Scar Island

by Dan Gemeinhart
NPMS paperback 249 pages
genre: YA dystopian

A student was reading this when I was subbing last week. I got another copy from the media center and read it to respond to some questions he had. I will see him tomorrow at school.

I made a cheat sheet for the characters because there are a lot of them! (Sixteen boys on a desolate island being punished for juvenile offenses, plus eight adults . . . and three other adults.) Kind of a nasty story, but just right for middle school.

I like that the author referenced great literature - Robinson Crusoe, Treasure Island, Lord of the Flies, and Moby Dick. I wonder if any students reading this would try to tackle those titles. My favorite character (besides the protagonist Jonathan) was the librarian!

The Admiral and his men are nasty creeps who should not be working with adolescent reform in any way! This book is a page-turner for sure.