One of the Survivors

November 1, 2009
Gr 5-9-When a fire strikes a Pennsylvania high school, an entire class dies except for 14-year-old Joey and his friend Maureen. Their history teacher thinks that the fire alarm is a test and forbids his class to leave the room. Joey, obedient by nature, defies Mr. Austen by walking out, and Maureen follows his lead. A year earlier, Joey's mother died in a fire so he could not ignore the panic building inside him. The truth of what happens that day comes out much later in the story. In the meantime, Joey and Maureen are made targets of blame, heckling, and ostracizing. Feeling both displaced guilt and anxiety, they learn to deal with their pain in different ways. Shaw leads readers thoughtfully and realistically through Joey's healing process from counting cars going down his street and refusing to sleep inside the house, to journaling and finally to attending a memorial service for his classmates in which he and Maureen give speeches. Joey reveals his last glance of his classmates by sketching them as he remembers them. Shaw tackles a gut-wrenching situation in honest, solution-oriented terms that should appeal to reluctant readers. The novel is short, the plot and suspense build slowly, and the decisions required by the teens make for thought-provoking discussions."D. Maria LaRocco, Cuyahoga Public Library, Strongsville, OH"

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