Copyright Date:
2014
Edition Date:
2014
Release Date:
07/14/14
Pages:
148 pages
ISBN:
1-622-50891-2
ISBN 13:
978-1-622-50891-4
Dewey:
Fic
Dimensions:
21 cm.
Language:
English
Reviews:
School Library Journal
(Mon Sep 01 00:00:00 CDT 2014)
Gr 7-10 What if identification with a particular gender became illegal? What if the powers that be decided that overpopulation and other unspecified societal ills could be solved by requiring all citizens to appear not male or female but "otherwise"? In this book set decades into the future, Pennsylvania is the last state to sign off on S868A, just such a bill. Unfortunately, this bizarre dystopian novel-in-verse lacks an internal logic that would help make its premise tenable enough. A teen girl chooses the unisex name Spark when she meets a gender-unknown love interest at a New Jersey campground. Just as for Spark, who becomes attracted to another without knowing their sex roles, so the author attempts to hide from readers the gender of Whistler, a person who follows Spark home to her parents' house with less than a month before gender identification becomes unlawful. This hi-lo offering fails to deliver a satisfying narrative. Even if the ideas could pique the interest of reluctant readers, who desire a slim book with plenty of white space, its convoluted logic undermines teens' potential enjoyment. Suzanne Gordon, Lanier High School, Sugar Hill, GA
Themes: Realistic Fiction, Poetry, Verse, Gender Equality, Sexuality, Coming of Age, Teen, Young Adult, Hi-Lo, Hi-Lo Books, Hi-Lo Solutions, High-Low Books, Hi-Low Books, ELL, EL, ESL, Struggling Learner, Struggling Reader, Special Education, SPED, Newcomers, Reading, Learning, Education, Educational, Educational Books. A law has been passed. There will be no more genders. Everyone must appear gender neutral. No more boys. No more girls. Just Otherwise. Same bland clothes. Same fuzzy heads. Spark dreads the countdown leading up to the finality of the new laws passage. Her parents are for it. Theyre tired of conforming to societys standards. But they allow her to take off for a quick camping trip to gather her thoughts. At the campsite, she meets Whistler. And the attraction is instant and mutual. But who is Whistler? And what is Whistler? Boy? Or girl? This gender-bending story in verse will make readers question everything they thought they knew about love, chemistry, and cultural norms. Just like prose, a novel in verse tells a story. But verse is unique because readers access the text through short chapters, or poems. The varying lengths of the chapters are ideal for a struggling reader, giving them breaks to collect their thoughts, to imagine the characters in their minds eye, and to set the scenelike a frame in a movie. The structure of poetry makes the books appear less intimidating, with plenty of airy white space. Moreover, the depth and substance conveyed in verse is every bit as deep and real as in a Gravel Road prose novel.