Jumped In

June 15, 2013
A slacker learns life lessons from a slam-poet classmate in an inspiring if overly optimistic school story. Grunge-rock devotee Sam has been trying to avoid the attention of teachers and other students ever since his mom left town two years earlier. Then the equally quiet Luis Cardenas arrives in Sam's English class, and meddlesome Ms. Cassidy seats the two of them together. Rumors fly about Luis: His brother is an infamous gangster, and there is a mean-looking scar on Luis' neck. Sam doesn't see Luis' true colors until Ms. Cassidy announces that the class will have a poetry slam. Luis not only throws himself into creating a poem, he inspires Sam to do the same. The boys' sudden, unmitigated enthusiasm for a school project may be hard to swallow, but there is something infectiously hopeful in Luis' devotion to poetry, as well as in the inspiration Sam takes from old footage of Kurt Cobain. When Luis disappears after a gang fight, Sam, once a loner, teams up with classmates, teachers, neighbors and old friends to find out what has happened. Short, punchy sentences, paragraphs and chapters give the novel's prose a sense of motion, and Luis' poems, interspersed with the narrative, give readers added insight into Luis' character. Unabashedly didactic, but moving nonetheless. (Fiction. 12-16)

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July 1, 2013

Gr 8 Up-Sam Gregory chooses to blend into the woodwork in his 10th-grade classes, following rules that slackers know, including: never be late and never look a teacher in the eye. Anonymity seems like the best option for this budding musician whose messed-up mother ditches him during a visit to Grandpa Bill and Grandma Ginny's. To add insult to injury, their parrot, Gilbert, continues to squawk out, "Good-bye, Sam! Good-bye Sam!" his mother's painful parting cry. At his new school, Ms. Cassidy pairs Sam with the scariest "cholo" in class for a poetry share, and he worries that Luis Cardenas, with his huge jagged neck scar, has no other plans than to pound him into the ground. When Luis invites Sam home to work on the project, an unlikely and tenuous bond forms around the lyrical, yet powerful, words they contribute to the slam. On performance day, Luis fails to show and sends only a recording of his part, fueling a rumor he was suspended for being involved in a gang fight. Sam finds strength in the quality of their work to go it alone and ultimately learns the painful secret his friend has kept from him, and everyone. This boy-centric debut novel references songs and guitarists such as Kurt Cobain, and Luis's raps are rife with themes of anger and life's hardships. Adult characters are largely supportive and positive; raw language is integral to the work. A poignant and powerful novel of friendship and courage.-Vicki Reutter, Cazenovia High School, NY

Copyright 2013 School Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

August 1, 2013
Grades 8-11 After Sam leaves his mother's home in Aberdeen, Washingtonboyhood home of Nirvanafor his grandparents' home in Des Moines, the move hits him hard, and he retreats into his hoodie. At his new high school, he arms himself with strict rules of nonengagement guaranteed to combat the most well-intentioned teachers and administrators. Sam's strategy succeeds until seemingly bad-news Luis Crdenas enters his life and all his classes. An unlikely relationship develops when the most zealous of English teachers dubs the silent classmates Luisandsam and pairs them in the slam event that will conclude the poetry unit. Luis' clandestine and sensitive poetry, finger pecked on an old typewriter, intersperses short bursts of chapters. While Flores-Scott targets reluctant readers at their point of entry with accessible language, style, and plot, it is the transcending heartbreak of Sam and Luis' deepening friendship that beckons every reader to heed his or her own inner voice.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2013, American Library Association.)

January 1, 2014
Content to blend into the background, Sam's world is upset when he's roped into co-writing a slam poem with Luis, an intimidating Latino student. When Sam starts taking the project seriously, he begins to confront his own issues and open up. A familiar premise is made into a poignant friendship story, enhanced by Luis's private poems interspersed between chapters.

(Copyright 2014 by The Horn Book, Incorporated, Boston. All rights reserved.)