Queen of the Toilet Bowl

October 1, 2005
Gr 7-9 -In the first book, Renata is constantly teased by the snobs at High Road High because her mother works as a cleaning woman. When she earns the role of Maria Von Trapp in the school musical, Karin, who wanted the part, exacts revenge by accusing Renata of stealing her watch. When that plan is foiled, she turns to the Internet, embarrassing Renata with a picture of her mother with her head in a toilet bowl. The protagonist rises above it all and is the best Maria her school has ever seen. In the second story, Wilf, 14, is embarrassed and angry that his parents are forcing him to go to summer camp again. He puts together an escape plan and is blackmailed by a fellow camper into taking him along. Charlie, a younger camper who is a good canoeist, catches up to them and the three kids are forced to work together to navigate some dangerous white water. These small, attractively designed titles are high interest/low ability books. They can be used successfully with special-ed students, lower-level readers, and ELL students. Both books have appealing plots, even if they are a bit pedantic. Teachers and librarians can make good use of them to entice less-skilled readers." -Lynn Evarts, Sauk Prairie High School, Prairie du Sac, WI"

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