Zen And The Art Of Faking It (Hardcover)

by Jordan Sonnenblick (Author)
Key Phrases: earthly attachments, Sister Mary Clare, San Lee, Woody Guthrie (more...)

Editorial Reviews

Product Description
When eighth-grader San Lee moves to a new town and a new school for the umpteenth time, he doesn't try to make new friends or be a loner or play cool. Instead he sits back and devises a plan to be totally different. When he accidentally answers too many questions in World History on Zen (only because he just had Ancient Religions two schools ago) all heads turn and San has his answer: he's a Zen Master. And just when he thinks everyone (including the cute girl he can't stop thinking about) is on to him, everyone believes him . . . in a major Zen way.



About the Author
JORDAN SONNENBLICK is the author of many acclaimed novels for Scholastic Press. He lives with his very supportive wife and two remarkably amusing children in Bethlehem, Pennsylvania. Drums, Girls & Dangerous Pie was his first novel.

Product Details

• Reading level: Young Adult
  
• Hardcover: 272 pages
• Publisher: Scholastic Press; Reprint edition (October 1, 2007)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0439837073
• ISBN-13: 978-0439837071
• Product Dimensions: 5.3 x 5 x 0.7 inches
• Shipping Weight: 6.4 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars See all reviews (9 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #16,836 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

  Popular in these categories: (What's this?)

  #16 in	Books > Religion & Spirituality > Buddhism > Zen
  #42 in	Books > Children's Books > People & Places > Family Life > New Experiences
  #45 in	Books > Children's Books > People & Places > Social Issues > New Experiences

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

6 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars this book rocks, October 6, 2007

By	Susane Colasanti "teen book author" (New York City) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

You know how some people are just naturally hilarious? Jordan Sonnenblick is one of those people. ZEN is an awesome book, containing most excellent dialogue and a plot that will keep you up very late, reading until your eyes hurt to find out what happens next.

This is the story of San Lee, new kid, who's trying to fit in by...well, not exactly being himself. We love San right from the start. Like the rest of us, he has baggage to deal with and family issues and someone special in his life he's trying to impress, and we're sympathetic to his struggles. You'll love how San changes as his confidence grows. And the Zen bits are really fun.

Read it. Love it. Pass it on.

5 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Courtesy of Teens Read Too, October 10, 2007

By	TeensReadToo.com "Eat. Drink. Read. Be Merrier." (All Over the US & Canada) - See all my reviews

Author Jordan Sonnenblick has done it again. ZEN AND THE ART OF FAKING IT gets the up and downs and total frustration of being a teen just right.

San Lee's life has been full of new towns and new schools, but this one upsets him more than all of the others combined. This time, instead of having his dad uproot the family in search of his latest scheme, it is just San and his mother because his dad is in prison.

Not particularly successful at anything in the past, San has frequently used negative behavior to get attention. Being Oriental and adopted by a white couple has not always made things easy. Now with his father serving time for his shady business dealings, San finds himself feeling the need to get things right this time.

Faced with not only a new school and trying to fit in, but also with Wednesday night phone calls from a convict father he never wants to talk to again, San is ready to try just about anything. With his mother working long hours to make ends meet, he decides he needs a gimmick to win some friends and positively influence some people. Thanks to his new social studies teacher, the door to Zen Buddhism opens wide.

San's well-worn clothes and tattered sandals become a great disguise as he steps into his role as the Zen expert of the eighth grade. With help from the local library, the perfect "meditation" rock right outside school, and his new friend, Woody, San fools everyone into believing his Buddhist philosophy. Although he seems to be fitting in and gaining popularity, he worries that faking it may make him like the father he has learned to detest.

Sonnenblick uses his humorous, straight-forward style to grab readers on page one, and whisk them into San's world. There are crazy antics, a touch of romance, family frustrations, and quite a bit of Buddhist information packed into this fast-paced read. If you haven't read Sonnenblick's other books, be sure to check out Drums, Girls, And Dangerous Pie and Notes From The Midnight Driver.

Reviewed by: Sally Kruger, aka "Readingjunky"

3.0 out of 5 stars it's okay, but you can find better..., May 5, 2009

By	lee - See all my reviews

I checked out this book in the library, and the beginning is great! San Lee has a great character and a sense of humor, and the plot is pretty interesting... until the ending. Man, the ending was practically crash and burn.... so much character development, details, and smooth sailing for around 210 pages, then the ending wraps up cheesily and really, really abruptly. And a bit sappy, too. Personally, to me, the ending is just as important as the rest of the story....

Yeah it's weird that someone's name like "Sonnerblick" is writing from the perspective of an Asian American boy, but he did a good job. (I'm Asian American myself.)