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If a Tree Falls at Lunch Period: Summary and book reviews of If a Tree Falls at Lunch Period by Gennifer Choldenko, plus links to an excerpt from If a Tree Falls at Lunch Period and a biography of Gennifer Choldenko.
If a Tree Falls at Lunch Period
by
Gennifer Choldenko
Hardcover: Sep 2007,
224 pages.
Paperback: Apr 2009,
224 pages.
For Kirsten the world is crumbling. Her parents are barely speaking to one
another and her best friend has come under the spell of the queen bee Brianna.
Only Kirsten's younger science-geek sister is on her side.
For Walker the goal is to survive the new very white private school his mom has
sent him to because she thinks he's going to screw up like his cousin.
"Don't have to worry, Momma, before I go bad I'll let you know, send a Hallmark
card ready made for the occasion...on the eve your son messes up."
But Walk is a good kid. So is his new friend, Matteo, though no one knows why
Matteo will do absolutely anything that hot blond Brianna asks of him.
Two worlds collide in one compelling story. Then suddenly Kirsten discovers
something that shakes them to their core...
"You knew all along," Walk says.
"No, I didn't."
"You're lying. You found out and then you told the whole world..."
Book Reviews
BookBrowse - Jo Perry
The novel's focus is decidedly internal rather than external, and the reader lives inside twelve year old heads for the duration. But Choldenko's unwavering interior focus isn't gimmickry: it illuminates her young characters' imperfect knowledge of the world and of themselves, and reflects the self-absorption typical and probably necessary to their growth. Full Review (members only, 941 words).
Kirkus Reviews
This will appeal to a wide range of middle-school readers and would make a great book-club or classroom discussion.
Publishers Weekly
The issues raised are spot-on for this age group .... . (an) under-the-microscope examination of the often cruel, always dramatic dynamics of junior high.
VOYA
The novel touches on racism, eating disorders, and bullying, and one cannot help but feel that it would have been more memorable and compelling had Choldenko aged her characters a few years and let Kirsten tell the story in its entirety.
The Washington Post - Elizabeth Ward
[Choldenko] has a spiky wit, an empathetic eye for kids' foibles and fears, an ear for their distinctive voices and an impressive range…While it treats issues of race, class and marital discord fearlessly, it's also one of the funniest they'll read this year.
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Masterfully blending true events with fiction, this blockbuster historical thriller delivers a page-turning murder mystery set on the sixteenth-century Oxford University campus.
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If a Tree Falls at Lunch Period
(members only, 941 words).
The Washington Post - Elizabeth Ward
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