The Wave (Laurel-Leaf contemporary fiction) (Paperback)

by Todd Strasser (Author) "Laurie Saunders sat in the publications office at Gordon High School chewing on the end of a Bic pen..." (more)
Key Phrases: Principal Owens, The Grapevine, Gordon High (more...)

Editorial Reviews

Product Description
"Wave" is based on a true incident that occurred when a teacher conducted an experiment dealing with group pressure in his classes.

From the Publisher
The Wave is based on a true incident that occured in a high school history class in Palo Alto, California, in 1969.

The powerful forces of group pressure that pervaded many historic movements such as Nazism are recreated in the classroom when history teacher Burt Ross introduces a "new" system to his students. And before long "The Wave," with its rules of "strength through discipline, community, and action, " sweeps from the classroom through the entire school. And as most of the students join the movement, Laurie Saunders and David Collins recognize the frightening momentum of "The Wave" and realize they must stop it before it's too late.

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Product Details

• Reading level: Young Adult
  
• Paperback: 144 pages
• Publisher: Laurel Leaf (September 15, 1981)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0440993717
• ISBN-13: 978-0440993711
• Product Dimensions: 6.8 x 4.2 x 0.4 inches
• Shipping Weight: 2.9 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars See all reviews (179 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #6,038 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

35 of 40 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Highly recommended for adults and kids to read together, June 30, 2001

By	Matthew Gunia (Justice, Illinois) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

I'll start out by saying to adults out there that this is a book I would highly recommend...for your youngsters. First, it has characters that young adults like to read about--high schoolers, cheerleaders, football players, etc. Strasser also includes minor characters for break away from the action or for comic relief. I know my students enjoyed the characters, especially the girls who enjoyed the interaction between them and the fact that the progagonist is a female. Second, it deals with things that many young adults should know more about and/or have strong feelings about: the Holocaust and peer pressure. Discussing Nazi-ism with my class prior to reading the book caused them to ask many of the questions that the characters asked. The book helped them to understand the Holocaust better and lead to a discussion about peer pressure and the importance of setting your limits clearly before someone in high school pressures you into something (drugs, drinking, sex, stereotyping). Finally, it's a well written book. It has short chapters (everyone likes those), it's fast paced (because the book takes place over a week or so) and the main points are easilly understandable because the author has the characters repeat important information in different ways several times to make sure the young adult reader is not getting lost in sub-plots. In all, an excellent work that more parents or other adults should read with their children.

17 of 18 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Great book, just finished it, February 26, 2000

By A Customer

I just finished reading The Wave for my eighth grade english class and I thought it was great. I was only supposed to read up to chapter six for Monday, but I got so into the book that I finished it. I only wish that it was a little longer and that they had spent more time on the ending. It was really good to completely get a grasp on how much American youth will rely on one leader to think for them. Even though the book takes place in 1969, I think the incident could still take place today, because so many kids are still willing to follow a leader and do what the majority is doing. Deep down, The Wave really is a classic story about the effects of extreme peer pressure.

11 of 11 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A very good book!, March 1, 2001

By	GAM Siegen Class 10b (Siegen, Germany) - See all my reviews

The Wave by Morton Rhue

"Morton Rhue" is a pseudonym and his real name is Todd Strasser . He was born in New York City in 1950 and he grew up on Long Island (N.Y.). Todd went to the I.U. Willets Elementary School. The he went to the Wheatly School for junior high an high school. He had trouble with spelling and grammar. Later he graduated from Beloit College. He was a reporter on the Middletown (N.Y.) Times-Herald Record and an adverting copywriter before his first novel for young people, Angel Dust Blues, was published 1979. For some years he supplemented his income as the owner of Toggle Inc., a small fortune-cookie company. He and his wife, Pamela, live not far from New York City with their daughter, son, and yellow Labrador retriever. "The Wave" was the first book he had published under his pseudonym "Morton Rhue". As Todd Strasser he published more than 100 books. He wrote movie novelizations, too, for example "Free Willy", "Jumanji" or "Home alone". He got many awards for some of his books.

The book is called `The Wave', because the experiment, the teacher started is named like that. His intention is to create something, which symbolises movement, direction and impact. Then he gets the idea of calling it `The Wave' , because a wave has these characteristics. In order to give the `Wave members', his pupils, a feeling of community, he also introduces a special symbol and a special salute. The symbol is a circle with the outline of a wave inside it. The salute is to cup the right hand in the shape of a wave, then to tap it against the left shoulder and hold it upright.

Ben Ross a history teacher at an American high school is discussing the horrors of the holocaust. The students ask how all this could happen. They ask if all the Germans were not Nazis, why they just stood by and watched. Mr. Ross can not answer their questions properly. He wants to start an experiment. He wants to recreate the situation of life in Nazi Germany. This experiment is called The Wave. The Wave is completely different to their normal lessons. There is a membership card and a special salute. The new Wave community is a kind of secret family, something special. Other students want to be involved and members recruit new members. So the Wave moves beyond the classroom. Later the Wave gets out of control. Anyone who says something against the Wave is an enemy, these people are threatened. After a while Mr. Ross realizes that the Wave gets out of control. He decides to end his experiment abruptly. He organizes a Wave rally. When the lights in the hall get out a film of Hitler and the holocaust appear on the TV-screens. The film stops with a picture of Hitler surrounded by soldiers. Finally Mr. Ross says: "Yes you all would have made good Nazis... Fascism isn't something those other people did, it's right here in all of us".

The author of the book ‚The Wave' uses a limited omniscient narrator for the story. That means that it is told from the point of view of the most important characters (especially Laurie and Mr. Ross) He always uses the third person form. The relationship between descriptions and dialogues is balanced out.

In my opinion it is a must to read "The Wave" if someone is interested in the historical and political facts of the Third Reich. The Wave is a modern novel, that tells you how Hitler was able to have such a great success and how he won the masses. In "The Wave" the classroom- experiment is compared to Hitler's raise to power. Ben Ross plays the role of a leader and finally this thing called "The Wave" gets out of control. The book makes clear, that something like the Third Reich is not past, it tells us that it can happen even in the present. It is interesting to read and also easy to understand. Because of these reasons the reader may be caught up while reading it.

Sum: A book for young adults, told in a modern way. Everybody should read it and you will not regret it!