The Schwa Was Here

     The Schwa Was Here by Neal Shusterman is a novel for adolescent children, ideal for approximately 5th to 7th grade students. It is a story of a young Italian teenager who meets an ordinary boy that most everyone just ignores. "Antsy and the Schwa use this 'Schwa effect' to make money by carrying out dares" (Shusterman, 2012) and that's where the trouble begins.
      I feel that this is, even though widely stretched, a contemporary realistic fiction. I can imagine two boys creating a grand scheme to make money. In fact, with as rambunctious as my toddler is, I can picture him creating a scenario similar to this one! On page 235 in our text, figure 7.1 provides a set of guidelines:

• The Schwa Was Here exemplifies characteristics of excellence in narrative fiction
• The Schwa Was Here has a vivid and realistic setting that enhances that events of the story
• The characters are credible and non-stereotypical
• The main characters are multidimensional, and they change and develop over time
• The problems are believable and are solved in realistic, culturally grounded ways
• The intended age group can understand the plot structure
• There is a theme that is applicable to readers' lives, and it is intrinsic to the story
• The Schwa Was Here's dialogue and thoughts of the characters sound natural, with dialect and diction that do not overwhelm the reader

All of these guidelines for contemporary realistic fiction are met within The Schwa Was Here. Also on page 24 our text states that contemporary realistic fiction has a well plausible story, "well defined conflict, and strong characterization". It is a novel, and I certainly feel that The Schwa Was Here is a peer relationships novel. " Books that explore peer relationships mirror many of the concerns that young readers have about their own lives" (Galda, Cullinan & Sipe, 2011). While I already assume that young boys get into scheming tricks, I also agree that teenagers of any age go through silly acts with their friends, and this book can help students connect with literature by reminding them of their friends.
     With this book I would ask my middle school aged students to write a paper on one of the silly things they get into with their friends. My guidelines as a middle school English teacher would be appropriate, expectations including proper grammar and syntax, appropriate story lines, APA format writing style, and at least 1 page. I don't feel that this is expecting too much from them, as they would be approximately around the ages of 11 to 12, so more responsibility will be expected from them in general. Another idea for classroom interaction would be to compare one of Shusterman's other books, like Unwind. Unwind is one of his most popular books, and if The Schwa Was Here is anything like it, I can certainly understand why. Unwind "tells the story of three teens struggling against their society ... in which unwanted teenagers undergo 'retroactive abortion' so that their body parts can be used for transplants" (Galda, Cullinan & Sipe, 2011). Even though this is a fantasy, I am already intrigued by just that short explanation. Once my students read both books, I can have them write another paper comparing and contrasting the two, and getting their personal opinion on the two.
My reader response questions would be:

1. When Schwa is first noticed, they conclude that four out of five people what?
2. What do you think is the best dare?
3. What are Schwa's and Antsy's real names?
4. How old was Schwa when his mother disappeared?
5. Who is Lexie?
6. Who do you most closely relate to and how? Have you ever felt as unnoticed as Schwa did?

      The Schwa Was Here is multicultural in that the main character is an Italian teenager, but that is not necessarily the point of the book. I love when multicultural books don't make that the point, because I feel that this allows the student to realize the culture is apart of the character, but that there is so much more to that person than just their background. The Schwa Was Here is a great book that deals with a lot of different issues, including the death of a parent. It can allow students to work through several emotions, and maybe even help those going through similar issues to cope with their loss. It teaches about friendship, which I also think is particularly important in books aimed at teenagers. I highly recommend this book to anyone that is or once was a teenager, because even older people can still enjoy it. I know I did!

References

 Galda, L., Cullinan, B. E., & Sipe, L. R. (2011). Literature and the Child. (7th ed. ed.). Belmont: Wadsworth Pub Co.
Shusterman, N. (2005). The Schwa Was Here. (1st ed.). New York, NY: Penguin Group.
Shusterman, N. (2012, November 05). The Schwa Was Here Summary. Retrieved from http://www.bookrags.com/The_Schwa_Was_Here/