Adam Canfield of the Slash

by Michael Winerip

Book Overview

"Between laughs, readers will be prompted to think -- about what constitutes truth, how the media massages it, and the importance of ethics, fairness, and getting the facts right." -- Publishers Weekly (starred review)

Adam Canfield has to be the most overprogrammed middle-school student in America. So when super-organized Jennifer coaxes him to be coeditor of their school newspaper, The Slash, he wonders if he's made a...

• Format: Hardcover
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0763623407
• ISBN13: 9780763623401
• Release Date: March 2005
• Publisher: Candlewick Press (MA)
• Length: 336 Pages
• Weight: 0.95 lbs.
• Dimensions: 1.2" x 5.4" x 7.7"
• Age Range: 8 to 12 years
• Grade Range: Grades 3 to 7

Customer Reviews

Entertained our 3 children for a long car ride--excellent

We had a long car trip planned so I picked up an audio tape of this book for the journey. Our 3 kids--13, 11, and 9--loved it. And my husband and I wouldn't let them listen unless we were there too. The kids laughed and got a sense of what it was to be a journalist. My husband and I (both involved in our local elementary/middle schools) loved the sub plot on testing in the modern era. Excellent for boys and girls and quite a range of ages.

Hearty thumbs up from a teacher

I read this book in 24 hours. I usually don't have time to read novels, but I couldn't put this one down. The characters and situations were so familiar, I felt as though I were right there in the midst of it all. It's a hilarious, poignant story and a fire-tongued critique of the test-obsessed school system and much more. The characters have many subtleties, and the wisdom of the book goes far below the surface. I would recommend this for classroom reading!

From a mom's viewpoint

My 13-year-old who rarely enjoys reading could hardly put this book down. This is the equivalent of a rave review! It made him more interested in reporting--and he liked it so much he's asked the whole family to read it!

A Great Book for the Whole Family

I bought Adam Canfield of the Slash with the intention of reading it myself and then passing it on to my two teenage sons. Before I could get started, my 16-year-old grabbed it. When he looked very tired the next day, I asked him about the book. He told me that he stayed up most of the night in order to finish the whole book because he wanted to know what was going to happen at the end. He found it funny, interesting, irreverent and suspenseful. My husband picked it up next. He doesn't usually read books written for kids, but he found this one had a great deal to offer adults. He especially liked the efficacious way the political and race relation themes ran throughout the book. When my husband finished the book I finally got my chance with Adam Canfield. I throughly enjoyed it. There were times when I laughed out loud. There were parts of the book that helped me remember what it was like to be a kid. I was amazed that the author, a "grown-up" man, could write so well about what is actually going on in the minds of his young characters. Finally, my 13 year-old son got to read it. He also loved it. He is the one in our family who is closest to Adam Canfield's age. The book felt very real to him. He told us that he thought that everything that happened in the book could actually happen to him and his friends in real life. If you (or anyone in your family) want to read a funny, fabulous, insightful book about school age kids, who happen to be hard-working investigative reporters, then you should order this book today. You will not be dissapointed.

Chasing the Truth

Michael Winerip's wonderful and exciting story about a middle school-age reporter who is learning about his school, his friends, his town and himself is fun, smart, full of energy and thrills but without pretension or predicability. There are scenes that are laugh out loud funny, some hilarious characters who ring all too true, and issues about right and wrong, good and bad, that are really important. Just as good: even the bad guys have real personalities. Subtle social differences dictated by education, money, race and personal history unfold at an unforced pace. Among other things, readers will understand, reading "Adam Canfiled of the Slash," just why it is that a free press, when it is free, is so exciting, why it can make a great a positive difference in society, and why a true democracy needs it. Even better, readers will see that even kids can make a difference. Fortunately, Winerip never lets his large themes overwhelm or distract from his story, which is fun, engrossing and very satisfying.