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Teen Scene

FEBRUARY 13, 2012
Rotters by Daniel Kraus
When 16-year-old Joey’s mother is killed by a bus in Chicago, he is sent to live with a father he’s never met in Iowa. The kids at his new school immediately begin to bully him, and the teachers wrongly assume he is a trouble-maker and poor student when they find out he is the “garbage man’s” son. Everything about his father and his cabin reeks. Joey is left alone for days with no food, no transportation to school, and no idea what his father really does during his trips away. He attempts to keep some semblance of his previous life in Chicago - maintaining his straight-A status and playing trumpet with the school band. But his best efforts are thwarted by an unaccepting community. He leaves frantic, pleading messages with his best friend in Chicago, who thinks Joey is over-reacting and eventually tells him to stop calling. Gradually he learns that his father is a grave robber, and eager for something and someone to fill the void of his now empty life, Joey is trained by his father how to steal valuables from graves while leaving the plot seemingly untouched. It turns out this requires a lot of skill involving strength, speed, stealthiness, and cleverness. Joey is introduced to a nationwide society of grave robbers, the last of their generation, as he and his father travel across the country stealing from the dead. This suspenseful and emotional tale will not only surprise you, but keep you wondering how anything good can come out of it. Awarded the 2012 Odyssey Award winner for best audio, this book is appropriate for readers in grades 9 and up who enjoy a complicated journey as everything a boy was is stripped away and filled with something so unexpected. Filled with multiple memorable characters, this is highly recommended (especially as an audio!).


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