Gifted fifth grader Alvin Webster, accustomed to always being the best, the first, and the one with the most right answers, has some adjustments to make when he finds out he is getting a new baby brother at the same time he tries to tutor a less gifted student who does not want to be tutored.
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Book Description
Editorial Reviews
From School Library Journal
Grade 4-6 Two events change the life of Alvin Webster, a gifted student and a compulsive achiever. His parents announce the coming arrival of a sibling, and at school, he is assigned to tutor a fellow fifth grader in math. When Bone refuses to become Alvin's star pupil, Alvin is faced with his first failure. In the end, Alvin does help Bone improve in math, but Bone teaches Alvin just as much about coping with life in general. This novel features the same Manhattan private school found in Greenwald's stories about Rosy Cole and has the same formatlarge type, brief text, and black-and-white illustrations on almost every page. The sketches occasionally amplify a point so much so that hasty readers may miss that point. The brief text does not allow for much character development beyond the initial descriptions. Plot is everything, and although the need to develop the talents of giving and sharing are mentioned, Alvin's need to be first is the real story. Readers unfamiliar with the demands of Alvin's private school world may have trouble empathizing with him. The large print and profusion of illustrations make the book appear to be for a younger audience than the interest level demands. When Alvin finally fails a math test, it is more of a plot contrivance than a likely occurence, and when Bone turns out to be gifted in his own way, it means that Alvin never really learned how to get along with a ``regular'' at all. In spite of its flaws, this book, with its amusing title and cover and approachable format, will attract young readers, but the limited scope will probably keep it from becoming a lasting favorite. Susan L. Rogers, Plymouth Friends Meeting School, Pa.
Copyright 1988 Reed Business Information, Inc.
Copyright 1988 Reed Business Information, Inc.
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