Stanford Wong Flunks Big-Time

Yee, Lisa. Stanford Wong Flunks Big-Time. Scholastic, 2005. Paperback $5.99, ISBN-13 978-0-439-62248-6.

What’s it about?

Stanford Wong, star basketball player, in danger of failing the sixth grade and being off the team, must miss basketball camp, take summer school and endure the humiliation of his nemesis Millicent Min tutoring him.  

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Stanford Wong is looking forward to going to a highly reputable basketball camp and being the only seventh grader to be on the A-team at school.  He feels that his life is over when his English teacher, Mr. Glick, tells him he will fail sixth grade if he doesn’t take English in summer school. As if this isn’t bad enough, Stanford must miss basketball camp to take summer school. He may even be off the basketball team if he doesn’t pass. Plus, his parents are fighting, his work-a-holic father is perpetually disappointed in him, and his beloved grandmother Yin-Yin is sent to a depressing nursing home. Could things be worse? Yes—Stanford must also suffer the indignity of being tutored by Millicent Min, a snotty eleven-year-old genius who is already taking college courses. He fears losing his friends and new girlfriend, Millicent’s friend Emily Ebers if they find out he is taking summer school. He and Millicent craft a lie that protects Stanford’s secret (that he struggle in school) and Millie’s secret (that she is a genius), but threatens their friendships with Emily.  

Stanford Wong Flunks Big-Time is an accessible and funny book about a likeable under-achiever. It is not necessary to have read Millicent Min, Girl Genius to enjoy Stanford Wong Flunks Big-Time, but it is hilarious to see how different the same events look to these very different protagonists. Stanford comes across as a bit of a jerk in from Millicent’s perspective, but he is far more sensitive than she imagines. He certainly doesn’t see himself as the handsome, popular big-shot he is portrayed as. Instead, Stanford always feels on edge about his social status, which wasn’t always good. He is secret stress-knitter. He watches Sesame Street with his taciturn friend Stretch (who is so self-conscious about his voice change that he never speaks.) At the same time, Stanford is a very talented athlete with a tight-knit group of friends (and a frenemy, the mean-spirited and trouble Digger).  This book may appeal more to boys, with its fart jokes and guy humor, but its humor and sensitive portrayal of Stanford will also appeal to girls.

Genre: Humor, Contemporary Realistic Fiction, Friendship Fiction

Reading level: 4^th grade 

Interest level: Grades 4-7

Subjects: School, Grades, Basketball, Family, Friends, Parental disapproval, Self-esteem, Popularity

Read-alikes:

Korman’s No More Dead Dogs

Series information:   

Millicent Min, Girl Genius

So Totally Emily Ebers 

Page by Paige

Gulledge, Laura Lee. Page by Paige. Amulet Books, 2011.  Paperback $9.95, ISBN-13  978-0-8109-9722-6

What’s it about?

Paige is a reserved young artist who has recently moved to New York City. With the help of a group of new friends, she begins to show people her artwork—and, page by page, the real Paige.

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Paige moves from Virginia to New York City, an overwhelming change for the sensitive young artist. She feels distant from her parents, who don’t really know the real Paige. She is terrified to show anyone her sketchbook, because her artwork reveals who she really is. At her new school, she meets an artsy, quirky group of friends who like her and accept her, including her first boyfriend, Gabe, a sensitive writer. She eventually overcomes her shyness enough to show her sketchbook to Gabe, completely exposing herself. She becomes more courageous, and begins to post her artwork online and share her art with the world in anonymous installments of art (including pasting beautiful hand-drawn paper trees to plain brick walls) by the “Agents of Whimsy” (with the help of her friends).   

This is an excellent graphic novel, and a great choice to hand young creative tweens and teens.  At first, I was a little skeptical about the extremely dramatic reactions to her parents, but the angst Paige feels about something as mundane as having to clean her room for company masks some deeper identity and self-esteem issues. While Paige may have it far easier than many of today’s tweens and teens, I think kids can relate to feeling like people don’t really know the person they really are.  The strongest part of this book is the amazing artwork, full of expression and interesting metaphors. Gulledge uses washes for many panels, which give this book a softer, more realistic look than the pen and ink panels. She does this for emphasis, and it’s an effective technique. I look forward to seeing more from this artist. 

Genre: Contemporary Realistic Fiction

Subjects: Art, Artists, Self-Esteem, Self-Perception, Teenagers, Friendship

Reading level/ Interest level: Grades 6-12

Read-alikes:

Castellucci’s The Plain Janes 

Smile!

Telegemeier, Raina. Smile. Graphix, 2010. Tr. $10.99 ISBN 978-0-545-13206-0.

What’s it about?

Smile is a graphic novel memoir that tells the story of Raina, who knocks out her two front teeth when she is eleven and undergoes years of dental surgery, braces, head-gear and an embarrassing retainer with fake teeth attached.    

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Eleven-year-old Raina trips and knocks out her two front teeth after a Girl Scout meeting, and her smile is never quite the same, as she undergoes years of dental surgery, braces, head-gear and even an embarrassing retainer that has fake teeth attached.  After the initial treatment, when the dentist is able to pull the impacted tooth back down and put back the one that fell out, Raina’s teeth still don’t look quite right. They are much shorter than her other teeth because the bone has been damaged as well.  Smile shows the impact the seemingly endless dental trauma has on her self-esteem and the teasing  she endures because of it. 

Smile is a great book to hand pre-teens and young teens, particularly girls, because these are awkward years, with lots of physical changes, teasing, and battles with personal appearance.  Raina eventually finds a new group of friends that don’t hassle her about her appearance, and when the novel closes, she seems more comfortable in her own skin.  The colorful, lively artwork has many comic moments, and the tone is never overly serious.  Telegemeier does a good job of keeping things in perspective—after Raina weathers a major earthquake, she comments “I guess in the grand scheme of things losing a couple of teeth isn’t the end of the world.”

Genre: Non-fiction; Humor; Graphic Novel Memoir

Reading level: 3^rd grade

Interest level: Grades 5-9

Read-alikes:

Steinberger’s Japan Ai: A Tall Girl’s Adventures in Japan

Hicks’ War at Ellsmere

Awards:

Appears on Kirkus’ “Best Young Adult Books” list (2010)

On YALSA’s 2011 list “Top Ten Great Graphic Novels for Teens”

Subjects: Dental injuries, Middle school, High School, Fitting in, Appearance, Relationships, Earthquakes, Self-esteem