Sleeping Freshmen Never Lie by David Lubar
Reviewed by JenniferRatings
Content Ratings based on a 0-5 scale where
0 = no objectionable content and
5 = an excessive or disturbing level of content
LANGUAGE
VIOLENCE
SEXUAL CONTENT
ADULT THEMES
Ratings Explanation
Language: Instances of swearing and profanity, also “screw you.”
Violence: Upper classmen pick on Freshmen, dump their backpacks out, smack them in the head and take their lunch money. Fights at school with punching and kicking.
Sexual Content: There is a cute girl at school who always wears tight tops and is “hot.” Scott would do anything for her because she looks so great in her shirts.
Adult Themes: A student attempts suicide and the school kids make jokes about it.
Synopsis
Scott Hudson’s freshman year in high school is off to quite a start. There is homework on the first day of school, the girl he has known since kindergarten is suddenly gorgeous, and keeping his own lunch money is a challenge. To top it all off, his mother announces that she is pregnant! Scott decides to share his hard fought wisdom about surviving high school with his future sibling via a diary that’s not really a diary, because guys don’t keep diaries. As Scott learns to navigate the mine field that is high school, he runs for student government, befriends the school thug and the “weird” girl, joins the newspaper staff and tries out for the school play. By the end of the year he has a wealth of knowledge to share with the new baby.
Sometimes sad, sometimes poignant, but mostly funny, I laughed through Sleeping Freshmen Never Lie. My favorite part is the steady parade of Spanish teachers who either don’t speak Spanish (the gym teacher who can only count in Spanish so they spend the period doing push-ups), speak Spanish with a French or Australian accent, or don’t speak any English at all and communicate with hand gestures. Although funny, Scott learns several life lessons that are applicable to everyone. Even annoying people have feelings so be nice to them; you might not know what is going on in their lives. Be careful how you label others, sometimes the most surprising people end up being your best friends. You might not know your family as well as you think you do, so pay attention.
©2009 The Literate Mother