Superstar
by
Mandy Davis
Edition
Hardcover edition
Publisher
HarperCollins
Imprint
HarperCollins
ISBN
9780062377777
Awards and Honors
Oklahoma Sequoyah Book Awards 2019 Nominee
Kirkus Reviews Best Books of 2017, Middle Grade
POTENTIALLY SENSITIVE AREAS
Violence: Mild Violence
Lester’s voice pulls you in from the first page. He has undiagnosed Asperger’s (no longer called Aspberger’s) but his issues and trials are ones that all kids can relate to.
POTENTIALLY SENSITIVE AREAS
Violence: Mild Violence
Details
Format
Page Count
336
Trim Size
7 3/4" x 5 1/2"
AR
3.8: points 9
Lexile
580L
Genre
Fiction
Scholastic Reading Counts
14
JLG Release
Sep 2017
Book Genres
Topics
Single-parent families. Family life. Autism. Schools. Teachers. Classmates. Mother-son relationships. Science fair projects. Friendship.
Standard MARC Records
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Cover Art
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Praise & Reviews
Starred or favorable reviews have been received from these periodicals:
Booklist, The Horn Book Magazine, Kirkus Reviews*, Publishers Weekly*, School Library Journal
Praise & Reviews
School Library Journal
Lester loves two things: science and homeschooled life with his devoted mother. So it’s a shock when Mom announces that Lester will be attending fifth grade in public school because she is going back to work full-time. The pair have been especially close since the tragic, mission-related death of Lester’s astronaut father five years earlier; unresolved grief still haunts the family. Lester’s behaviors make his transition to public school a challenge (he later discovers he has autism), but caring staff and a kindhearted classmate, Abby, offer support. Then the annual science fair gives Lester both a way to fit in and an opportunity he’s been longing for: a chance to study space and flying, taboo subjects at home. Emphasizing characterization over action, the first-person narrative helps readers understand the social difficulties experienced by a child on the autism spectrum. In Lester and his mother, debut author Davis creates genuine, emotionally engaging characters who, over the course of the novel, grow and move toward heartfelt triumphs. While Lester’s mother is aware of his behavioral issues, it is not clear whether she sought services for him before he received a diagnosis and IEP from his new school. This may lead to comparisons with Lynda Mullaly Hunt’s Fish in a Tree, but Ally’s and Lester’s home lives are quite different. The book also overlooks Davis’s larger story of a family recovering from devastating loss. VERDICT Give to sensitive readers who enjoy rooting for the underdog and to fans of realistic stories with scientific themes.—Marybeth Kozikowski, Sachem Public Library, Holbrook, NY
Horn Book
Flight trajectories consume autistic ten-year-old Lester’s thoughts: those of meteors, planes, even kickballs. Up till now Lester has led a sheltered, home-schooled life, but Lester’s astronaut father has died, the family’s savings have dwindled, and his mother has a full-time job. Suddenly, Lester finds that his own trajectory is about to change: he’ll now have to attend public school, with a realistically portrayed about-to-retire teacher who is not thrilled to have him in her class, no less. Fortunately, Lester finds a friend in classmate Abby—that is, until a new student joins the class and steals Abby away. If readers accept the fact that Lester has never heard of autism (despite his mother being a librarian), there is plenty to enjoy in this story of friendship, bullying, education, and community. Lester’s literal perceptions are often different from what the adults (and readers) understand, providing insight into his character, especially surrounding his relationship with Abby and his ideas of what a friend should be. And that’s a superstar message for all readers. ed spicer
Grades 5-8
Realistic Fiction Middle Plus
For Grades 5-8
This 14-book category features stories with relatable characters that portray believable contemporary or historical real-life experiences.
14 books per Year
$235.90 per Year
Interests
Chapter Books/Novels,Diversity,Fiction,History,Realistic Fiction
Grades 5-8
Realistic Fiction Middle Plus
14 books per Year
$235.90 per Year
