Flying Solo

Rating:
Summary: If you like excitement with deep emotions, read this book!!!
Review: Flying solo is a great book. I found out about it in the book Fig Pudding, and I thought the excerpt was good. My best friend and I fought over the book in Library, even though I found it first, but I came over his house later that day and I borrowed it, and I spent all night reading it.

What happens in the story is a girl named Rachel White decides to remain silent, and she hasn't talked for six months. One day, The teacher, Mr (Fab)iano, planned a vacation, and the substitute is sick, leaving Mr. Fabiano's class teacher-less. The class decides to run the class themselves, and I'm sure anyone would like to party when there is no teacher, but with Karen Ballard around, the natural-born leader, the class is doing their own work. Things go pretty well in the class until Bastian Fauvell, air-force brat's rock ritual, with deep emotions from Rachel White about Tommy Feathers, the boy who died exactly six months ago.

I loved this book because it is very exciting with a sad touch to it. This is a great book. But I have read one other Ralph Fletcher book, Fig Pudding, and in both of these someone dies. I don't like it that much, But it can actually spice up the whole story. Flying Solo is sort of based on the death of Tommy Feathers unless the book wouldn't be as good. I much prefer this over Fig Pudding, but that's just me. If you like excitement with deep emotions, read this book!!!

Rating:
Summary: If you like excitement with deep emotions, read this book!!!
Review: I loved this book! I was expecting a trite comedy of what happens when some 6th-graders are left alone - similar to a Louis Sachar story of the Wayside School. Boy was I wrong. Each chapter begins with the time of day. In this way, the reader is introduced to the first waking moments of several students who will become the important players. They are immediately intriguing, from Rachel who hasn't talked in 6 months, to Bastian who is moving to Hawaii the next morning, and even Sean who's alcoholic father's girlfriend is barely older than Sean himself.

The day begins rather normally except there is no substitute who shows up to handle the class. The children decide they can do it themselves and carry out the schedule as usual. This continues for the next third of the book. This was actually where I got bored and set it down for a while. I'm glad I picked it up again - and I had stopped at just the right point. When I began reading again it was like a different book.

The characters all of a sudden became so much more interesting. Fletcher is very insightful and has created a cast of characters that truly will hold your interest. They are so real you feel as though you want to meet them. The experiences of the day become very stressful and these kids must face them as a group. The book becomes a true testament of how intermediate students can be much more mature than given credit for when no adults are around.

Why 5 stars?:
Fletcher's writing makes these kids real. What's more - the problems they must face are very real. This book shows how children can work out situations together and the importance of discussing our feelings. It would be invaluable to start discussions in an intermediate classroom and will definitely be a part of my classroom library for years to come.

Rating:
Summary: St. Gerard Gr. 6-Liked it!
Review: I read Flying Solo aloud to my 6th grade class. They had previously heard Someone is Hiding on Alcatraz Island. Flying Solo doesn't have the mystery of Alcatraz Island, but it deals with other important issues for 6th graders today. One student thought it was "neat" to hear the story through the various characters' point of view. I had them write a letter to me when we finished. They were to tell me their opinion and they were to answer the question: Have you ever mistreated a student in this class? They were very honest. I loved it. My class didn't feel they could ever"fly solo." (They're right next door to the school office.) Enjoy this book. We did!

Rating:
Summary: Flying Solo
Review: It is not very often I can pull my son away from Harry Potter long enough to explore other venues, but this book kept his attention from beginning to end.

Rating:
Summary: Flying Solo
Review: Recommendation
I would recommend this book to anyone who is from the age of 11yrs old to 14yrs old because it can be confusing at some points and it can be hard to read like" ...'Exploration' was just a snazzy word for geography." There are some rude languages that children under 11 will not understand for example "Shut up." If you are interested in a 6th grade book than this is the perfect book for you.

Rating:
Summary: Flying solo
Review: This was a great book that made you feel as if you were the charectar in it. It was also a unique way of writing