Nothing but the Truth: A Documentary Novel
by Avi
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Book Summary Information
Author: AviEdition: Mass Market Paperback
Audio: English (Unknown); English (Original Language); English (Published)
Published: 1993-09-01
ISBN: 038071907X
Number of pages: 213
Publisher: Avon Flare Books
Product features:
- avon classic
Book Reviews of Nothing but the Truth: A Documentary Novel
Book Review: So help you God
Summary: 5 Stars
Let's say you're a well-known children's author who wants to write a book criticizing the one-sided quick response nature of our media saturated society. And let's say that you'd like to show this nature in the form of a boy and the Star Spangled Banner. Now, there are two ways to go about this. The easy way would be to write a book in which a boy refuses to sing the Star Spangled Banner in class and his silent protestation is blown out of proportion and becomes a major national scandal. There are plenty o' books with this plot, or some mild variation. And while they are all well-intentioned, they're not particularly original. The more difficult method would be the one offered here by Avi. In this book you have a boy who is supposedly punished for singing the national anthem and his self-centered approach to this punishment ruins a whole lotta lives, including his own. Heard that story before? You will.
Philip Malloy is just your typical high school jerk. He goofs around, wants to be on the track team, and generally is as normal a guy as you could wish for. Of course, Phil's not exactly tops in his English class. In a clash of personalities, Philip tries to be lighthearted and silly when in the presence of Miss Narwin. Miss Narwin, on the other hand, is a truly dedicated teacher who tries as hard as she can to get her kids interested and serious in the great works of English literature. When Philip is disruptive and silly, she reacts strongly, trying to reach him. This all comes to a head when Miss Narwin is made Philip's homeroom teacher and asks him to remain silent (as per the school rules) during the daily playing of the Star Spangled Banner. Philip, who cannot try out for the track team due to his poor English grades, ups the ante by singing and continues to badger Miss Narwin until he finally ends up with a suspension. And all of this would remain in the closed sphere of a single public high school, were it not for the fact that the idea of a boy being suspended, "for singing the national anthem", is just the kind of hot topic the pundits love to play with. In the end, no one could predict the insanity that would result from a stupid boy just acting out.
The danger with a book like this is that it would be all too easy to strain credulity. I mean, the idea that America at large would get wrapped up in a debate as to whether or not a boy was "allowed" to sing the national anthem is a bit grandiose. Then again, high school has always been the symbolic battlefield, both in art and life, where real world conflicts are played on. Better still, Avi knows just exactly how to pull the strings on this puppy. Why does Phil's father push him to continue to act out in class? Because Mr. Malloy is being hounded at work and is feeling powerless personally (something he doesn't want Phil to feel). Why does the neighbor of the Malloys take such an interest in this topic? Because he's running for the school board and needs a hot button topic like this one to get elected. For every burst of press this story gets, Avi has a perfectly good reason for it in his back pocket. And I loved the characters in this story and how they reacted. If nothing else, Avi has a wonderful feel for the weaknesses of human beings. His villains are simply the kinds of people who hear the story they want to hear and proceed with willful ignorance, doing everything they can to avoid listening to the other side. I loved that the man running for the school board used Phil's act as a way to say that the school didn't need to receive additional funding for new computers since they weren't even patriotic. Beautiful.
The book is written in an engaging style as well. Part script, part play, the book's like a mature (and remarkably better written) version of "Regarding the Fountain" or (similarly well-written) Walter Dean Myers's, "Monster". It's as if you're reading a collection of transcripts and recorded diary entries meticulously pieced together by an interested unknown party. The result is a book that's as interesting to look through as it is to read.
"Nothing But the Truth" has one last element in its favor. It presents the number one best kicker of a last line ever put in a children or teen novel. Read the book and see if you agree with me. Read the book and see if you disagree with me. For crying out loud, just read the friggin' book. It'll a wonderful piece of subversive literature that every kid should be familiar with. Sweet sedition light.
Summary of Nothing but the Truth: A Documentary Novel
Patriotism or practical joke?
Harrison, NH -- Ninth-grade student Philip Malloy was suspended from school for singing along to The Star-Spangled Banner in his homeroom, causing what his teacher, Margaret Narwin, called "a disturbance." But was he standing up for his patriotic ideals, only to be squelched by the school system? Was Ms. Narwin simply trying to be a good teacher? Or could it all be just a misunderstanding gone bad -- very bad? What is the truth here? Can it ever be known?
Heroism, hoax, or mistake, what happened at Harrison High changes everything for everyone in ways no one -- least of all Philip -- could have ever predicted.
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