Amadeo Kaplan has two goals: to discover something very important, and to finally make a friend in his new town. So, when William (!) Wilcox (!) talks to him one day, Amadeo sees his dreams coming true. William could become a friend, and his mother organizes estate sales-perfect places for unearthing treasures. As Amadeo helps William and Mrs. Wilcox sort out an eccentric old woman's belongings, he comes across a valuable signed drawing. Amadeo's thrilled, but the drawing is only part of his ultimate discovery.
Title alpha The Mysterious Edge of the Heroic World
Category Upper Middle School Fiction Plus
Pages Count 256
Summary Amadeo is intrigued by his new neighbor, Mrs. Zender, who seems out of place in the St. Malo community. He helps William and Mrs. Wilcox organize Mrs. Zender’s property for an estate sale in preparation for her move to a retirement home. Peter Vanderwaal is too busy preparing a new exhibit on art forbidden by the Nazis to read the memoir left by his deceased father, who once lived and worked in an Amsterdam art gallery looted by the Nazis. Amadeo becomes the pivotal link between these two worlds when he spots an item among Mrs. Zender’s possessions that may not belong to her.
Topics Lovebugs. Being new. Making a discovery. Telephones. Odd neighbors. Retirement homes. Battered women. Estate sales. Archives. The rich. Opera. Eavesdropping. Money. Amsterdam. Art. Nazi looting. Degenerate art. Photographs. Adjusting to change. Shopping. Appearances. Fur hats. Hired help. Forbidden artists. Opening nights. Mothers. Books. Nudes. Modigliani. Antique dealers. Implicit understandings. Winnebagos. Memoirs. Being Jewish. Homosexuality. Austrian amnesia. The Stockholm syndrome. Blackmail. Kurt Waldheim. Museum vetting. Donations. Friendship.
SRC Level 5.600000
SRC Points 13.000000
Lexile 910L
Trim Size 5 1/2" x 8 1/4"
Language English
JLG Release Date Oct 2007
Minimum grade 6
Maximum grade 8
Reading level Middle
Format Print
Upper Middle School Fiction Plus (Grades 6-8)
Upper Middle School Fiction Plus
Upper Middle School Fiction Plus (Grades 6-8)
For Grades 6-8
This collection features fiction titles selected for older middle school readers who are ready for longer, more layered stories that explore growing independence and changing perspective. Selections include realistic and speculative fiction with increased emotional and narrative complexity, offering stories that look beyond immediate experience and invite readers to engage with broader questions about identity, belonging, and the world around them.