to this book is that when I flipped through it I noticed that it is a story written in document form. This book is compromised of letters, journals entries, newspaper article, school documents... basically it is filled with wide variety of genres.

The story in this book is about a boy, Philip, and his English teacher, Miss Narwin. Philip is transfered in Miss Narwin's homeroom, but conflict soon rises when Philip starts to hum the "Star-Spangled Banner" even though the rules when it plays over the intercom is to stay silent. Though the reader knows that the event gets blown out of proportion, we do not know who (if anyone) is in the wrong.

This book should be taught to middle school students, and it also should be read by aspiring teachers. I feel that this books give us the sense of what happens in schools with budget cuts, principle who care about how they look rather than their teachers and teachers getting caught up in following rules that may need to be changed.

The True Confessions Of A Part-Time Indian By Sherman Alexie

This novel is amazing! I could not be happier that I read The True Confessions of a Part-Time Indian written by Sherman Alexie because I have finally gotten it out of my system and it did not disappoint me.

This novel is about a young Indian boy name Arnold Spirit Jr. who lived on a reservation with his family. However, Arnold has big dreams and after a confrontation with a teacher on his reservation, he learns that he needs to leave the reservation. So, Arnold transfers to the best quality school in his area. Sometimes this means he has to hitchhike (because his parents do not have enough money for gas) but Arnold tries to adjust to the mostly white school.

Arnold winds up succeeding in his new school, making new friends, getting good grades, but he only does this after sacrificing the respect of his reservation, the loss of his best friend and a few family members.

I would definitely teach this book in a classroom because it is not too intense and I feel it is extremely appropriate for students in middle school. The language is from Arnold's metaphorical mouth, so he does not use very harsh language. Also, this book has a lot of pictures which is great for everyone to look at and makes it a quicker read.