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| Publisher's Hardcover ©2019 | -- |
Kyphosis. Juvenile fiction.
Fathers and sons. Juvenile fiction.
Compulsive gamblers. Juvenile fiction.
Conduct of life. Juvenile fiction.
Bullying. Juvenile fiction.
Interpersonal relations. Juvenile fiction.
Friendship. Juvenile fiction.
Kyphosis. Fiction.
Spine. Abnormalities. Fiction.
Fathers and sons. Fiction.
Gambling. Fiction.
Conduct of life. Fiction.
Bullying. Fiction.
Interpersonal relations. Fiction.
Friendship. Fiction.
Maine. Juvenile fiction.
Maine. Fiction.
Ked, 12, has a spinal condition that gives him a hunchback. and causes classmates like hulking Landrover to bully him. Like others in his economically depressed Maine mill town, Ked is poor; his mother is gone and his father gambles away their money. Smack in the middle of a pond in their town is a tower, and during the annual "thin ice days," townspeople bet on when it's going to fall. Ked's father needs to win his bet, otherwise they'll be evicted from their apartment. Meanwhile, Ked has his own plan to make a buck; it involves "borrowing" the rent money to repair and resell a broken-down minibike. He's counting on using the school's maker-space to repair the bike, but Landrover keeps thwarting his plans. The boys' conflict comes to a head when they find themselves in a dangerous life-or-death situation. This absorbing book realistically conveys middle-school dynamics while respectfully portraying the lives of working poor families. The relationships are complex, particularly between Ked and his father, with flawed but sympathetic characters.
Kirkus ReviewsA boy with a rare spinal deformity makes a desperate bet to keep his home."[E]verything you subtract
ALA Booklist (Sat Jun 01 00:00:00 CDT 2019)
Kirkus Reviews
I sit down alone. Everyone says we're never going to use most of what we learn in school. But some of it's important. Right now I'm thinking about math. I'm thinking about addition and subtraction all at once. I'm thinking about how everything you subtract adds up.
When Maps left our table last year, there were still three of us: Nephi, Danny, and me. We didn't even take it that personally. We all knew Maps was different. He was an instant star on the middle school teams. He had teammates to talk to and games to plan. And even when Nephi made his move to the makers' table, there was still Danny. There was still someone left. They were never leaving me alone. It was easier for me and, honestly, I think it was easier for them too.
They're not bad guys. At least I never used to think so. We all knew the deal: Things change. New classes, new teams, new schedules, and so yeah, sometimes that's going to add up to new friends and new tables. It was almost like a game of musical chairs: one less player each time. You just start up again with whoever is left.
But now Danny is gone. Subtract one, like every time before. But this time it leaves me with zero. Game over: not enough players.
Danny didn't do anything different than the others. He just did it last. He was my last friend from before, but now he has slipped away like a fish with no one to net it. I'm alone. It happened piece by piece and then all at once. Now, it's down to me and what's left of this sad, soggy piece of pizza. The table is big and round and white, like the beam of a spotlight. Like the number zero.
Welcome to the rest of my life, I think.
I hate this cafeteria.
And it hates me back.
Excerpted from On Thin Ice by Michael Northrop
All rights reserved by the original copyright owners. Excerpts are provided for display purposes only and may not be reproduced, reprinted or distributed without the written permission of the publisher.
New York Times bestselling author Michael Northrop captures the middle-school experience -- from the hurt to the hope -- in this powerful story of creativity in the face of cruelty.
If I did something risky now, something big -- it's almost like it wouldn't even be my fault. Almost like it might even work.Ked Eakins is about to lose everything.He's just discovered that his dad has gambled away their rent money. They're going to get kicked out of their home.But Ked is determined to fight back. He hatches a plan to save their apartment by rebuilding a vintage minibike in his school's maker space, which he'll sell for a profit.Still, the plan is a gamble of his own: Going to maker space forces Ked into the path of a school bully, who torments him about his progressive spinal condition.Can Ked -- with the help of some unlikely new friends -- find a way to fix the bike and save his family from going under before it's too late?New York Times bestselling author Michael Northrop has written a powerful story a boy who -- against all odds -- decides to bet on himself and create something new from broken pieces.