Nothing but the Truth...

I just finished reading Avi's Nothing but the Truth. I enjoyed reading this quite a bit. I had previously never read a multi-genre book and I did not know much about them. This style is something that I would definitely read again. It catches your attention, lets you see into the head of many different characters, and is an easier read. I think that if I had been introduced to this style of writing earlier in high school, I would have written more like this or taken the time to read multi-genre books.

Enough about the style, let's talk about Phillip. I am not fond of this kid... He basically stacked the deck to be on his side. Miss Narwin was clearly not out to get Phillip, but truly only wanted to help him exceed. Once he realized that he needed to do well in her class or get moved into another class, he started to get people on his side. Starting with his parents, then the neighbor, the newspaper, and then the rest of the world followed. He realized that he was guilty but didn't want to give in as everyone was already on his side. UGH. He should have just confessed. 

I did not like how he got away with this, basically forcing Miss Narwin to retire. She deserves better. Yes she may have overreacted a little about the singing and could have talked to him... But Phillip was definitely out to get her. Also his parents, don't you think as a parent you would want to know the teacher's side as well? This book was frustrating and I feel for the teachers... Kind of scares me for what could happen in my teaching career :O Maybe start with building positive relationships with students as said here. Miss Darwin should have reached out to build a better relationship with Phillip...


Overall I really enjoyed the book and couldn't put it down :)