Schooled - Hardcover

Korman, Gordon

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 0786856920 ISBN 13: 9780786856923

Publisher: Little, Brown Books for Young Readers, 2007

Synopsis

In this bestselling fish-out-of-water classic, a homeschooled kid must learn how to fit in at his new public school when he's elected to be class president as a prank.

Capricorn Anderson (Cap for short) has never watched a television show. He’s never tasted pizza. He’s never heard of a wedgie. And he has never, even in his wildest dreams, thought he’d live anywhere but the Garland Farm commune with his hippie grandmother and homeschool instructor, Rain.
 
But all this changes when Rain is stuck in the hospital and Cap is sent to Claverage Middle School (dubbed C Average by the kids). Cap doesn't exactly fit in at school, with his long, ungroomed hair and hemp clothes; in fact, he's the biggest nerd around. But when he’s elected eighth grade president as a joke, Cap is more puzzled than ever, and soon the joke grows into something more. Will Cap be the greatest president in the history of C Average or the biggest punch line?
 
Rife with Gordon Korman’s signature humor, Schooled is a heartwarming story about friendship, kindness, and finding your place—which may not always be where you think it is.

About this title

About the Author

Gordon Korman published his first book at age fourteen, and since then he has written more than one hundred middle-grade and teen novels. His favorites include the New York Times bestsellers The Fort, Linked, The Unteachables, and Restart. Gordon lives with his family on Long Island, New York. He invites you to visit him online at gordonkorman.com.

Reviews

*Starred Review* Homeschooled on an isolated "alternate farm commune" that has dwindled since the 1960s to 2 members, 13-year-old Cap has always lived with his grandmother, Rain. When she is hospitalized, Cap is taken in by a social worker and sent—like a lamb to slaughter—to middle school. Smart and capable, innocent and inexperienced (he learned to drive on the farm, but he has never watched television), long-haired Cap soon becomes the butt of pranks. He reacts in unexpected ways and, in the end, elevates those around him to higher ground. From chapter to chapter, the first-person narrative shifts among certain characters: Cap, a social worker (who takes him into her home), her daughter (who resents his presence there), an A-list bully, a Z-list victim, a popular girl, the school principal, and a football player (who unintentionally decks Cap twice in one day). Korman capably manages the shifting points of view of characters who begin by scorning or resenting Cap and end up on his side. From the eye-catching jacket art to the scene in which Cap says good-bye to his 1,100 fellow students, individually and by name, this rewarding novel features an engaging main character and some memorable moments of comedy, tenderness, and reflection. Pair this with Jerry Spinelli's 2000 Stargirl (the sequel is reviewed in this issue) for a discussion of the stifling effects of conformity within school culture or just read it for the fun of it. Phelan, Carolyn

Edition details

• Publisher: Little, Brown Books for Young Readers
• Publication date: 2007
• Language: English
• ISBN 10: 0786856920
• ISBN 13: 9780786856923
• Binding: Hardcover
• Edition number: 1
• Number of pages: 224