Slacker

Slacker by Gordon Korman
My rating: 2 of 5 stars

I'm a huge Gordon Korman fan and have been since childhood, uh, some decades ago. Unfortunately, this one is not my favorite. I'm really tired of all the adult characters being clueless and/or uncaring, for one thing. And for another thing, the "main" character (if you can call him that in a book where only a few of the chapters are from his POV), Cameron Boxer, is a video game addict who really doesn't grow or mature very much over the course of the book until he suddenly has something of a change of heart at the very end.

I think that's really why this story didn't resonate with me: virtually no character development. So much more *could* have been done with that. I would love to have learned more about Xavier's background and emotional growth, for example. I enjoyed the scene with the handmade bowl. Both Pavel and Chuck had potential. Melody's motivations begged for elaboration. And what was up with the high school mean-girl-on-steroids who never got her comeuppance or ah-ha moment? Seriously, NO adults figured out what was happening? And NONE of the high schoolers--in a supposed do-gooder group--were willing to resist her nasty schemes or spill the beans? *sigh*

What this book was, was fast-paced and plot-driven. I read it in a single evening after I got my son to bed. The short chapters bounced from character's POV to another's and flew by rapidly, so I think this book will be far more interesting to kids, who typically read for plot anyway and who lack the adult perspective that makes the plot holes and cardboard characters so obvious. There are some mildly humorous situations, mostly the result of people ascribing positive motivations to this self-centered kid who doesn't care about anyone or anything except his video games. I was actually shocked he followed the dripping water in his chapter at the retirement center.

For readers' advisors: story doorway is obviously primary. No sexual content or swearing. The only violence was a middle school girl tackling a senior citizen to save a beaver. Well, and a big chaotic "fight" in a sabotaged swimming pool, but no one got hurt that I can recall--it was mostly a lot of yelling and anger vaguely described.

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Restart

Restart by Gordon Korman
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

I loved this funny tale of a bully who falls off a roof while doing something illicit, then wakes with near total amnesia and is pretty horrified to find out what a jerk he's been. I enjoyed reading from the other characters' points of view as well as from Chase's, and I loved watching him choose to be a better person the second time around. It was a little unbelievable that losing his memory would have instantly transformed him into a kinder, better person, but I'm in no way an expert on head trauma, so I will totally give Gordon Korman the benefit of the doubt on this one and hope he did his research.

The other thing that kept this book from being a 5-star middle grade story for me was Chase's dad's abrupt switch from being a grown-up bully into a supportive father at the very end. That didn't ring true. I would like to think he, too, could change! But probably not without a lot of therapy. Dude was a jerk for a very long time, and he didn't have the benefit of amnesia. Otherwise, though, I loved this book!

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Dork Diaries: Tales from a Not-So-Fabulous Life

Dork Diaries: Tales from a Not-So-Fabulous Life by Rachel Renée Russell
My rating: 2 of 5 stars

Meh. Not my thing. Silly middle school girl with a scholarship to attend a new private school tries to turn herself into a "cool" kid to make friends but ends up making friends with fellow library-book-shelving volunteers instead. It was refreshing that the cute boy she had a crush on was nice to her and didn't much like the stereotypical spoiled rich girl who was her arch-nemesis. I appreciated that the many manga-style cartoon drawings helped speed the story along so it was a pretty quick read. I'm sure tween girls love this series, but there was too much middle school angst for my taste, although Nikki's dramatics were obviously tongue-in-cheek, meant to highlight the ridiculousness of her "woes."

For readers' advisors: character doorway primary, story secondary.

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