10th Grade

by Joseph Weisberg

Jeremiah Reskin has big plans for tenth grade—he wants to make some friends and he wants to take a girl’s shirt off. It’s not going too well at first, but when he meets a group of semibohemian outcasts, things start to change. Soon he’s negotiating his way through group back rubs and trying to find the courage to make a move on Renee Shopmaker, the hottest girl in school. At the behest of his composition teacher, Jeremy’s also chronicling everything in his own novel—a disastrously ungrammatical but unflinching look at sophomore year.

Genres: Fiction, Young Adult, Coming Of Age, Realistic Fiction

274 pages, Kindle Edition

First published January 22, 2002

Reviews

[Kewpie · Rating 1 out of 5]

OMG OMG OMG instead of just writing a review of this book I will show U what it is like 2 read it!!!!!!!!! 1 thing U must no is that this book has lots and lots of run-on sentences that seem 2 go on & on & on & on and change the subject all over the place & take up a whole paragraph which can take up a whole page & there instead of spelling out whole words the author uses single numbers & letters and 2 much punctuation or no punctuation at all 2 make it seem like a real live 10th grader wrote the book!!!!!!! If U rn't annoyed reading this review and can follow it and everything then maybe this would be a really good book for you to read and you would like it as much as the protagonist hates Shakespeare (because WHAT does all that old timey language MEAN?!?!?!!?!) But this book got on all my nerves and when I say that I mean each and every single 1 of them. Read-alikes maybe the secret diary of Adrian Mole. Red flags: sexual language adult situation, annoying dialog. Why did this book even get nominated for an Alex award?

[karen · Rating 3 out of 5]

I enjoyed this book, despite the punctuation (what 10th grader doesn't know how to use commas? we were diagramming sentences in 7th grade at my school! lol). I thought Jeremy was a likeable character, even though he wasn't perfect. It was funny to read his perspective on things, his day dreams, and even his obsession with sex (men...sigh!!). I enjoyed it!

[Nia · Rating 2 out of 5]

I read this in fifth grade because it was somehow available in our school library. Taught me about sex. I vividly remember the main character having a crush on a girl with a last name like “Shopmaker” or something. And there was a weird massage train moment. Amazing. Don’t read this.

[The Book Crusader · Rating 3 out of 5]

Unlike many, my main gripe was not the atrocious spelling, grammar, and lack of punctuation: being an on again/off again member of fanfiction.net for over nine years has given me a strong immunity to all of the above mentioned. Furthermore, I know many a member of that site that could easily give Jeremy a run for his money in all those regards.


No, my main gripe is that Weisberg seemed to only give the bare minimum of effort in regards to the story, thus never letting the story reach its full potential.


To elaborate:

Jeremy never really displays much of a personality. Sure, the reader learns that he loves soccer, basketball, 80s rock music, and especially girls (with countless observations of their bodies; in particular "their tits," as Jeremy would so bluntly put it), but other than that, he feels like he was created to be a blank slate that the viewer—male no doubt—could insert themselves into. Perhaps that had been Weisberg's intention; it worked for Stephenie Meyer, after all.

The story takes place in the early eighties. However, other than a few mentions of bands and a discussion of Reggie Carter, it'd be unlikely that you'd even realize the decade; I know I didn't until I looked up the book online.

The setting is New Jersey, yet there is nothing—for instance, mentions of scenery or locations—that let you know that the story is taking place in New Jersey. There are also chapters involving New York City and London, England that suffer a similar problem.

Worst of all, in my opinion: the way hormones are treated. For a guy that spends a good amount of time observing girls chests—including a lengthy scene where he fantasizes about saving his crush, complete with her being stripped naked, exposing her "tit and pubes" (good 'ol eighties bush)—Jeremy did not, in my opinion, react realistically to Gillian making a move on him. You could argue that he was holding out for Renee, and maybe you'd have a point, but I still cannot fathom a male at that age, especially one that is so highly vocal about his fantasies, being so quick to turn down an opportunity like the one that was presented. Thankfully, the second opportunity he gets is done far more realistically.


This novel does have some good to it, though. I like that Weisberg treats marijuana use in a balanced fashion (not portraying it as good or bad, just something that people enjoy using).

I also like that Jeremy's transition from one group of friends (the outcasts, if you will) to the more popular students was not treated as a big deal; it was merely Jeremy discovering that he actually had more in-common with the popular students (his old friends, for instance, did not share his love of sports). I guarantee that such a transition would not have gone so smoothly in a Sarah Dessen novel.

On that same note, I also like that the popular students were not portrayed as the stereotypical soulless jerks, as one usually finds in these sort of books.

All in all, Weisberg had a good, albeit unoriginal, idea, but failed to deliver what could have been this decade's answer to Forever or Catcher in the Rye.


Maybe next time, Joe.

[Nathanael Bocalan]

Can you recall your 10th grade experiences, or if you’re about to enter, do you know what to expect? Well, in the fictional book 10th Grade by Joesph Weisberg the story follows a sophomore name Jeremiah Reskin throughout his daily school life. The story takes place in Jeremiah’s hometown of Hutch Falls, New Jersey an average town with the typical amenities of any town such as restaurants with a surprisingly low crime rate. Jeremiah himself is quite the average teen with crushes, and devious plans in the beginning.
Jeremiah’s plans for the 10th grade include “taking a girl’s shirt off”, but that doesn’t go according to plan. He eventually meets up with a girl named Renee Shopmaker, who’s had the school talking. Her personality and looks is one Jeremiah can’t get out of his head. His thoughts about Renee and the people he likes to hang out such as Caroline a girl with a quirky and goth type of personality to her, all begin to affect his popularity. Jermiah goes throughout the book trying to solve these problems with no obvious solution in sight. Jeremiah eventually makes his way through the 10th grade into a junior, but it seems like he didn’t succeed in his original plan, but in a different plan which included friendships and new experiences.
I genuinely enjoyed reading this book. I feel as if it can even possibly make me somewhat prepared for the next grade level even. The book has a real slice of life type of feel to it while also being able to tell a solid story throughout it. Because of some of the topics the book falls into such as crushes, periods, or even being aroused at points. At the beginning of the you are immediately hit with a dilemma, when supposedly a girl is hit with her period out of nowhere, and the news starts to spread around the whole school. This book would genuinely be great for any teen looking to remember or be prepared for 10th grade.

[Monica Caldicott]

Usually when someone tries to describe a book, they might mention the characters or the plot or a problem that the characters try to handle. But the one review of this book that the author and the publisher chose to print on the front cover mentions none of those things.

Instead it talks about the writing style: (read front cover review)

Jeremy Reskin is a sophomore. He is writing this memoir of sophomore year because his English teacher has asked him to do this, and because he likes keeping track of his thoughts and strange dreams.
 
He writes about back to school shopping. Read p. 13: "The next morning we went to the mall. I'd just give myself an A on it."

At the mall, he spots a hot girl looking at sweaters in The Limited, where he is with his sister, Claire. Jeremy has a quick daydream that a band of burglars storm the store and take this girl hostage. Only he can save her. And she is so grateful ...

But really, he doesn't even talk to the hot girl looking at sweaters in The Limited. Jeremy has big plans for tenth grade--he wants to make some friends and he wants to take a girl's shirt off. It's not going too well at first, but when he meets a group of semibohemian outcasts, things start to change. Soon he's negotiating his way through group back rubs and trying to find the courage to make a move on Renee Shopmaker, the hottest girl in school. 

[Quincy Lawler · Rating 5 out of 5]

10th Grade reminds the reader why we try very hard to forget this horridly awkward age. The protagonist, Jeremy Reskin, is a teenage everyman. He is not terribly bright, good looking, or popular. His athletic skills are not note worthy. He is not very successful with girl and his ability to earn friends seem limited to members of the school's sub-stratum of nobodies, losers, and dropouts. He is by most definitions, your average awkward male teenager in the worst of all grades.The novel reads like a tenth grade boy's journal. It is filled with poor spelling, bad grammar, run on sentences, and an anachronistic use of letter and numbers for words. (U no what i mean?) While this may prove to be annoying to some, for others, myself included, it adds to the overall charm of the novel. What did become annoying and at times a bit offensive were the constant references to and comparisons of T&As, but then again what else does your average 15-year old horny male think about?

[JKC · Rating 3 out of 5]

Reviews praised how this novel perfectly captures the writing style and general feel of a 10th grade student. I have no idea if that is true. I did not particularly get that impression. Reviews also talk about how it's hilariously rife with grammatical errors - not really. Run-on sentences is about it. And that has been a writing fashion since James Joyce and nothing associated with 10th graders. That said. Did it capture some of the experience of being in 10th grade? Absolutely. It's a quiet book overall. No major catastrophes - which was surprising yet a nice change, in a way. While a great deal of the book focuses on friendships and crushes, of course, I most preferred the descriptions of the protagonist's parents and his relationship with them. Those were fresh.

[Eli]

The choppy and youthful style of the book might put off some readers, but for those willing to go past the bad grammar (and what the implications of the fact that the book's style is "genuine" are), there is a lovely and real story to be had.

[Mike · Rating 1 out of 5]

From what I recall, the punctuation and grammar were unbearable (while I understand we're trying to be realistic to convey how a 10th grader might communicate) and the plot went nowhere. (5)

[amie · Rating 2 out of 5]

2.5. Thought this was a 3 star book throughout but the ending really sucked like a high school student actually wrote it. Bad conclusion. Too many loose ends. It makes me regret wasting time on it.

[Prechana Limbu]

"10th Grade" was really fun to read. It is full of high school events that we an relate ourselves to

Jeremiah Renskin a 10 th grader is so into hot girls! He has a very out standing personality. And daydreams about all those heroic stuff. Falls in love with the hottest girl, Renee Shopmaker and daydreams about her everytime. He's got a great sense or humor! I couldn't stop laughing with every page full of ridiculously funny thoughts and jokes. So in one word this book is AMAZING.

I really loved the way Joseph Weisberg creates this exciting high school atmosphere with freaky facts about how high school students think like, their interest and things that really happens in a school.And his getting rid of punctuations makes the sentences go like "whoa, now thats a looong sentence".

Being friends with Caroline, Gillian, Douglas and Kath and spending Friday nights at Gillian's basement watching the game with back rubs seemed fun haha. It's was a shock to know how boys like Jeremy sees things in a whole different way. Especially the way he judge the girls.

A whole year full of terrible days, shocking news, daydreaming, experiencing new things(smoking pot) and hangouts with friends led to the end of the 10th grade. Prom night is over and it all comes to an end.

I really liked the last chapter. It was in a way very toughing and tells us how life is going to be. This is the last paragraph from the book and it leaves us with a great impression, " But now this journey is to a close. It was long and fruitful. I learned many lessons like be yourself and let your heart shine. And in the years to come I will experience life and friendship and always remember 10th grade."

[Willyg2015 · Rating 1 out of 5]

The idea of school is getting good grades and be able to have sexual relations with girls. Well from the mind of a teenage boy it is but for girls it is different. This book was not very well written and I found it to be very ill written and had terrible grammar. I could not picture anything in this sorry excuse for a novel. I have never read a book so ill written in my life. I also did not want to picture what this guy was saying. I found that their was no rhetorical appeals in this book. '"You suck", said Cindy." (Weisberg 205). This quote tells how terrible this book is. I found that there was little parallism, and I want there to be more rhetorical appeals. This book was very perverted. I saw things that I defiantly did not want to picture. This novel made a teenage boy seem as if he was a sexual predator. He had terrible goals. "I want to lift up her shirt." (43). This shows that he is a disgusting sophomore. I really disliked this book overall and would never recommend it to anybody. In conclusion, I will never re-read this book in my life. It is terrible and I don't want another human to ever lay eyes on it.

[Justin Liang · Rating 3 out of 5]

10th Grade by Joseph Weisberg is a novel about Jeremiah Reskin’s 10th grade plans and expectations. The first thing he wants to do is make new friends. But his main objective was that he wants to take off a girl’s shirt off. As he starts his sophomore year of high school, things weren’t going as planned. But as his high school life progressed, he meets a group of semibohernian outcasts and things were changing in his favor. Renee Shopmaker, the hottest girl in school was one of Jeremiah Reskin’s objectives. He wanted to make a move on her, but he lacked the courage to do so.

I recommend reading this book if you want to have a perspective of a male 10th grader living his sophomore year of high school. The book was interesting in my opinion. I can relate to many things in this book because I’m a 10th grader as well. I may not have the same intentions as Jeremiah Reskin, but I can relate to the book with my high school life. The way the author wrote the book made it seem that the characters were actually in high school, causing a better imagery of the setting.

[Diana · Rating 4 out of 5]

10th grade is book I enjoyed reading. Joseph Weisberg describes the struggles and obstacles of Jeremiah Reskin including being on the soccer team, and what happens during his sophomore year in high school. He talks about the girl who he is crushing on, Renee, and all the fantasies he has of her and him, just like any guy would with him and a hot girl. He meets a new group of friends, Caroline, Gillian, Douglas and Kath. They hang out a lot and become really close friends. Caroline, is a "troubled teen". She smokes, dates older guys and lives with her unstable mom who later kicks her out because of the guys she dates. They stick together and have each others back. Douglas starts to fall in love with Caroline while she goes through a hard time and things with Gillian and Jeremy get a little serious.
I recommend this book to anyone who wants to read about a typical guys life in high school or just want something interesting to read. Something I liked about the book is how in detail Joseph went into Jeremiah's mind and thoughts.

[Colin · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book is about a sophomore boy who starts tries to make new friends and start a new high school career. The purpose of this book is to show people what life life of a 10th grader is. Jeremy ends up finding a few new friends that he spends lots of time with. The authors style took some time to get used to. He wrote like a 10th grader no doubt, but once I understood it was a lot better. The dialogue of the book was pretty good, although there were some parts where it was confusing on who was saying what. The pacing of the book wasn't too bad, there were definitely some parts that got carried on a little too long but other than that it was fine. The plot of the book ended up different than what I expected but it was a good way to end a book. I think the people who may like this book would be a high school student. It is written in a way that adults might not enjoy and it is probably easier for kids to understand.

[Josue Gonzalez · Rating 4 out of 5]

"10th Grade" is about a boy named Jeremiah Reskin and his life is during his sophomore year. In the beginning of the book Jeremy (Jeremiah) finds a group of friends to hang out with Gillian, Douglass, Kath, and Caroline. At first he doesn't quite get along with the group but eventually he does. Then something happens and he starts to hang out with another group of friends towards the end of his sophomore year. Renee, John, Randy, Cindy, and Lenea, where he and his friends go to prom while they are still sophomores. I would recommend this book to guys in their freshman, sophomore, and junior year of highschool because this book is mainly meant for boys in highschool. I would not recommend this book to seniors or girls because I think they wouldn't enjoy the book as much. There is swearing and some sexual related content within the book. Also the book is written as run on sentences and at some points it was hard to follow. The genre is fiction and coming of age.

[Catherine · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was a fun read, but left me feeling a little bit cold. I'd describe the protagonist/narrator as Charlie from The Perks of Being a Wallflower if he wrote and thought more like the average 10th grade dude. I think this recognition is probably part of what made me feel so "enh" about this perfectly fine book.

What I liked:
There were passages that were hilarious! I think there was a real echo of truth in watching Jeremy navigate high school in his sophomore year and trying on different groups of friends.

What I didn't like:
There wasn't a tremendous amount of growth in Jeremy over the course of the novel -- he was pretty much just as bewildered lost at the end as he was in the beginning. And maybe that's what the author intended ... but it just wasn't what I really wanted from the novel.

Overall, I'd say this is a perfectly adequate book with no real oomph.

[Mike · Rating 3 out of 5]

Little different type of book, as the entire novel is written as a somewhat stream of consciousness of a semi-awkward but mostly normal high school sophomore. The story isn't really one - just what happens during 10th grade, with love, drugs, sex sharing a lot of space with confused feelings and crazy day dreams, all most dwarfed with "Hey", "Good", "Nothing" sort of responses that I know are commonplace at that age (and most others).

It's definitely the type of book you have to be in the mood for and not expect to all of a sudden get deep meaning or some killer suspense ending from - it's what it says it is - 10th grade from the 10th grade boy's perspective. This includes crazy daydreams as a ninja fighter or space explorer coupled with struggles at math and starting to find a little freedom in life.

A good break from any normal sort of book and the book flies by.

[Michael Head · Rating 4 out of 5]

Classic, from the viewpoint of a 30-something who grew up in the same era depicted in the novel. I literally waxed nostalgic as I read, and upon finishing the novel. The subject matter is mature, but absolutely honest and true-to-life. To say it's a modern-day Catcher in the Rye would be presumptuous...but the similarities are present. Stylistically, the book is Faulkner-esque...punctuation and other grammatical devices are basically ignored.

[Estelle · Rating 4 out of 5]

I wasn't sure I was going to like this book. The style is a little hard to get through since it lacks the correct grammar and punctuation as Jeremy's journal. I loved how real and honest he was. Also sensitive and perceptive. A little Catcher and the Rye and Perks of a Wallflower without the super serious situations. Nice change of pace to read from a male POV as well. Handled well with a multi-layered plot. (Loved his relationship with his sister Claire.)

[Thomas · Rating 5 out of 5]

The book itself isn't grammatically correct; however, that was intentional, I believe. The fact that normal, everyday, "text-speak" and shortened phonetic spellings of words produces gives the sense that Joseph really is a 10th grader, not an author. His use of potential scenarios in life for any typical sophomore is what makes this book so great: any (male) sophomore in high school could possibly relate to Jeremiah's positions throughout the story.

[Erin · Rating 2 out of 5]

It was ok. Nothing really happens in this year in the life of a 10th grade boy. His thoughts and the conversations he has with his friends are realistic. But in terms of recommending it to someone else, I'd say only to girls and guys who actually like reading and like real life fiction. In fact, girls would probably enjoy it alot more than boys, since they could learn what guys are thinking.

[Sue · Rating 5 out of 5]

I really enjoyed this book upon reading it the summer before my sophomore year of high school. in a strangely holden caulfield-ish way, the protagonist is easily detestable and pathetic yet extremely likable. although when i read it, i couldn't mount up to the life experience he had--and still can't--the painful of awkwardness he experienced is parallel with mine.

[A Loose · Rating 3 out of 5]

The run-on sentences through this entire book made it hard to read. I frequently found myself rereading things over and over again to try to understand what was going on in the plot. Overall, once I sifted through the English teacher's nightmare of a writing style, the story was quite enjoyable.... and I chuckled to myself every time I saw Tits capitalized like it is a proper noun.

[W.patrick.bingham · Rating 4 out of 5]

The most interesting thing about this book is the way it was written. It's written as if a 10th grader (with really poor grammar) had written it. But, I think it's mainly for guys. Girls can relate to it, but it's mainly geared towards the average, not-so-popular guy.

[Jessica · Rating 3 out of 5]

The author did a perfect job at convincing you this book really was written by a boy in the 10th grade. Many aspects of the story really reminded me of high school, so the book was both fun and nostalgic. It had plenty of laugh out loud moments, and it was an easy read. I loved it!

[Shawn · Rating 2 out of 5]

This was an ok book; it is written with little to no punctuation since the narrator is in the 10th grade (I had to know how to punctuate at that age). I remember finding the technique to be exceedingly tiresome.

[Jaimie Donovan · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book was cute. It made me get to see from a 10th grade(boys)perspective how one year of High School developed. It just goes to show not everyone has the same experience in high school as everyone else. And being a girl and hearing it from a guy was just different.

[Ginger ♥ · Rating 4 out of 5]

I read this the spring before my sophmore yr. and I loved it. I lent it out (but was sure to write my name in it lol). I enjoyed this read because there was a little of everything to please everyone =-)