The Misfits

The Misfits
Written by: James Howe

If I were to rate this book I would give it 3 out of 5 stars.  I realize that this 'rating' is more than likely different than the opinions of my classmates.  My disliking, for lack of a better word, of the book may have been due to circumstances not directly dealing with the book itself (such as where I was reading as well as the time of day I was reading it at), however, regardless this book was unable to capture or hold my attention for longer than a chapter.  In fact, it often took a lot of inner conversation and courage on my part in order for me to successfully complete an entire chapter without setting the book down due to boredom.

The plot and moral of the story is a positive and effective one, however, I found it all to move way too slowly.  I felt as though I was reading through quicksand, pushing aside words one by one.  Perhaps this is due to the world we all live in now... for example if it takes my computer longer than 3-4 seconds to download a webpage, I tend to get annoyed and frustrated.  We, although perhaps I am speaking for just myself, tend to want to experience a quick moving pace in just about everything we do.  Another factor that may affect my opinion on this book is that my age, 22 years old, is not the attended age range for this book.  In fact I was informed that this story is commonly read by upper elementary students.  If I were a 4th or 5th grader reading this I may have a completely different view, and understandably so.  

I did enjoy reading this book from a first person point of view.  This perspective allows the story to seem much more personal and real.  You feel as though you have been placed in a different pair of shoes.  Students will benefit from this as well.  I was told in my Adolescent Literature course that students have an easier time connecting with the main character if they are able to see through their eyes.  Furthermore, I often found the situations in the book heart-wrenching.  I strongly dislike seeing other people being teased, hurt, bullied, etc. and I know first hand how it feels.  With saying that, I think it's important for students to understand and experience that feeling and this book may be a good way of accomplishging that.