Gr 4-8-Fletcher follows members of a sixth-grade class through a day when their substitute teacher never shows. The students decide not to report that they are alone and to run the class by themselves. Personal issues are woven into the day's events. Rachel has been mute since a classmate who had an annoying, unrequited crush on her died six months before. Bastian, an Air Force brat used to moving, has to decide whether to subject his beloved puppy to a lengthy quarantine when he moves to Hawaii the following day. Sean's alcoholic father and unnurturing home life make him too shy to express his feelings, especially his crush on Rachel. Karen, a natural leader and "good child," takes the reins in the class, making her own evaluations of right and wrong. Jessica, whose parents are judgmental, can't get past her fear of recrimination to enjoy the class' freedom. The students learn about themselves and one another, and several issues are resolved by the end of the day (e.g., Rachel speaks, Bastian gives his puppy to Sean). The resolutions are simple but not pat, the prose is economical but not sparse, and the characters are developed as sketches rather than in-depth portraits, which helps keep the book moving briskly. The premise will make the novel easy to booktalk. Not a must-have, but a worthwhile purchase.-July Siebecker, Hubbard Memorial Library, MA

The rich and complex emotional lives within a classroom of unsupervised students boil toward eruption the day an exceptional teacher is absent. When the designated substitute for Mr. Fabiano's sixth-grade class calls in sick, her message is overlooked in the chaotic office, and the children find themselves without a teacher. Rather than report it, and led by Mr. Fab's lesson plans, they run the class themselves. But powerful emotions are brewing under an otherwise ordinary day's surface: Tommy, a classmate who was often teased for his slowness, has been dead for exactly six months and the class's guilt over their treatment of him hasn't been addressed; Rachel, who hasn't spoken since Tommy died, is about to break her silence; and Bastian, often a bully, is making life- changing decisions on what has become his last day in school. Although Mr. Fabiano only appears at the end, his presence is felt on every page; Fletcher (Twilight Comes Twice, 1997, etc.) creates a testament to effective teaching in his realistic portrait of Mr. Fabiano as both caring and intelligent. A novel that is funny, real, and often moving. (Fiction. 10-12)

"Fletcher expertly balances a wide variety of emotions...thoughtful, absorbing novel...a story that will linger long after the book is closed." Booklist, ALA, Starred Review

The rich and complex emotional lives within a classroom of unsupervised students boil toward eruption the day an exceptional teacher is absent....Fletcher creates a testament to effective teaching in his realistic portrait of Mr. Fabiano as both caring and intelligent. A novel that is funny, real, and often moving.
Kirkus Reviews —