Customer Reviews

Tribes

5 star:		(7)
4 star:		(4)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

The son of an anthropologist does a "study" of the various tribes (cliques) of his high school? But what makes the book work (as always) is the believable characters and, yes, the heart. A great read.

Arthur Slade is one of my favorite children's/teen authors. His books are imaginative, unique and always a great read. I read my first Slade book when Dust won the Governor General's Literary Award back in 2001. I loved it so much I picked up this one, and was not disappointed.

This is the story of Percy Montmount Jr. and his friend Elissa who are in their final year of high school. Percy, whose father was an anthropologist, examines the social environment of high school through the eyes and methods of an anthropologist. The names of the tribes, and the social commentary associated with them, is hilarious. Some of the tribes are:

The Busybody Tribe
The Logo Tribe - exists to only wear name brands.
The Digerati Tribe - Worships bytes and silicon Chips.
The Lipstick/Hairspray Tribe
The Gee-The-Seventies-Were-Great-Even-Though-I Wasn't-Born-Yet Tribe
The Hockey Tribe - Subdivided into Canadians, Oilers, Rangers and 32 sub clans.
The Jesus Freaks
The Madonna Tribe (But in decline and near extinct)

Join Percy and Elissa as they navigate their senior year, and as Percy must come to grips with his own anthropological reality. This is a great fun and very enjoyable read.

Tribes is unlike any novel I've ever read. Percy's way of scientifically classifying his classmates is funny, yet serious at the same time. I think anyone who has ever pondered the universe or the meaning of life will find Percy's thoughts and the other characters' points of view intriguing. Arthur Slade creates a brilliant blend of light and thought-provoking sections. The twists and turns of the plot are excellent too. I would recommend this book to all teens who like reading.

I read the formal description on my Kindle and this did not sound like my kind of book. Then I read the favorable reviews, which were more insightful, and decided to give it a try. I am so glad I did! "Tribes" entertained me throughout. To me, the various tribes were not as entertaining as the anthropological vernacular used by Percy, the wonderful protagonist. This kid just tickled me! I hope more people read it and review it, as it deserves a large audience and a lot of praise.

I had no idea what to expect when I dowloaded this ebook. I did it on a whim. I was pleasantly surprised at a facinating read. The protagonist is a troubled high school senior boy who is struggling with the loss of two people very close to him. I'm not saying more to avoid spoilers. This is one of those books where information is given just bits and pieces at a time and I don't want to give stuff away.

In the book, the voice of the protagonist is uniquely done. There is LOTS of internal dialog. This might turn off some in the book's inteneded audience (YA I believe), but others will find it refreshing. As an adult, I thought it clever.

As for content, I don't remember any swearing (at least nothing that made me cringe). There is one very short make out scene that younger teens might wince at. Or, I should say, that parents of younger teens might wince at. I would definitely recommend this for older teens who will appreciate the serious themse of suicide and depression.

Lois

I didn't think this book would be as good as it was. Since I'm so right brained, I was doubtful at the very left brained, analytical protagonist. But, despite that, I managed to slide right into his shoes and found his word- his odd, wacky, GEOGRAPHICAL world- pleasant and enjoyable. Try it. Come on, it's only one click (and no cost) for this enlightening free ebook. What could it hurt?

Thank you for your time.

This is a clever book, not to be missed. The author has a certain wit about him that makes the book enjoyable. Perk, our hero, is an observent of life around him. What he sees and what I see are two different things, and I'm missing a lot!

I'm putting Mr. Slade's name down as one of my favorite authors. Yeah, I have a spreadsheet so I can remember. I must be in the 'memory-fading fast' tribe. LOL

I found the book surprising and smart. I think it's a bit sophisticated for many young adults. I loved the deterioration of the main character's emotions and you get to see why he's so detached. It was a enjoyable read that I knocked out in one day.

Arthur Slade is truly a master of his craft and writes a compelling coming-of-age story, one so unique and special it will leave you stunned. This is undoubtedly one of the best books I have read in years. The book is a study of studies...quirky, thought provoking, humorous, and poignant, it follows the protagonist and his classmates through the last years of high school. Skillfully crafted words create images so profound you are there regardless of where "there" is. The author creates an unforgettable cast of characters, each divided into "tribes", which is part of the genius of this story. You live through the angst, false bravado, wonder, joy and pain which are the high school years, but in a fashion most likely foreign to your own experiences yet remarkably familiar. I cannot express eloquently enough how wonderful and touching this story is, and I urge you to take the time to read it, live it and love it as I did.

Tribes is about a high school student, Percy, who is trying to cope with the suicide of his best friend and the death of his anthropologist father.

Percy wanders around his high school, an observer looking in, classifying his fellow students according to tribes: the Jock Tribe, the Logo Tribe, the Hockey Tribe (the book takes place in Canada, and the writer is a Canadian).

Percy cuts himself in the book, but there were few scenes that mentioned it, which is probably why I couldn't find any reference to this book as a cutting book except at my local library's web catalog.

There are two things I want to note that make this book differ from the other two books about cutting that I read (Cut by Patricia McCormick and Crosses by Shelley Stroehr) for my project. First, the author (in the voice of the main character) does a pretty good job of describing the origins of cutting without making it seem like a lecture. He takes an anthropological view that cutting is a ritual, more of a rite of passage and that cutting has existed all over the world throughout history. Percy describes his friend Elissa having "engaged in ritual body piercing, not for fashion, but in honor of ancient beliefs. Some African cultures believed that demon spirits fly up a person's nostrils and cause illness. To prevent this, she wore a nose ring."

Unlike the cutters of the previous two books I read, Percy practices piercing as a form of self-mutilation. His piercing occurs when he's overwhelmed and can't focus, or when he becomes upset about something. His self-injury is only mentioned four times in the novel, for a total of only several hundred words, but you get the sense it's a routine part of his life.

The main protagonist is a male, and that in-and-of-itself is notable, simply for the reason that male cutters are rarer than female cutters. While Percy did not, male cutters tend to also display aggressive behavior-acting out in class, stealing, and fighting-more than female cutters.

Percy is as unique a cutter as his story, which I enjoyed very much. I hope that it becomes more widely known and recognized as a part of the cutting genre.