The Vigilante Poets of Selwyn Academy
FlumeAward – The Vigilante Poets of Selwyn Academy The Vigilante Poets of Selwyn Academy by Kate Hattemer
Hi All! I asked an 8th grade patron to write a quick summary of this book… It’s quite wonderfully written! I haven’t read the book yet, but thought a teen’s perspective would be helpful, perhaps; I’ve left it intact with any mistakes. Here it is:
We all know that reality television is an oxymoron and a blatant lie. The episodes are selectively edited and sometimes even scripted. The drama is all engineered, and people are manipulated time after time. We watch it anyways. When kTV comes to a small arts high school in Minnesota, creating the new hit reality show For Art’s Sake, four teenagers see through the scripted mess that has taken over their school to the rotten center. They decide to protest the show through what kTV has spoiled- art. They begin writing a long poem, complete with drawings and brilliant insights, distributed weekly under the eyes of the corrupt administration. But these artists have underestimated the power of corruption and fame. When one of their own goes to the dark side, the remaining three put together a half hatched, desperate plan to save their friend and their school from the evil clutches of For Art’s Sake. Will they succeed? Will they fail on live television‽ (Bang. Interrobang.) Will all of them make it back intact, physically and emotionally? With the aid of a heroic gerbil, this team of three will decide this school’s fate, but not without first learning some lessons about friendship, corruption, and tricolons. Not for the faint of heart, or those who aren’t even remotely curious when I say interrobang, Kate Hattemer’s The Vigilante Poets of Selwyn is a beautiful, funny, smart novel about finding who you are and who you want to be.
Jacob via Lisa Houde
Rye Public Library
I recently read this book and I really wanted to like it. The concept is different, the use of literary terms throughout is unique and the concept in general is one that teens are interested in. However, I found it to be very choppy and disjointed enough that it was distracting. I think there’s a small set of students who will REALLY like it, but I don’t think it will have broad enough appeal for the Flume List.
Heidi Grant, Nashua High School North
**Heidi – thanks for this review – Haven’t had a chance to read it and really wanted the perspective of a librarian – much appreciated! 🙂 Lisa Houde, RPL