The Cardturner

by Louis Sachar
Scott County Library audiobook 6 CDs
read by the author
genre: YA realistic fiction

Hmm. A book about teenagers and bridge. It kept my attention, for the most part. There was way too much of explaining bridge, though. The audiobook had a foghorn noise to signal that a more detailed explanation was coming . . . and I grew to hate the sound of it.

In the essential story, Alton becomes the cardturner for his blind great-uncle Trapp. Trapp is a crotchety old man who can remember the cards after hearing them once. Alton's parents are horrid - only fostering a relationship with this "favorite" (and very wealthy, childless) uncle to try to get into his will. I only realized *after* I had finished the story that my dad would have *loved* it! He and my mom used to host bridge parties and their "post-mortems" on the hands played and the bidding would go all night long. It drove us crazy as kids! "You should have bid two no-trump!" Ah well, I don't think many middle schoolers will read this book.

Notes:
I never knew there was a correct order - spade, heart, diamond, club.
Annabelle - intriguing storyline
Alton is a *wuss*!!! His "best friend" Cliff steals Katie from him, then moves in on Toni. Say something, Alton!
I loved his sister Leslie! She was a gem.

 

<Wrote the above on 6.14.2017. Added below on 5.15.2022.>

This book was being discarded at New Prague Middle School, so I grabbed it off the "freebie" cart. It was fun to read the print book and put post-its in. I still don't want to learn to play bridge . . . it sounds too complicated for me!

Page 12 - "And, and, and . . . That's the trouble with money." 

Alton and Leslie are listing all the things they could have with Great Uncle Lester's money. They keep adding more items to their wish lists. Sadly, that IS the trouble with money. There's never enough. (Seriously, do people like Jeff Bezos and Elon Musk realize how ridiculous they are?)

Page 37 - "I'm not being unintegritary,"

This made me laugh! Alton is referring to having integrity, but his creation of a new word is a bit of a tongue twister. I like making up words, but this is unique. He was arguing with his mom about returning the $75 Trapp gave him for being his card turner.

Page 40 - "Maybe I should have given Leslie a cut."

After his mom insisted Alton return the money, Leslie pointed out to their parents that such an action might convince Uncle Lester that they didn't need money . . . and cut them out of the will. Taking his great uncle to play bridge four times a week meant Alton was earning $200 weekly. Leslie is such a fun character in this book.

Page 83 - "But in case you haven't noticed, I have a deranged personality. I don't like people telling me how to do things. It makes me feel stupid. I have this need to figure things out for myself."

I don't think that trait makes Alton deranged! A lot of us like to figure things out for ourselves. It's just helpful if we're willing to listen and learn from others, too.

Page 97 - "He'd love it if you played bridge. He's always saying how he wishes more young people would take up the game. He's afraid that bridge is like a dying culture. He's worried that in like thirty years, there will be no one left to play it."

Toni and Alton have their first phone conversation. Toni's observations about Lester and bridge are spot-on.

Page 119 had the boiled egg (without shell) into the bottle with a small opening using a match. It made me think of subbing in Kalal's 8th grade science class and doing this experiment as a demo of how air pressure works!

Page 114 - "He said that synchronicity was different from a mere coincidence. With synchronicity you feel that there's a definite connection. You just don't know what that connection is."

When Alton goes on to talk about his former neighbor and classmate Doug Bridges, the story is both cool and eerie. I love this kind of stuff!

Page 187 - "I always make the biggest fool of myself just when I think I'm being clever."

Alton remembers the curious questions he asked Trapp (Great Uncle Lester) and realizes too late how painful the memories of Annabel were for him.

Page 213 - "'He took me in without asking any questions. He bought me new clothes, and quickly became like a father to me, the way a father is supposed to be, the father I never had. He told me about my mother, my real mother. I knew it was painful for him to talk about her, but those stories helped fill a void inside of me. I found out who I was. I loved my mother, and through his stories, somehow felt loved by her."

Toni's mom Sophie shared what a powerful impact Lester Trapp had on her life. Actions speak louder than words!

Page 222 - "I remembered something Trapp had told me once about his bridge-bum days. Even though he had had very little money, those days were the happiest of his life. He told me that the secret of success was to never spend more than you had. 'Don't use credit cards. Don't owe anyone money.' Once you go into debt, he had said, you lose your freedom."

Those are great words of wisdom!

I have to say, I'm a little shocked that this is the only Sachar title in my blog. Has it been so long since I've read other books of his? I re-read Holes last year (for at least the third time) but I guess I'm not as diligent about blogging as I thought I was!