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Cruisers #1
The Cruisers
Eighth grade is hard enough, but when you're a Cruiser, you're really put to the test. The launch of a new middle-grade series from bestselling award-winner Walter Dean Myers.
Zander and his friends, Kambui, LaShonda, and Bobbi start their own newspaper, The Cruiser, as a means for speaking out, keeping the peace, and expressing what they believe. When the school launches a mock Civil War, Zander and his friends are forced to consider the true meaning of democracy and what it costs to stand up for a cause. The result is nothing they could have expected, and everything they could have hoped for.
Zander and his friends, Kambui, LaShonda, and Bobbi start their own newspaper, The Cruiser, as a means for speaking out, keeping the peace, and expressing what they believe. When the school launches a mock Civil War, Zander and his friends are forced to consider the true meaning of democracy and what it costs to stand up for a cause. The result is nothing they could have expected, and everything they could have hoped for.
144 pages, Paperback
Published July 1, 2011
44 people are currently reading
457 people want to read
About the author
Walter Dean Myers
232 books1,183 followerspseudonyms:
Stacie Williams
Stacie Johnson
Walter Dean Myers was born on August 12, 1937 in Martinsburg, West Virginia but moved to Harlem with his foster parents at age three. He was brought up and went to public school there. He attended Stuyvesant High School until the age of seventeen when he joined the army.
After serving four years in the army, he worked at various jobs and earned a BA from Empire State College. He wrote full time after 1977.
Walter wrote from childhood, first finding success in 1969 when he won the Council on Interracial Books for Children contest, which resulted in the publication of his first book for children, Where Does the Day Go?, by Parent's Magazine Press. He published over seventy books for children and young adults. He received many awards for his work in this field including the Coretta Scott King Award, five times. Two of his books were awarded Newbery Honors. He was awarded the Margaret A. Edwards Award and the Virginia Hamilton Award. For one of his books, Monster, he received the first Michael Printz Award for Young Adult literature awarded by the American Library Association. Monster and Autobiography of My Dead Brother were selected as National Book Award Finalists.
In addition to the publication of his books, Walter contributed to educational and literary publications. He visited schools to speak to children, teachers, librarians, and parents. For three years he led a writing workshop for children in a school in Jersey City, New Jersey.
Walter Dean Myers was married, had three grown children and lived in Jersey City, New Jersey. He died on July 1, 2014, following a brief illness. He was 76 years old.
Stacie Williams
Stacie Johnson
Walter Dean Myers was born on August 12, 1937 in Martinsburg, West Virginia but moved to Harlem with his foster parents at age three. He was brought up and went to public school there. He attended Stuyvesant High School until the age of seventeen when he joined the army.
After serving four years in the army, he worked at various jobs and earned a BA from Empire State College. He wrote full time after 1977.
Walter wrote from childhood, first finding success in 1969 when he won the Council on Interracial Books for Children contest, which resulted in the publication of his first book for children, Where Does the Day Go?, by Parent's Magazine Press. He published over seventy books for children and young adults. He received many awards for his work in this field including the Coretta Scott King Award, five times. Two of his books were awarded Newbery Honors. He was awarded the Margaret A. Edwards Award and the Virginia Hamilton Award. For one of his books, Monster, he received the first Michael Printz Award for Young Adult literature awarded by the American Library Association. Monster and Autobiography of My Dead Brother were selected as National Book Award Finalists.
In addition to the publication of his books, Walter contributed to educational and literary publications. He visited schools to speak to children, teachers, librarians, and parents. For three years he led a writing workshop for children in a school in Jersey City, New Jersey.
Walter Dean Myers was married, had three grown children and lived in Jersey City, New Jersey. He died on July 1, 2014, following a brief illness. He was 76 years old.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 157 reviews
February 3, 2016
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The first picture is meant to represent Kambui. He is a very bipolar person, because he often switches on a dime from being Zander’s best friend to becoming a brutal, bloodthirsty fighter. Since the book is told from Zander’s point of view, Kambui is described as a good, reliable friend who is always there for Zander. However, if you judge him completely based on his actions, and ignore Zander’s subjectivity, Kambui is actually quite a terrible person. He is not only verbally rude to Alvin and the soccer players, but also to Zander himself. Even though Zander justifies his friend’s rudeness within the book, it still is quite clear that Kambui isn’t the friend that the author makes him out to be. The artwork therefore shows the two halves of one face. One is a friendly and kind person with a smile. The other is a sad, angry face with tears. This represents how the book wants us to see Kambui, versus how Kambui really is. Because my theme is “what appears to be right, may not be right; and what appears to be wrong, may not be wrong”, it shows how wrong his actions are, as well as how right they are. In the book, his actions are justified by Zander’s point of view, which is represented by the picture of two friends at the top. However, in the view of most other people, his actions are wrong, as represented by two people fighting at the bottom.
The second picture is meant to reflect Zander’s personality. Throughout the plot of “The Cruisers”, Zander is a kind, polite and lovely person. He is always there for his friends, he respects his teachers (even Mr. Culpepper), and is a supportive son to his mother. However, Zander undergoes a massive character change whenever his father is involved with the plot. Zander hates his father greatly, and constantly hurts his father mentally and verbally. Whenever Zander’s father is related to the plot, Zander changes into a completely different person, and transforms from a wonderful person into a hateful, cruel person who takes every chance to hurt his father. Since Zander is the main character, we automatically assume that he has a perfectly good reason to hate his father. However, this is not the case, because Zander shows no sign of mental discomfort following his parents' divorce. Curiously, the only reason that Zander is so terrible to his father is because he thinks that his father ‘tries too hard’. Unfortunately, Zander does not see that this is because his father is trying to be a good parent. Interestingly, his mother approves these actions and even encourages them to the point in which she participates in the crime. Even though his mother and his father are ‘friends’ and the break-up was mutual, she still joins Zander in the constant bullying of his father. This relates to my theme, which is “what appears to be right, may not be right; and what appears to be wrong, may not be wrong”. In Zander and his mother’s opinion, these constant verbal and mental attacks on his father are not only justifiable, but to be encouraged. The artwork shows a young man split into two different faces. The left represents Zander when the plot has nothing to do with his father. He is kind, nice and helpful. The right side represents Zander when his father is involved with the plot, in which he becomes rude and hurtful. It fits in well with my theme, because throughout the whole book, Zander never questions the way he treats his dad.
The third picture was created to reflect the thought process of Alvin and his soccer team. Since they were the clear antagonists for the book, Alvin and his crew were supporting the enslavement of the negro race. This is similar to the actual Civil War, where the confederates actually believed in the enslavement of the negro race. This illustrates very clearly that in Alvin’s opinion and the Confederates’ opinion, slavery was justifiable. Since my theme is “what appears to be right, may not be right; and what appears to be wrong, may not be wrong”, Alvin and his crew are a good example, because they believed in slavery, which most people believe is wrong. The artwork created to represent Alvin shows a bunch of happy people leaping straight off a cliff and falling toward hell. However, these people have their hands up and chests out, which implies that they are happy, suggesting that they are willing to jump. This means that in their opinion, the place that they are jumping to is someplace nice. However, most people see hell, with fire and stone everywhere, which would certainly promise certain death. This represents my theme because most opinions think that jumping towards hell is wrong, but to the people in the picture, it is perfectly fine.
The last picture is meant to represent Mr. Culpepper. He is not the antagonist of the story, but he is definitely not an ally of the protagonists. Throughout the book, Mr. Culpepper has been determined to remove Zander and his friends from the school. This is because he felt that they were the reason that the school was failing. Both Mr. Culpepper and Zander’s friends have solid arguments on their point of view. Mr. Culpepper believes that removing them from Da Vinci school, would improve the school's environment, and create a better school. Zander and his friends just believe that they have the right to an education, and they can benefit the school as well as any other student. The artwork created to represent this is a railroad with different colored tracks. Since my theme is “what appears to be right, may not be right; and what appears to be wrong, may not be wrong”, the artwork demonstrates the different opinions and paths. Each of them have their benefits and sacrifices, but they are all determined by an opinion. In conclusion, one of the paths could seem like a wrong path, but in someone else’s eyes, it is the right path.
The first picture is meant to represent Kambui. He is a very bipolar person, because he often switches on a dime from being Zander’s best friend to becoming a brutal, bloodthirsty fighter. Since the book is told from Zander’s point of view, Kambui is described as a good, reliable friend who is always there for Zander. However, if you judge him completely based on his actions, and ignore Zander’s subjectivity, Kambui is actually quite a terrible person. He is not only verbally rude to Alvin and the soccer players, but also to Zander himself. Even though Zander justifies his friend’s rudeness within the book, it still is quite clear that Kambui isn’t the friend that the author makes him out to be. The artwork therefore shows the two halves of one face. One is a friendly and kind person with a smile. The other is a sad, angry face with tears. This represents how the book wants us to see Kambui, versus how Kambui really is. Because my theme is “what appears to be right, may not be right; and what appears to be wrong, may not be wrong”, it shows how wrong his actions are, as well as how right they are. In the book, his actions are justified by Zander’s point of view, which is represented by the picture of two friends at the top. However, in the view of most other people, his actions are wrong, as represented by two people fighting at the bottom.
The second picture is meant to reflect Zander’s personality. Throughout the plot of “The Cruisers”, Zander is a kind, polite and lovely person. He is always there for his friends, he respects his teachers (even Mr. Culpepper), and is a supportive son to his mother. However, Zander undergoes a massive character change whenever his father is involved with the plot. Zander hates his father greatly, and constantly hurts his father mentally and verbally. Whenever Zander’s father is related to the plot, Zander changes into a completely different person, and transforms from a wonderful person into a hateful, cruel person who takes every chance to hurt his father. Since Zander is the main character, we automatically assume that he has a perfectly good reason to hate his father. However, this is not the case, because Zander shows no sign of mental discomfort following his parents' divorce. Curiously, the only reason that Zander is so terrible to his father is because he thinks that his father ‘tries too hard’. Unfortunately, Zander does not see that this is because his father is trying to be a good parent. Interestingly, his mother approves these actions and even encourages them to the point in which she participates in the crime. Even though his mother and his father are ‘friends’ and the break-up was mutual, she still joins Zander in the constant bullying of his father. This relates to my theme, which is “what appears to be right, may not be right; and what appears to be wrong, may not be wrong”. In Zander and his mother’s opinion, these constant verbal and mental attacks on his father are not only justifiable, but to be encouraged. The artwork shows a young man split into two different faces. The left represents Zander when the plot has nothing to do with his father. He is kind, nice and helpful. The right side represents Zander when his father is involved with the plot, in which he becomes rude and hurtful. It fits in well with my theme, because throughout the whole book, Zander never questions the way he treats his dad.
The third picture was created to reflect the thought process of Alvin and his soccer team. Since they were the clear antagonists for the book, Alvin and his crew were supporting the enslavement of the negro race. This is similar to the actual Civil War, where the confederates actually believed in the enslavement of the negro race. This illustrates very clearly that in Alvin’s opinion and the Confederates’ opinion, slavery was justifiable. Since my theme is “what appears to be right, may not be right; and what appears to be wrong, may not be wrong”, Alvin and his crew are a good example, because they believed in slavery, which most people believe is wrong. The artwork created to represent Alvin shows a bunch of happy people leaping straight off a cliff and falling toward hell. However, these people have their hands up and chests out, which implies that they are happy, suggesting that they are willing to jump. This means that in their opinion, the place that they are jumping to is someplace nice. However, most people see hell, with fire and stone everywhere, which would certainly promise certain death. This represents my theme because most opinions think that jumping towards hell is wrong, but to the people in the picture, it is perfectly fine.
The last picture is meant to represent Mr. Culpepper. He is not the antagonist of the story, but he is definitely not an ally of the protagonists. Throughout the book, Mr. Culpepper has been determined to remove Zander and his friends from the school. This is because he felt that they were the reason that the school was failing. Both Mr. Culpepper and Zander’s friends have solid arguments on their point of view. Mr. Culpepper believes that removing them from Da Vinci school, would improve the school's environment, and create a better school. Zander and his friends just believe that they have the right to an education, and they can benefit the school as well as any other student. The artwork created to represent this is a railroad with different colored tracks. Since my theme is “what appears to be right, may not be right; and what appears to be wrong, may not be wrong”, the artwork demonstrates the different opinions and paths. Each of them have their benefits and sacrifices, but they are all determined by an opinion. In conclusion, one of the paths could seem like a wrong path, but in someone else’s eyes, it is the right path.
August 23, 2024
p.11 "Everybody thinks he has two voices, one for television and one that uses the rest of the time. He doesn't. Whenever he talks like he's announcing his life and any moment he's going to break out with a weather forecast."
p.111 "Sometimes even the threat of truth is useful."
p.119 "People who should be taking a stand won't budge until they're pushed into it."
p.111 "Sometimes even the threat of truth is useful."
p.119 "People who should be taking a stand won't budge until they're pushed into it."
Read
March 19, 2021This book told me about hard work and that you need to fight for stuff you believe in. Like in the book Alexander was fighting against the boys in his school that were being racist. Overall, this is a very good book and I would recommend it to anyone.
January 13, 2011
While it is nice to see Walter Dean Myers writing for young readers about significant issues, this particular book (the first in a new series) was forgettable. Eighth-graders at a gifted school in Harlem are learning about the American civil war. In a mock re-enactment the students are divided into Union and Confederate sympathizers, with “The Cruisers” assigned to keep the peace. Unfortunately the characters lacked any development. While the peacekeepers bonded over their failing grades and their joint endeavor to produce the school’s alternative newspaper The Cruiser, the reader is never really invested in them. Tensions arise after the Sons of the Confederacy write an inflammatory article taking a pro-slavery stance in the school’s official newspaper. The Cruisers respond by planning a demonstration. Unfortunately the book comes off nothing more than a heavy-handed discussion starter.
June 2, 2017
The book 'The Cruisers' is a good example of friendship, discrimination, and issues in the real world and how we help solve those issues. The theme of The Cruisers is that you should not judge people no matter what their skin color is. My favorite character in the book is LaShonda because she has that careless attitude. LaShonda knows how to stand her ground. Her articles for the school are powerful too.
I connected to the main characters in this book. Since it is about discrimination, I understood how the characters felt throughout the whole situation. I haven't really been discriminated against because it's not much of an issue for white people, but I've seen black people in my school get discriminated against and get made fun of for no reason. I've seen Hispanics get discriminated against too and I always feel bad for them. I really liked this book! If you like books about friendship, and issues in the real world, you should read The Cruisers.
I connected to the main characters in this book. Since it is about discrimination, I understood how the characters felt throughout the whole situation. I haven't really been discriminated against because it's not much of an issue for white people, but I've seen black people in my school get discriminated against and get made fun of for no reason. I've seen Hispanics get discriminated against too and I always feel bad for them. I really liked this book! If you like books about friendship, and issues in the real world, you should read The Cruisers.
February 23, 2022
The book "The Cruisers" is about how Zander Scott is in trouble with his friends Kambui, Lashonda, and Bobbi. Given the fact that they attend DaVinci, one of Harlem's best schools, their grades are dropping, and Mr. Culpepper, the assistant principal, and Chief Executioner is preparing to expel them. That's when Zander came up with the idea for "the cruiser," an alternative school newspaper.
This book was really interesting and I will definitely consider reading the other books in the series.
This book was really interesting and I will definitely consider reading the other books in the series.
February 18, 2018
I love how the book covered real issues, one social and one personal to Zander, the protagonist. The social issue was freedom of speech versus racial sensitivity. Through the characters, Myers showed different attitudes towards the issue and various ways that people often handle or talk about handling it. I really admired the non-violent way that Zander addressed what was occurring in his school. Zander's personal problem was his father threatening to take his mother to court for custody of him. Myers ended the book very well. The conclusion satisfied my need to know how Zander resolved his problems, but still showed that the solutions had not been simple, and that the problems might arise again.
September 6, 2013
This book is really good so far! There are two groups called The Sons Of Confederacy, and The Cruisers. The Cruisers are peacemakers, and the Sons Of Confederacy are just trouble makers. There are two sides taking place in this book. You're either a Southerner, or a Northerner.
April 19, 2015
Read in 2012
February 3, 2016
This is my playlist of all the songs referenced in the following Review.
https://open.spotify.com/user/serenal...
The song “Does It Really Matter?” can’t be found on Spotify. (Not on my Playlist) However, you can find it here:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Hgdkc...
Songs can represent many themes, events, issues and many other things. In the book I read called “The Cruisers,” by Walter Dean Myer, two of the main theme is racism and Civil War. I have found ten songs with connections to the book I read. This book is about four African American eight graders, Zander, LaShonda, Kambui and Bobbi at DaVinci, one of the gifted and talented schools in Harlem. The four students are called the Cruisers and in the viewpoint of the assistant principal, Mr. Culpepper, the Cruisers have not been living up to their full potential. Therefore, the leader of the Cruisers, Zander comes up with the idea to start another school paper called The Cruiser. However, as a result of their failing grades, when the Civil War project comes up, they are responsible for being the peacekeepers between student groups representing both the Union and the Confederacy, and preventing the war.
The first song I choose to represent racism (…an end to it) is a song called “People Are People” by a Band named Depeche Mode. Martin Gore (the writer of this song) composed lyrics to convey a message that people shouldn't judge one another and asks that humans put an end to superficial differences and unjustified violence. Not only does he talk about superficial differences and unjustified violence, he also touches upon racial discrimination, homophobia, and religious intolerance. This song really relates to the whole book, and what I believe the main message the author was trying to inform. All through out the book, you can see racial discrimination, especially in Alvin’s article in the beginning of the book and the shunning the white kids gave the african americans.
The second song I choose to represent is one of Billie Holiday’s most iconic songs, “Strange Fruit” by Billie Holiday. This song is a haunting protest against the inhumanity of racism, the message I believe that the author was trying to inform us about. Not only is the song a protest against racism, it specifically specifies the lynching of African Americans and how inhumane it is in the following lyrics. (Lyrics after this paragraph…) This song relates to the book because of the violence towards other students who were different color then themselves (the main characters).
Southern trees bear a strange fruit,
Blood on the leaves and blood at the root,
Black body swinging in the Southern breeze,
Strange fruit hanging from the poplar trees.
Pastoral scene of the gallant South,
The bulging eyes and the twisted mouth,
Scent of magnolia sweet and fresh,
And the sudden smell of burning flesh!
The third song I choose to represent is by the American all-female group, En Vogue, called “Free Your Mind.” This song was released because of the Los Angeles Rodney King riots in 1992. A black Los Angeles resident, King who was beaten by batons and tasered, by four white Los Angeles police officers. A bystander recorded this incident from a distance, the news spread and racial tension sparked a massive wave of riots, arson, and general violence. This shows the racist violence, which was also shown in the book…as a mentioned before. (For example, the plots of violence, trying to beat people up, violence through words and even “auctioning” a classmate.) This song is also about opening one's mind by challenging stereotypes, and it shows in the following lyrics. The following lyrics connects with how in the end, the characters “open” their minds and think about others…sort of.
Oh now attitude, why even bother,
I can't change your mind,
You can't change my color,
Free your mind and the rest will follow.
The fourth song I choose to represent Civil war and racism is the song “I wish I was in Dixie,” or “Dixie’s Land” as well as many other names. This song is by Daniel Decatur Emmett, and it is now considered as the unofficial national anthem of the Confederate states and a popular American folk song. Back in 1861, when the Civil War “came,” this song reinforced and strengthened southern white identity. For example, some lines in the song such as “In Dixie land I’ll take my stand, live and die in Dixie,” talks about the belligerence of southern sentiment in the 1850s and symbolizes white southern opposition ever after, also including defiance of the civil rights movement in the 1950s and 1960s. I choose this song because in the book, “The Cruisers,” it includes lots of using words to show who’s stronger, such as the article that Alvin wrote at the beginning of the book.
“It's black, it's white; it's tough for you to get by…” This is the fifth song, called “Black or White,” by Michael Jackson, illustrating the idea or racism and how it shouldn't matter what color your skin is, or what culture, ethnicity or race is. We are all technically the same. The world should be about equality and not about judging people by how they look. This song is a superb connection to the book as the book shows high tension during the process of the school project, just because of the different races in different groups.
“Beat me, hate me; you can never break me; will me, thrill me; you can never kill me; jew me, sue me; everybody do me; kick me, kike me; don’t you black or white me…” This song is the sixth song to represent racism, “They Don’t Care About Us,” by the King of Pop, Michael Jackson. This song not only discusses racism between back and white but all races. As you can see, in his song, he used some words that he had to apologize for and were masked by sound effects as the words he used were highly racist. The two words that caused the most “flare” were the lyrics “jew me” and “kike me.” This song and the “blacking” is like how the Cruisers wanted to take Alvin’s article of the school newspaper as it involved racist opinions that could/had caused tension.
The seventh song is preformed by War, called “Why Can't We Be Friends,” this song is about interracial sympathy and compassion. This song is similar to “The Cruisers” because in the book, the different groups, different races are more enemies then friends, with no sympathy nor compassion, just because of the different groups and races.
The color the color,
The color of your skin don't matter to me,
As long as, as long as,
As long as we can live in harmony.
"Until the philosophy which holds one race superior; and another inferior; is finally and permanently discredited and abandoned; everywhere is war.” This song is by Bob Marley, named War and it is the eight song I picked to represent racial inequality. This song is about ways in which racial inequality can lead to war. In the case of relating to the book, the racial inequality has led to their own “Civil War” (between the students).
The ninth song is by Live, called “The Beauty of Gray.” This song is about examining one's racial prejudices, as shown in the following lyrics. "This is not a black and white world; to be alive; I say that the colors must swirl; and I believe; that maybe today; we will all get to appreciate; the beauty of gray.” This song clearly shows how there is a preconceived opinion in our world together, separating us and showing us the downsides of racial inequality.
"Free at last, we should be free at last; not prisoners of the past, divided by races. Kind of strange, though we're all 'bout the same; somehow these lines remain, we stay in our places. And what does the color of the skin; have to do with the person within.” This last song is about making a difference for racial equity, by Up With People, called “Does It Really Matter?” Making a difference on racial equity DOES matter, being unfair just because of what you look like is just…absurd. Everyone is/was meant to be different, the only similarity that we have, is that we are all different. This song doesn’t directly relate to the book “The Cruisers” however, this concept, on how racial equity is important is a message that was meant to be known through reading this book, the message that everyone was meant to be different.
If I have learned one thing from all these songs is that, we learn from our mistakes and that the past is the past, we can’t change it. However, we can change the future. If we learn from “our” mistakes (…more like our ancestor’s mistakes), we can avoid a re-enact of all the racial equity and violence. Racism is now a part of our history, and the mistakes we have made, there is nothing we can do to fix what we have done, but we can fix what we are doing now. Reading “The Cruisers” and finding all these songs have helped me realize this crucial piece of information. Racism isn't born, it's taught.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
November 25, 2022
This young adult novel is for a young group - like 3rd-6th grades. I found the whole premise of this book a little unbelievable and maybe offensive. Set at the DaVinci School for Gifted and Talented in Harlem, the entire school is caught up in a study of the Civil War. That is not mentioned too much, except the Assistant Principal, Mr. Culpepper, has launched an experiment to actually act out the discrimination of those days. So, students in the school feel empowered to discriminate against, disempower, insult Black students. Zander and his friends have started an alterntive newspaper at the school, and do their best to counter this project. They learn that their words have power to keep peace, and also to call others to action. There is one student bully and his friends who go overboard with the project, like they were looking for an opportunity to voice their racist beliefs. This character is actually hard to believe. In the end, things are resolved.
August 29, 2018
This story about Zander Scott at DaVinci Academy in Harlem is interesting, and I enjoyed this author's views about middle school issues. While I did not make a connection with the characters nor the setting, I continued reading because I wanted to see how the protagonist dealt with his conflict.
Zander likes his school, but he is struggling with his grades because of his parent's divorce. He lives with his mom in Harlem, and is very happy with this arrangement. But his dad lives in Seattle and wants Zander to move in with him and his new wife. In addition to this conflict, he works on the school newspaper and there is tension about racial issues at his school. He wants to take a stand, but fears he will be suspended from school.
I feel this book has a limited audience, and would not recommend it for my middle school students because they would not relate to these issues.
Zander likes his school, but he is struggling with his grades because of his parent's divorce. He lives with his mom in Harlem, and is very happy with this arrangement. But his dad lives in Seattle and wants Zander to move in with him and his new wife. In addition to this conflict, he works on the school newspaper and there is tension about racial issues at his school. He wants to take a stand, but fears he will be suspended from school.
I feel this book has a limited audience, and would not recommend it for my middle school students because they would not relate to these issues.
August 29, 2018
I really wanted to like this book more but I felt there were too many things that got in the way. Perhaps it was because it was too brief to develop the characters or plot.
Some of my questions: Why were the adult figures at the school so wishy-washy? How was this "assignment" supposed to help the students develop a better sense of responsibility towards their academic performance? Why did they not set parameters for behavior, or monitor the "experiment"? Zander's mom made me grit my teeth. She behaved like an overgrown kid feeding into Zander's lack of respect and therefore connection with his father.
I liked Zander and the solution he came up with. The concept is thought provoking and would certainly get kids talking.
Some of my questions: Why were the adult figures at the school so wishy-washy? How was this "assignment" supposed to help the students develop a better sense of responsibility towards their academic performance? Why did they not set parameters for behavior, or monitor the "experiment"? Zander's mom made me grit my teeth. She behaved like an overgrown kid feeding into Zander's lack of respect and therefore connection with his father.
I liked Zander and the solution he came up with. The concept is thought provoking and would certainly get kids talking.
May 9, 2023
I thought the book was good and exciting. When I was reading the first two chapters I thought the book was boring. If the book had bigger plot twists and more detail to it then the book would have been my number three top-best books. The middle of the book and the end got more exciting from there on. I think the book could have been a little more exciting by having plot twists to it. I liked to read books but, they have to be interesting and have a lot of detail and plots. The book had a plot but, the plot wasn't a huge dramatic plot twist. The book was overall a good book to read. I'm not going to exaggerate the book being really bad but I like to be specific. I recommend this book if you like to read novels and long stories.
February 15, 2019
I thought this was an alright book, but not my favorite. It is a story of a group of students, Zander, Kambui, LaShonda, and Bobbi, that go to a gifted and talented school in Harlem. They have created an alternative school newspaper to voice their opinions. When their school starts studying the Civil War and slavery they are minority in their predominate white school. Tension arises and they learn what it means to stand up for a cause and what they believe.
April 5, 2025
It’s one of the shorter novels in the Read180 class library, so I thought it might be one my students would like. I’m not sure why this book was chosen for struggling readers. Yes, it is short and that does make it accessible. However, it was confusing. There were too many characters and even I was mixing up who was who. It was also written in dialect, which again, is confusing for struggling readers. I would not recommend to struggling readers or anyone else.
December 13, 2017
This book follows four teenage students as rhey investigate why one of their classmates was buying drugs. This is a story about what it's like to be a misfit in school and is a good book about friendship. This book would be good for middle school students and for students that feel like they don't belong.
June 26, 2020
This book was focused on important issues and written for kids, which I think is good. I don’t think the dialogue in the book was always natural and I felt like the ending was pretty rushed, but I actually liked the story. I don’t think the Cruisers did a fantastic job keeping the peace. They were too aggressive, but they did end up saving the day.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
July 25, 2017
Very inspirational and educational in various ways! I really enjoyed this book! I recommend this book to the young ones with a vivid imagination and the lesson I pulled from this book is: It's never to late to make a change.
April 17, 2022
Short, witty, interesting conflict on how slavery and the moral question of enslavement is decentered in teaching about the Civil War. Also references to MLK Memphis workers protest and Frederick Douglass.
June 30, 2018
Review by C.M. : "A good book with some funny parts. At first a little hard to get into."
January 29, 2021
Didn't enjoy the struggle.
November 15, 2023
2.5; exposition felt lacking, so parts further on were unclear
December 19, 2016
This review of the entire Cruisers series was originally written in the summer of 2013.
Recently, my library received a brand-new copy of the fourth Cruisers book, Oh Snap! Though I have always noticed the books as I shelve them, I had never taken the time to read one. I also noticed - and confirmed in the catalog - that none of the titles in the series were really circulating that much. (And not just at my branch - system-wide!) I decided right then to take all four books home for the weekend and read them, hoping to discover why they might not circulate.
The four books in the series published to date are: The Cruisers, Checkmate, A Star is Born, and Oh, Snap! Each book focuses on situations encountered by a group of friends - Zander, Kambui, LaShonda, and Bobbi - at a talented and gifted middle school in Harlem. They call themselves The Cruisers, because they prefer to cruise through school rather than over-achieve, and they also publish a newspaper which serves as a supposedly more truthful alternative to their school’s official paper. In the first book, things get heated when the eighth grade class is challenged to act out the hostilities between whites and blacks that were experienced during slavery. Checkmate focuses on a classmate’s drug problem, which is brought about by the pressures of his chess team. In A Star is Born, LaShonda is pleased to receive a scholarship until she realizes accepting it might mean living in a separate group home from her brother, who has autism. Finally, in Oh Snap!, the friends struggle to understand freedom of expression when they reveal inside information about a recent crime to a school newspaper in England.
There are a lot of wonderful things to say about these books. The writing is excellent, and the subject matter is different from a lot of middle grade novels. These books focus intently on things that other books don’t even consider, and the characters grapple with issues which have true significance in the real world. The Cruisers themselves as well as supporting characters are easy to distinguish from each other, and the reader easily gains a sense of the school community as a whole. Even the adult characters feel authentic, especially the ones whose actions are frequently less than honorable. The newspaper articles that appear between chapters provide a lot of in-character commentary on the events of each book, and they give the reader a strong sense of each character’s voice and thoughts on the various issues presented by each story.
Still, despite the strengths of the series, there are some significant barriers that might be keeping the target audience away.
Until I read them and got a sense of the content, I thought these were beginning chapter books. The books are the same size as books in series like Just Grace and Calvin Coconut, and they have the same large font and short chapters as many of the chapter books I have read. Even the cartoonish covers made me think these books were geared toward a much younger audience than the middle schoolers I think are the actual target age range.
I also think the characters are difficult to relate to. The Cruisers are certainly interesting, but they represent a very specific population - underachieving gifted kids at a middle school in Harlem. I think it’s difficult for most readers to relate to such a specific demographic. Most kids don’t live in Harlem. Most kids don’t attend a school for the gifted and talented. Many gifted and talented students are overachievers, rather than “cruisers.” While kids in urban environments might deal with many of the issues handled by the characters, I could see the “gifted and talented” side of the book turning them off before they even got into the meat of the story. I think kids should be open to reading about characters who are different from themselves, but I also think many young readers - especially reluctant ones - are more easily hooked when they can see themselves in a story.
After I returned all four books to the library, I displayed them together near the new books, and not long after, an adult came to the desk asking about them, so I was pleased to see someone else reading them, even if it wasn’t a kid. Still, I think kids can be sold on these books with a little prompting from adults in their lives. I think the first book would make excellent assigned reading for a seventh or eighth grade class studying slavery and civil rights. The others might seem more interesting to kids once they realize the characters are fourteen, not seven, and that the books are more than just basic school stories. I also think the series fulfills a need for books for middle school boys who read below grade level. It’s nice to have something to offer kids that engages their minds with real issues, even if they’re not yet fully fluent readers.
Recently, my library received a brand-new copy of the fourth Cruisers book, Oh Snap! Though I have always noticed the books as I shelve them, I had never taken the time to read one. I also noticed - and confirmed in the catalog - that none of the titles in the series were really circulating that much. (And not just at my branch - system-wide!) I decided right then to take all four books home for the weekend and read them, hoping to discover why they might not circulate.
The four books in the series published to date are: The Cruisers, Checkmate, A Star is Born, and Oh, Snap! Each book focuses on situations encountered by a group of friends - Zander, Kambui, LaShonda, and Bobbi - at a talented and gifted middle school in Harlem. They call themselves The Cruisers, because they prefer to cruise through school rather than over-achieve, and they also publish a newspaper which serves as a supposedly more truthful alternative to their school’s official paper. In the first book, things get heated when the eighth grade class is challenged to act out the hostilities between whites and blacks that were experienced during slavery. Checkmate focuses on a classmate’s drug problem, which is brought about by the pressures of his chess team. In A Star is Born, LaShonda is pleased to receive a scholarship until she realizes accepting it might mean living in a separate group home from her brother, who has autism. Finally, in Oh Snap!, the friends struggle to understand freedom of expression when they reveal inside information about a recent crime to a school newspaper in England.
There are a lot of wonderful things to say about these books. The writing is excellent, and the subject matter is different from a lot of middle grade novels. These books focus intently on things that other books don’t even consider, and the characters grapple with issues which have true significance in the real world. The Cruisers themselves as well as supporting characters are easy to distinguish from each other, and the reader easily gains a sense of the school community as a whole. Even the adult characters feel authentic, especially the ones whose actions are frequently less than honorable. The newspaper articles that appear between chapters provide a lot of in-character commentary on the events of each book, and they give the reader a strong sense of each character’s voice and thoughts on the various issues presented by each story.
Still, despite the strengths of the series, there are some significant barriers that might be keeping the target audience away.
Until I read them and got a sense of the content, I thought these were beginning chapter books. The books are the same size as books in series like Just Grace and Calvin Coconut, and they have the same large font and short chapters as many of the chapter books I have read. Even the cartoonish covers made me think these books were geared toward a much younger audience than the middle schoolers I think are the actual target age range.
I also think the characters are difficult to relate to. The Cruisers are certainly interesting, but they represent a very specific population - underachieving gifted kids at a middle school in Harlem. I think it’s difficult for most readers to relate to such a specific demographic. Most kids don’t live in Harlem. Most kids don’t attend a school for the gifted and talented. Many gifted and talented students are overachievers, rather than “cruisers.” While kids in urban environments might deal with many of the issues handled by the characters, I could see the “gifted and talented” side of the book turning them off before they even got into the meat of the story. I think kids should be open to reading about characters who are different from themselves, but I also think many young readers - especially reluctant ones - are more easily hooked when they can see themselves in a story.
After I returned all four books to the library, I displayed them together near the new books, and not long after, an adult came to the desk asking about them, so I was pleased to see someone else reading them, even if it wasn’t a kid. Still, I think kids can be sold on these books with a little prompting from adults in their lives. I think the first book would make excellent assigned reading for a seventh or eighth grade class studying slavery and civil rights. The others might seem more interesting to kids once they realize the characters are fourteen, not seven, and that the books are more than just basic school stories. I also think the series fulfills a need for books for middle school boys who read below grade level. It’s nice to have something to offer kids that engages their minds with real issues, even if they’re not yet fully fluent readers.
May 9, 2021
I like how the conflict was resolved. A very thoughtful way to handle the topic of dehumanization of slaves during the Civil War for the kids of Da Vinci school.
June 2, 2011
"If I'm going to have a fight I got to see the win in it so I'll know what I'm fighting for."
—Zander, The Cruisers, P. 32
With this book, Walter Dean Myers has launched a new series that I think holds a lot of promise. Zander Scott and his three friends Kambui, LaShonda and Bobbi are students in eighth grade at the Da Vinci Academy for the Gifted and Talented, in Harlem, New York. When the school's principal calls Zander and his three friends (collectively known as "The Cruisers" in reference to the alternative school newspaper, called The Cruiser, that they produce on their own) into his office to warn them that their academic performance has been slipping lately, a last chance for them to redeem their continued tenure at Da Vinci is offered. The Cruisers will take on the role of peacemakers in a special history project that pretends to turn the clock back to the days before the American Civil War and divides the student body into faux Union and Confederate sympathizers, sides that will then argue about whether or not slavery should be permanently discontinued in the United States. The Cruisers' mission: mollify inflamed feelings on both sides of the debate and bring an end to the "Civil War" before it begins, thus saving the mock U.S. a costly internal war and all of the bitterness that would end up being passed down through the years after the real Civil War was fought. For Zander and his friends, having painted themselves into a corner with their recent academic lassitude, failure at their task of conciliation between the North and South will probably lead to them being dismissed from Da Vinci.
"Trouble is like a party. When it don't cost you nothing to start you can bet somebody is going to start it."
—Mr. Albert, The Cruisers, P. 45
As the Cruisers enter the conflict, rhetoric grows stronger between the model factions and it seems that the designated Confederates really may harbor some racist ideas. Things get ugly and the likelihood of real fights amidst the student body steadily increases, until Zander comes up with a bold idea that just may demonstrate vividly enough the wrongs suffered by blacks under slavery to make even the most stringent "Confederate" allies rethink their position.
There's one more point that deserves mention. On page fifty-eight, Zander and his father have a quick verbal exchange in which they talk about the Seattle Supersonics professional basketball franchise as if the team were still actively playing. When this book was published in 2010, though, the Supersonics had not existed for two years, having become the Oklahoma City Thunder in 2008. It just struck me as odd that this little factual error wasn't removed from the text before the final book went to press.
"(S)ometimes something just being true wasn't very useful. It was like having a doctor tell you that the bone you thought was broken really was."
—The Cruisers, P. 47
The Cruisers is, in some ways, vintage Walter Dean Myers. There are a handful of nuggets of wisdom spread throughout the story that make one stop dead in mid-paragraph and just ponder the thought expressed therein. In my view, The Cruisers is definitely worth reading for these grace notes alone, though it also is an interesting story and features characters that I'm sure will translate well into the making of a full series of books. I would give two and a half stars to The Cruisers.
—Zander, The Cruisers, P. 32
With this book, Walter Dean Myers has launched a new series that I think holds a lot of promise. Zander Scott and his three friends Kambui, LaShonda and Bobbi are students in eighth grade at the Da Vinci Academy for the Gifted and Talented, in Harlem, New York. When the school's principal calls Zander and his three friends (collectively known as "The Cruisers" in reference to the alternative school newspaper, called The Cruiser, that they produce on their own) into his office to warn them that their academic performance has been slipping lately, a last chance for them to redeem their continued tenure at Da Vinci is offered. The Cruisers will take on the role of peacemakers in a special history project that pretends to turn the clock back to the days before the American Civil War and divides the student body into faux Union and Confederate sympathizers, sides that will then argue about whether or not slavery should be permanently discontinued in the United States. The Cruisers' mission: mollify inflamed feelings on both sides of the debate and bring an end to the "Civil War" before it begins, thus saving the mock U.S. a costly internal war and all of the bitterness that would end up being passed down through the years after the real Civil War was fought. For Zander and his friends, having painted themselves into a corner with their recent academic lassitude, failure at their task of conciliation between the North and South will probably lead to them being dismissed from Da Vinci.
"Trouble is like a party. When it don't cost you nothing to start you can bet somebody is going to start it."
—Mr. Albert, The Cruisers, P. 45
As the Cruisers enter the conflict, rhetoric grows stronger between the model factions and it seems that the designated Confederates really may harbor some racist ideas. Things get ugly and the likelihood of real fights amidst the student body steadily increases, until Zander comes up with a bold idea that just may demonstrate vividly enough the wrongs suffered by blacks under slavery to make even the most stringent "Confederate" allies rethink their position.
There's one more point that deserves mention. On page fifty-eight, Zander and his father have a quick verbal exchange in which they talk about the Seattle Supersonics professional basketball franchise as if the team were still actively playing. When this book was published in 2010, though, the Supersonics had not existed for two years, having become the Oklahoma City Thunder in 2008. It just struck me as odd that this little factual error wasn't removed from the text before the final book went to press.
"(S)ometimes something just being true wasn't very useful. It was like having a doctor tell you that the bone you thought was broken really was."
—The Cruisers, P. 47
The Cruisers is, in some ways, vintage Walter Dean Myers. There are a handful of nuggets of wisdom spread throughout the story that make one stop dead in mid-paragraph and just ponder the thought expressed therein. In my view, The Cruisers is definitely worth reading for these grace notes alone, though it also is an interesting story and features characters that I'm sure will translate well into the making of a full series of books. I would give two and a half stars to The Cruisers.
November 30, 2012
The Cruisers
By Walter Dean Myers
The cruisers genre is realistic friction base on friend and friendship, school life. The book was took place in Harlem, New York. Walter Dean Myers was born on August 12 1937, in Martinsburg, West Virginia. For some reason his mother died when he was three and his dad was very poor so his father give him away to Harbert Dean. He was real good writer in high school. However he about to drop out but on of his teacher advised him to keep on writing no matter what happen. She said, ‘it is what you do.” Walter Dean Myers is the New York time bestseller author of more than 80 books for children, and young adult. His award winning books are Sunrise over, Fallujah, Fallen, Angels, Monster, and Somewhere In The Darkness, Slam, Jazz, and Harlem. Myers has received two Newbery honors and five Coretta Scott king awards. He wrote The Cruisers because the color of his skin is black and it was hard for him during that time period.
The brutal massage of The Cruisers is it was very difficult to make peace with your mouth when some people are against what you are saying. When you stand up for what you believe and other people against do the same you have to come up with smart idea to show that your point of view is better than your enemy.
The Cruisers is about eighth grade boy name Zander Scoot. Zander attends in Da Vinci, which is the best school in Harlem. He and his friends are in troubles because their grades are not good. When school starts a topic about Civil War the students have to split up in to two groups, Mr. Culpepper, the assistant principal put he and his trouble friends in charge, which is they have to make peace before the war end. Zander come up with the idea that his group will write school newspaper about Civil War, and he name his group The Cruisers. While they are writing newspaper they learn that words can be a weapons and have power to keep peace too.
This book is very easy to read, and easy to understand it. This book get my attaching in the first page it say, “Education is a journey on the high sea of life.” This book it doesn’t connect to me in anyway but I like to read about people that stand up for want they believe is right.
By Walter Dean Myers
The cruisers genre is realistic friction base on friend and friendship, school life. The book was took place in Harlem, New York. Walter Dean Myers was born on August 12 1937, in Martinsburg, West Virginia. For some reason his mother died when he was three and his dad was very poor so his father give him away to Harbert Dean. He was real good writer in high school. However he about to drop out but on of his teacher advised him to keep on writing no matter what happen. She said, ‘it is what you do.” Walter Dean Myers is the New York time bestseller author of more than 80 books for children, and young adult. His award winning books are Sunrise over, Fallujah, Fallen, Angels, Monster, and Somewhere In The Darkness, Slam, Jazz, and Harlem. Myers has received two Newbery honors and five Coretta Scott king awards. He wrote The Cruisers because the color of his skin is black and it was hard for him during that time period.
The brutal massage of The Cruisers is it was very difficult to make peace with your mouth when some people are against what you are saying. When you stand up for what you believe and other people against do the same you have to come up with smart idea to show that your point of view is better than your enemy.
The Cruisers is about eighth grade boy name Zander Scoot. Zander attends in Da Vinci, which is the best school in Harlem. He and his friends are in troubles because their grades are not good. When school starts a topic about Civil War the students have to split up in to two groups, Mr. Culpepper, the assistant principal put he and his trouble friends in charge, which is they have to make peace before the war end. Zander come up with the idea that his group will write school newspaper about Civil War, and he name his group The Cruisers. While they are writing newspaper they learn that words can be a weapons and have power to keep peace too.
This book is very easy to read, and easy to understand it. This book get my attaching in the first page it say, “Education is a journey on the high sea of life.” This book it doesn’t connect to me in anyway but I like to read about people that stand up for want they believe is right.
March 26, 2012
The Cruisers is by prolific author and poet Walter Dean Myers. It is more accessible to a younger audience–upper elementary and middle school as opposed to high school/young adult–than his usual work. It is appropriate for grades 4-8, depending on the dynamics of each particular group/individual reader(s). The main character is in 8th Grade.
This book looks at race and slavery as kids in the middle school divide into North & South for a Civil War project. This particular plot is not unique, in that there are documented instances of similar projects/experiments in schools and community and research projects. Myers’ book, however, is unique in its approach and the genuine voices of his characters.
The middle school students at the upper echelon school of the story are not terribly excited about the Civil War project and view it as simply that–an assignment through which to grit your teeth and end up with a good grade. End of story. The students, themselves, are taken slightly by surprise when their own reactions and responses (and those of students around them) are on a much bigger and more intense scale than they had anticipated. The story brings up hard but important questions about race and our relationships with each other while remaining true to the middle school characters telling the story.
It raises questions for students about race in terms of the Civil War era AND its applications to our present-day lives. Recognizing and examining some of these issues from both cognitive and emotional angles in a manner that is authentic, understandable, and effective for elementary and middle school readers is difficult and sorely lacking in our lexicon of children’s literature. Myers has done a brilliant job of accomplishing these goals. (I wish I had had access to this work when I was ten years old.)
This is an excellent discussion book at home or as part of Black History or Civil War lesson units. I firmly believe that this is the kind of story that can make a difference on many levels in our development as individuals in a society riddled with both global and neighborhood influences.
This book looks at race and slavery as kids in the middle school divide into North & South for a Civil War project. This particular plot is not unique, in that there are documented instances of similar projects/experiments in schools and community and research projects. Myers’ book, however, is unique in its approach and the genuine voices of his characters.
The middle school students at the upper echelon school of the story are not terribly excited about the Civil War project and view it as simply that–an assignment through which to grit your teeth and end up with a good grade. End of story. The students, themselves, are taken slightly by surprise when their own reactions and responses (and those of students around them) are on a much bigger and more intense scale than they had anticipated. The story brings up hard but important questions about race and our relationships with each other while remaining true to the middle school characters telling the story.
It raises questions for students about race in terms of the Civil War era AND its applications to our present-day lives. Recognizing and examining some of these issues from both cognitive and emotional angles in a manner that is authentic, understandable, and effective for elementary and middle school readers is difficult and sorely lacking in our lexicon of children’s literature. Myers has done a brilliant job of accomplishing these goals. (I wish I had had access to this work when I was ten years old.)
This is an excellent discussion book at home or as part of Black History or Civil War lesson units. I firmly believe that this is the kind of story that can make a difference on many levels in our development as individuals in a society riddled with both global and neighborhood influences.
September 26, 2012
Genre: Realistic Fiction
Author: Walter Dean Myers
Summary:
It's modern day, and the Cruisers are given the task to settle a war between the North and South in a school event taking place in the historical period of late-colonial times. The Cruisers (a newspaper team)have to succeed in keeping the peace or they face being expelled. Most of the members in the Cruisers are African American, making this more then just the grade. The Cruisers must make their moves cleverly, but at the same time restrain themselves from releasing personal their own personal vendetta. The Cruisers also have to deal with the school athletes, Alvin and his crew. Alvin's crew works together as the South, supporting slavery. With Alvin and his violent crew representing the south, things begin to take a turn when one of the members of the Cruisers gets into a fight with them. The Cruisers are assisted by a son of a teacher, who helps defend them. At the ending, the Cruisers begin a event where all members wear a sign around their necks that demoralize slavery and change the minds of many. In the end, they serve their job as peacemakers and keep their student role at Da Vinci Academy.
My opinion(s) on the book:
I did enjoy this book, but I felt it was short at times and rushed. The book is relatively short, but for some that is a plus. Sometimes it seemed like there was another book before this because some of the characters were hard getting to know and relatively unknown. This book is supposedly the first book of a series, so they probably expand onto the stories of those characters later on. The actions the characters took in order to get the point across that slavery was bad were creative and stood out. I can understand some of the feelings in the book where the Cruisers felt they were being discriminated against, even with it just being an event. The part that really stood out for me was the ending where they had the protest going on. That seemed like such a good way to persuade others to join his cause. Overall, I would recommend this book to a friend.
Author: Walter Dean Myers
Summary:
It's modern day, and the Cruisers are given the task to settle a war between the North and South in a school event taking place in the historical period of late-colonial times. The Cruisers (a newspaper team)have to succeed in keeping the peace or they face being expelled. Most of the members in the Cruisers are African American, making this more then just the grade. The Cruisers must make their moves cleverly, but at the same time restrain themselves from releasing personal their own personal vendetta. The Cruisers also have to deal with the school athletes, Alvin and his crew. Alvin's crew works together as the South, supporting slavery. With Alvin and his violent crew representing the south, things begin to take a turn when one of the members of the Cruisers gets into a fight with them. The Cruisers are assisted by a son of a teacher, who helps defend them. At the ending, the Cruisers begin a event where all members wear a sign around their necks that demoralize slavery and change the minds of many. In the end, they serve their job as peacemakers and keep their student role at Da Vinci Academy.
My opinion(s) on the book:
I did enjoy this book, but I felt it was short at times and rushed. The book is relatively short, but for some that is a plus. Sometimes it seemed like there was another book before this because some of the characters were hard getting to know and relatively unknown. This book is supposedly the first book of a series, so they probably expand onto the stories of those characters later on. The actions the characters took in order to get the point across that slavery was bad were creative and stood out. I can understand some of the feelings in the book where the Cruisers felt they were being discriminated against, even with it just being an event. The part that really stood out for me was the ending where they had the protest going on. That seemed like such a good way to persuade others to join his cause. Overall, I would recommend this book to a friend.
September 9, 2010
This is a book about a school assignment. Sounds boring, right? Well, I think it managed to be as interesting as a book about a school assignment can be. See, there are these 8th graders: Zander, Kambui, Bobbi and LaShonda, collectively known as "The Cruisers" after an alternative school newspaper they produce. The Cruisers, all of them smart but unmotivated when it comes to school, are assigned to play the role of peacekeepers in a kind of mock Civil War going on at their school. The kids playing the part of the Confederacy take things too far, to the point where they offend people, especially the African-American students. Zander (who narrates the book) is one of the few black students at the school and the lead peacekeeper, so it ends up falling to him to put the Confederacy students in their place.
Zander has a unique way of putting things when he's trying to argue his point. For example, he won't get into a fight if he can't see the "win" in it. He keeps his cool as tempers flare over accusations of racism and arguments about free speech, so we get a pretty thoughtful, if slightly detached, discussion of slavery, history, and middle school culture. I wondered as I read if the Confederacy students really were purposely offensive, or if they were just callous or naive, but that's not really the point of the book. The point is how to deal with complex, senstive issues once they've been raised.
The book includes editorial pieces from The Cruiser as well as the official school paper. As I said, it's almost entirely focused on the Civil War assignment, but we do get to learn a little about the Cruisers' home lives. The parts with Zander and his actress mother were nice breaks from the school drama. I've heard there will be three other books to follow, probably one from the perspective of each Cruiser. Will they give up their lackadaisical attitude towards school by the end of the series? Maybe that's not the point...
Zander has a unique way of putting things when he's trying to argue his point. For example, he won't get into a fight if he can't see the "win" in it. He keeps his cool as tempers flare over accusations of racism and arguments about free speech, so we get a pretty thoughtful, if slightly detached, discussion of slavery, history, and middle school culture. I wondered as I read if the Confederacy students really were purposely offensive, or if they were just callous or naive, but that's not really the point of the book. The point is how to deal with complex, senstive issues once they've been raised.
The book includes editorial pieces from The Cruiser as well as the official school paper. As I said, it's almost entirely focused on the Civil War assignment, but we do get to learn a little about the Cruisers' home lives. The parts with Zander and his actress mother were nice breaks from the school drama. I've heard there will be three other books to follow, probably one from the perspective of each Cruiser. Will they give up their lackadaisical attitude towards school by the end of the series? Maybe that's not the point...
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