Don't Call Me Ishmael by Michael Gerard Bauer
Ishmael LeSeur is certain his life is over when Barry Bagsley, 9th grade class Neanderthal, decides he has a funny name. But the winds of fortune change when the tiny, odd, but brilliant James Scobie not only declares war on Bagsley, but forces Ishmael to join the new, hilariously awful school debate team.
posted by Karrie @ 3:47 PM
5 Comments
5 Comments:
Love Love Love Love Love this book. So funny, witty, and one of the best I've read this year. Probably one of my top three easily!
I don't know if I'm as much in love with this as Anne, but I liked it a lot. Great characters, great story. Top three? I don't know.
Call me, Ishmael! I really liked the book, too, and I thought it was really funny. I have a small complaint about the cover, though, and the illustrations throughout. They are yucky! I wouldn't have picked up the book at all based on its cover!
Plus, I think there's a bit of a cultural difference with the language and also the school calendar (the graduation was at the end of December?) but these are small complaints compared with the positive tone of the book.
Still my favorite after reading all 20. I love laughing aloud and being taken by surprise. The emotions and character reactions felt authentic. I plan to read top contenders again. Alexie's book is great, but not appealing to local teens so far where Ishmael is captivating all -young and no longer young.
Would like some discussion on weight of "teen appeal" in criteria consideration.
I really enjoyed the humor in this book. I think it has great teen appeal, except for the awful cover. I'm a huge fan of Australian fiction and don't think kids will have too much trouble with the language or other differences.
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