Customer Reviews

Dexter the Tough

5 star:		(4)
4 star:		(2)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

My 12 year old son (6th grader) is a reluctant reader. I usually set a number of pages that he must read and he actually went beyond the goal at the first sitting. I know this book is geared for ages 7-10 but it held his interest and he enjoyed it so don't let the age range be your guide. It's a good read for boys who seem to be more interested in...well other things besides reading books--Mission Accomplished.

Margaret Peterson Haddix's DEXTER THE TOUGH tells of new kid Dexter, whose defense against being new is to assume a tough exterior confronting principal, janitor, and kids who laugh at him. His determination to handle family and school problems with a tough display will lead to trouble unless he modifies his approach in DEXTER THE TOUGH.

Dexter is mad. He hates his new school, living with his grandma, the principal, the secretary, and even the custodian. That's why he hit Robin on the first day at his new school. Now, his teacher wants him to write a story. Dexter decides to write about punching Robin. As he writes he realizes that things aren't always as they seem.

I loved this book! As I read I really started to care about Dexter and found his character very interesting. I think this would be a great book for any kid who ever felt misunderstood.

Dexter the Tough

I think Dexter the Tough was a good book because it is full of emotion. The story is about a boy who moved from Cincinnati to a different school. His teacher asked write a story about himself or things he had done.
Dexter wrote about how tough he is and how he beat up a kid. She asked him if it was true. He exclaimed it was not, but he lied his teacher also asked the kid Dexter beat up but he also exclaimed no and lied. His teacher asked him to get more information, like what was the boy's name that he had beaten up, where it happened and questions like that. She assigned that for his homework.
When he got home his grandma asked if he wanted something to eat, or if he wanted help with his homework. He said no thanks. Then he waited for her to start watching TV before he started his homework.
The next day his teacher assigned more homework on his story. After he had finished his homework, he went bicycling and saw the kid he had beaten up. He found out the kid's name was Robin. Robin was a very nice boy and had been home schooled most of his life. Dexter hopes to become Robin's friend, and they do become friends Dexter's dad finally gets out of the hospital and Dexter's mom can get Dexter back to Cincinnati.
I think that this book should be an assigned book that we have to read in class. What I liked about the book was that Dexter thinks he is tough. I also think that there is a lot of emotion in the story. The book also has a lot of funny things like marshmallow transplant instead of bone marrow transplant. His teacher seems really nice she has a twinkle in her eye until she finds out about the fight.

I bought this book for my 8 yr old son who is seldom entertained by books. At first he seemed to be bored with it but after the second chapter, kept him hooked. This has become one of his favorites and has a wonderful story. When the book was completed, his response to it was, "that was a really good book!" Apparently, he would recommend this one.

I received this book very shortly after ordering it. I think the boy I tutor will really like to read this one.