Stuck in Neutral

A guest review by Patrick Finnegan, in Mr. Greenbaum's English 9 class.

Trueman, Terry. Stuck in Neutral. 2012. 144p. ISBN 9780064472135. 

Stuck In Neutral by Terry Trueman is a fascinating book that follows the life of Shawn McDaniel, a 14 year old boy living in Seattle with Cerebral Palsy. Because of his condition, Shawn cannot control any of the muscles in his body. This means that he cannot do anything for himself, and he also cannot communicate with other people. Everybody Shawn meets just assumes that he is mentally "not there," and that he can't understand or hear anything they are saying to him. The truth is, Shawn is probably smarter than most of the people that he's ever encountered in his life. Shawn has the unique ability to remember everything he's ever heard. As a result of his talent, Shawn remembers any piece of information he's ever been taught, which makes him extremely smart. He's a genius, except nobody knows it, least of all his father. His father thinks that Shawn is a "vegetable", and it pains him to see Shawn live in like that on a day-to-day basis. After loving with Shawn's chronic seizures for a couple of years, he moved away from the family. It hurt him too much to see Shawn go through the pain. In reality, Shawn enjoyed his seizures, because they gave him an out-of-body experience, and the ability to control himself for a brief moment. Shawn's father decided to write a poem about him, and when he had an opportunity that share the poem publicly, it was such a hit that it was almost instantly published. The poem was so successful, that it launched Shawn's dad into stardom. Now, Shawn is the "world's most famous retard", but he isn't even mentally retarded at all. 

Shawn is now fourteen, and he's learned to deal with his condition on a day-to-day basis. Shawn has a routine that he goes through, and considering the circumstances, he has a pretty good life. His mom, brother, and sister love him very much, and even his dad still visits every once in a while. Shawn gets the feeling that something is wrong after his father's last visit. It appeared as though his father had lost his cool, and was acting overly concerned about Shawn and his safety. That wasn't even the startling part. Shawn gets the suspicion that his father is thinking about killing him to "end his suffering". Shawn doesn't want to get killed, but with no way of communicating, and no way of defending himself, he is essentially at the mercy of his father's decision. The book beautifully describes Shawn's emotions, and the fear of his father that slowly develops. Shawn is safe with his brother, who is much more athletic, and stronger than their father, and who is willing to protect Shawn, but he is worried about when nobody is home. Will that be when his father strikes, or will his father decide that killing Shawn won't end his suffering? Unfortunately, Shawn gets the opportunity to find out.

When his brother has a basketball tournament out of town, his mother and sister both go to watch it. Shawn cannot attend, and is forced to stay overnight with his babysitter. Just as Shawn is about to go to sleep, someone knocks on the door. It is his father. Why would his father be here? He's never at his house this late. Would this be the night that Shawn's father finally commits the crime that he had been thinking about for the last couple of months? Shawn's hope walked right out the door when his father offers to take care of Shawn for the night. His babysitter, not suspecting anything, leaves without anything to say, except for a requested autograph from Shawn's father. As the door closes, Shawn realizes that this is the first night that he and his dad have ever been alone together. Will it be his last? 

Air Gear, Vol. 3

Oh! Great. Air Gear, Vol. 3. 2007. 224p. ISBN 9780345492807. Available in the Graphic Novels section of the library.

In Air Gear, Vol. 2, Izzi has challenged Buccha to a Parts War so he can rebuild his Air Trecks, but Buccha is rated E, whereas Izzi is only an F rider. To win over Buccha, he will have to push beyond his abilities. Luckily for him, the battlefield is his and Buccha’s own school, and Izzy knows it intimately. But when his best friends end up in the hospital after trying to fight Buccha on their own, Izzi realizes that the stakes are higher than just parts.

With rebuilt Air Trecks, Izzi will attempt to perform the most dangerous race of his life. The prize? Control of East Side Junior High. With so much at stake, it’s no wonder that other Air Treckers are watching this event closely, including Simca … much to Ringo’s dismay!

The story continues in Air Gear, Vol. 4.

The Metamorphosis

Kafka, Franz. The Metamorphosis. 2011. 201p. 159 mins. ISBN 9781937028121. Available as an audiobook on Overdrive.

As a traveling salesman, Gregor Samsa rarely sleeps at home. On the few occasions he gets to sleep in his bed, he relishes the experience. So when he awakens in his own bed one morning only to discover that he’s been transformed into a giant insect, Gregor is at first concerned that he is late for work. Somehow he slept through his alarm and missed his train for work, and surely his manager is already on his way here to see what the matter is and ask why Gregor is being such a bad employee. The metamorphosis from a human being to a bug is only of secondary importance to Gregor, who is the family’s sole breadwinner. He really must get ready for work.

But moving around as an insect is simply too hard, especially if one is not used to it. Soon the manager comes to Gregor’s bedroom door, and he orders that Gregor open his door. Encouraged by his parents through the left door as well as by his sister through the right door, Gregor struggles in his insect body to unlock, then open the door. His sudden appearance when the door finally opens shocks the manager, his parents, and his sister. Gregor quickly loses his job, has trouble finding food he likes, and finds himself unable to communicate with his loved ones.

As Gregor’s life slowly devolves, he remains as sharp as ever, but can only witness the absurd circumstances that rendered him even more of an outsider than he already was, alienated from all but his own thoughts. Gregor’s guilt and loneliness is not enough to encourage him to leave his family, and as he observes new family dynamics change, he realizes that he’s the one holding them back. A classic for the ages, Kafka’s story of alienation remains current even today.

Monument Men: Allied heroes, Nazi thieves, and the greatest treasure hunt in history

Edsel, Robert M. Monument Men: Allied heroes, Nazi thieves, and the greatest treasure hunt in history. 2009. 473p. 885 mins. ISBN 1599951495. Available as an audiobook from Overdrive.

As the German war machine was rolling through Europe during World War II, it became clear to museum curators and staff, as well as art experts around the world, that Hitler and his cadre of committed Nazis were systematically looting the art and historical collections of conquered countries and shipping it out to Germany for “safekeeping.” Hitler’s goal was to create the best art museum in the world in his hometown of Linz.

As early as 1940, plans were made by the museum community in the United States to help locate, retrieve, and return these works of art, but it wasn’t until 1943 that the U.S. Army recognized the need to have an official cultural policy and officers in charge of cultural preservation and recuperation that the Monuments, Fine Arts, and Archives program was established. Led by George Stout, the head of the conservation department at Harvard University’s Fogg Art Museum, Monument Men landed with the invasion force on D-Day and spread throughout Europe as the Allies slowly pushed back the German armies towards Germany.

A lack of political will meant that the Monument Men were always under equipped, lacked basic necessities, did not receive proper recognition for their mission from military authorities, and had to fight tooth and nail to preserve and rescue the cultural heritage of Europe. Racing against time and the advancing Russians who were intent on extracting war repairs through capturing the art looted by the Germans, the Monument Men were able to save Western Europe’s most significant cultural masterpieces and worked tirelessly for decades to reunite art with their former owners.

This story of courage and undaunting drive from men who were in their forties, fighting a young man’s war, illustrate clearly why they are called the greatest generation. Without them, our cultural heritage would be significantly smaller.

Urban Legends

Stewart, Gail. Urban Legends. Part of The Mysterious & Unknown series. 2012. 96p. ISBN 978-1-60152-185-9. Available at 398.2 STE on the library shelves.

The growth of communication and social media has led to an explosion of false information. Some of it is done to confuse or obfuscate. Others are done for commercial or economic advantages. But some are fabricated to provide a moral or to explain specific circumstances. Known as urban legends, these arise with a kernel of truth and are just far out enough to be almost unbelievable yet provide enough convincing elements to make people believe they are true.

From the urban legend that dropping a penny from the top of the Empire State would kill a pedestrian on the sidewalk to the live cockroach growing in the tongue of someone who gave himself a papercut licking an envelope, urban legends are persistent, widely circulated, and often morph into other legends retaining the same lesson or moral. This book presents several urban legends and how they have evolved over time. These urban legends deal with stories that are too good to be true, stories that are meant to scare, stories about celebrities, stories about animals, and stories about food and drinks.

Readers who enjoy the paranormal or the thrill of the strange will appreciate the urban legends presented in this short book.

The Odyssey

Homer. The Odyssey. 2016. 37 mins. Abridged. Available as an audiobook on Overdrive.

Odysseus left to fight Troy, and he has now been missing for ten years. Nobles are swarming his wife Penelope, hoping to lay their hands on his lands and riches. His young son, Telemachus, grows up and becomes the leader of father’s kingdom in his absence, but his nobles still oppose him.

The goddess Athena advocates for Odysseus’ return to Ithaca, and Zeus finally consents. He returns home only to realize that his nobles are in open revolt and have been wasting his wealth. Disguised by Athena, he is recognized by his old nurse and by his valiant dog. Odysseus partakes of a meal in the palace before revealing himself in a feat of strength. Blood flows as the nobles are punished and Odysseus reclaims his throne, helped by Telemachus.

P.S.: I Like You

West, Kasie. P.S.: I Like You. 2016. 329p. 6 hours 56 minutes long. ISBN 978-0-545-85097-1. Available as an audiobook on Overdrive.

Lily stands out at her high school, and not for the better. Now a junior, her nemesis Cade gave her the nickname “Magnet” back in middle school, and it has stuck ever since. Cade is conceited, thinks he’s the most beautiful boy in the school, and bestows nicknames and insults to everyone that crosses his path. Her inability to catch a basketball was so funny to her classmates that they all kept passing her the ball, hence the nickname Magnet. Lily has never forgiven Cade, and when he dated her best friend Isabelle she did everything she could to undermine the relationship.

Lily wants to become a songwriter. She’s always writing lyrics and accompanying her songs on her trusted guitar. She’s not ready to share any of them, however, not even with Isabelle. Her home life is frantic and loud, with two younger brothers. She also has to share a bedroom with Ashley, her older sister who attends community college but stays at home. Her parents do their best, but there’s never peace at home.

During a moment of inattention in Chemistry, her teacher catches her writing away, and he tells her that from now on she cannot have her trusted green book in front of her. In her despair later on that week, she writes a song lyric on her desk. To her surprise, when she sits back down at her desk she discovers that someone completed the lyric. Soon, she’s exchanging old fashioned letters with an unknown male correspondent. With Chemistry classes taking place all day, it could be anyone. That guy is sensitive, with a distant father and a demanding stepfather. They share the same musical tastes, and they expose each other to new bands.

But when she discovers that Cade is her secret penpal, everything changes. How can the boy she’s falling in love with be the jerk that makes her life hell? Can Lily reconcile Cade’s two dramatically opposed persona into a person she can truly love and who will love her back?