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Invisible Lines
 
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Invisible Lines [Library Binding]

Mary Amato (Author), Antonio Caparo (Illustrator)
4.7 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (9 customer reviews)

Price: $18.99 & eligible for FREE Super Saver Shipping on orders over $25. Details
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Book Description

10 and up5 and up
If there’s one thing I’m good at it’s making people laugh because when I’m standing up I’m what you call a stand-up comedian, and when I’m sitting down, I’m just plain funny. 
 
Trevor is just plain funny, and he’s lucky he is. Because this year he needs a sense of humor. Moving to a new home is hard enough—the sign reads hedley gardens, but everyone calls these projects deadly gardens. And the move to a fancy new school is even harder—all the kids from Deadly Gardens seem to be in the same classes and keep to themselves, but somehow Trevor’s ended up in an advanced science class with kids who seem to have everything, and know everything, including how to please their strange new teacher.

Someone else might just give up, but Trevor has plans. This is going to be his year.  And he is going to use whatever he has, do whatever it takes, to make it at this new school. He may not have what these other kids have, but Trevor knows he’s got some stuff to show. No one is better at juggling in soccer, and he knows he can draw—he calls himself the Graffiti Guy.

But Xander, a star in the classroom and on the soccer field, has other plans for Trevor. He doesn’t like anyone trespassing on his turf and begins to sabotage Trevor at every opportunity. Who is going to believe Trevor over the school star? Is there any way that Trevor can achieve his goals against a guy who is as good at bullying as he is at everything else he does?
--This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

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Editorial Reviews

From Booklist

Trevor, a seventh-grader, lives in a tough, run-down housing project, but his school is in a rich neighborhood nearby, and it is hard for him to fit in. He is thrilled to join the soccer team, even though he cannot afford cleats, and his spoiled, rich classmate, Xander, won’t pass him the ball. With his father in jail and his mom searching for work, Trevor has to balance soccer practice with babysitting for his beloved, irritating younger siblings. A gifted artist, he finds escape from his life’s pressures when he begins to keep a required notebook for science class, which he fills with drawings, facts, and observations. With its exciting mix of soccer, science, art, friends, and enemies, Trevor’s first-person narrative will pull in readers, and the story’s class differences, a topic infrequently addressed in youth fiction, dramatize the invisible lines of the title. Without heavy messages, Trevor’s anger and tenderness are heartbreaking, and readers will appreciate that he is realistically flawed, especially in his attempts to get into the rich crowd. Grades 5-8. --Hazel Rochman --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

About the Author

Mary Amato is making a name for herself as the author of quirky books that kids just love. Her debut novel, The Word Eater, appeared on many state lists, and The Naked Mole-Rat Letters followed suit, gathering even more fans. She is also the author of a chapter book series starring the Riot Brothers, which began with Snarf Attack, Underfoodle, and The Secret of Life: The Riot Brothers Tell All, about which School Library Journal wrote, "Move over Captain Underpants, a couple of new pranksters are in town.... (r)eaders will beg for a sequel." You can visit her online at www.maryamato.com. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

Product Details

  • Reading level: Ages 10 and up
  • Library Binding: 336 pages
  • Publisher: EgmontUSA (November 24, 2009)
  • Language: English
  • ISBN-10: 1606840436
  • ISBN-13: 978-1606840436
  • Product Dimensions: 5.8 x 1.1 x 8.6 inches
  • Shipping Weight: 15.2 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
  • Average Customer Review: 4.7 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (9 customer reviews)
  • Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,719,876 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Mary Amato is an award-winning children's book author, poet, playwright, and songwriter. Her books have been translated into foreign languages, optioned for television, produced onstage, and nominated for the children's choice awards in many states.www.maryamato.com

 

Customer Reviews

9 Reviews
5 star:
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4 star:
 (3)
3 star:    (0)
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Average Customer Review
4.7 out of 5 stars (9 customer reviews)
 
 
 
 
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Most Helpful Customer Reviews

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars Invisible Lines, December 29, 2009
This review is from: Invisible Lines (Hardcover)
When Trevor moves to Deadly Gardens, it's the last place he wants to be. But school isn't that bad, when he befriends two of the most popular boys in his class, Langly and Xander. He also befriends a few other students. Everything seems to be going Trev's way, until his soccer skills puts him on Xander's bad side.

Trevor's just like any other kid, he wants to fit in. It's a little bit harder though, because his mother is struggling to make ends meet, especially when she has three kids. Trev is loving school, though, especially his Summit Science class, with the kooky Mr. Ferguson. The characters are written perfectly (I could honestly see some resemblences to people I went to school with).

This novel makes me breathe a sigh of relief that novels with a good message are being written for kids/pre-teens. I know when I was in the Middle Grade stage, I just read YA because I felt that I was getting more than I was from the MG (Middle Grade) novels I read back in the day.

Highlights: Invisible Lines really dives into a few topics that most MG novels would shy away from. Violence, theft, and abandonment. It was interesting to see Trevor's reaction to all of these as the story unwound. Mary Amato really captured Trevor's voice in this story, and I felt connected to him.

Also, the journal entries were fun to read and the art is beautiful. Trevor's love for art and soccer was endearing, and nice to read about.

Lowlights: Trevor's ambition to fit in. It just had me cringing throughout the story. Also, I felt I knew the end result when I was only fifty pages in (which might be due to the fact that I've read so many stories).
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1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars Heart warming book for middle grade readers!, May 18, 2010
This review is from: Invisible Lines (Hardcover)
I haven't read a MG book in so long and I'm so glad that I got the chance to read this one!

Mary Amato writes in a way that captures the voice of a preteen boy so well that it feels as if you are witnessing the real thing. I absolutely loved reading about Trevor. He's living with his younger brother & sister and mother. They live in these bad apartments and don't have a lot of money. I loved that this book dealt with real life issues and all of which were written in a way that a younger audience can deal with.

One of the issues in the book is Trevor doesn't have enough money to be on a club soccer team. You can tell that he has a passion for the sport and as I was reading the book, I just felt bad for him and the things he went through. Also, I envied Trevor's artistic talents. Drawing was another passion of his and he used it wisely. He started his own little business around school and drew stuff for his little brother. And at the start of each chapter there are illustrations and I thought those were nice!

Another big aspect of the book is Trevor's science class. He is put in Summit Science -an advanced class- by mistake. His science teacher is one of those teachers that always keeps the class interesting and fun instead of the more common reading out of the textbook type as well as being a teacher that really cared about his students.

I really enjoyed the character of Diamond. She lives in the same apartment building as Trevor and is always singing throughout the book as she has dreams of becoming a famous singer one day. Amato does a great job describing a situation that Diamond and Trevor face. My only problem is I wished there had been more of this character!
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1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars Humor and Heart in a Quality Story, February 26, 2010
By 
This review is from: Invisible Lines (Hardcover)
INVISIBLE LINES surprised and delighted me with its compelling voice, age-appropriate humor, and heartfelt story line. This is a true middle-grade winner that deserves to be read by everyone!

To start, Mary Amato slips easily into the voice of a seventh-grade boy. Trevor makes all the funny comments that we wished we could've made in middle school to be well-liked, and yet he does everything without the least hint of malice. He is genuinely compassionate with his brother and sister (both of whom have lively and memorable personalities of their own) while simultaneously having the typical adolescent concerns about being accepted, having the right friends, and owning brand names.

Every component of this novel is well put together, from fully fleshed-out characters to the science lessons on mushrooms to the bumps in Trevor's relationships with his new friends and family. Parents will want their sons to be like Trevor, while younger readers will clamor to be Trevor's friend. This is the first of Mary Amato's books that I've read, but with the quality and cohesiveness of INVISIBLE LINES, I know it won't be my last!
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