“Kirsten is feeling insecure at the start of the new school year at her private school. She has gained a lot of weight over the summer, her parents are arguing with each other all the time (divorcing?), and she seems to be losing her best friend who would rather hang out with the more popular crowd.
Of course, she’s not the only one feeling like an outsider. Walker is a new student and one of only three black students at the school. Matteo is embarassed because his mother works as a maid for one of the rich families at the school.
There is a huge and completely unexpected surprise 3/4 of the way through the book. But Dbrlteen does not tell secrets…
Maybe we can’t avoid judging each other by outside appearance - looks, clothes, weight, race, family income… but outsiders can start by connecting with each other. Kirsten and Walker start on page 3. How? Complete strangers, one says something, and the other answers. Not so hard if you’ll give it a try.
So DBRLteen recommends If a Tree Falls at Lunch Period because the more connections we make with people different from us, the more we learn they’re not so different from us after all, and the richer we all are.
Visit Gennifer Choldenko’s website (She also wrote Al Capone Does My Shirts.)”
DBRLTeen wrote this review Wednesday, December 31, 2008.
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