All the Right Stuff

Gr 8 Up—Walter Dean Myers once again tells a story (HarperCollins/Amistad, 2012) about a young man trying to figure out his place in the world. Paul DuPree is a high school student growing up in Harlem, New York. He's a good student, has plenty of friends, and thinks he has life figured out until he begins working at a nearby soup kitchen owned by Elijah Jones. The octogenarian and Paul have many discussions about the social contract, and Paul's view of his world as well as the death of his drug addicted father begins to change. Narrator Brandon Gill does an expert job of switching between the wise Elijah and the young upstart, Paul. He is also spot-on in voicing the female characters, including the smart and slightly sassy elderly women who come to the soup kitchen. The only minor flaw in this thoughtful novel is the pacing. There are long pauses throughout the dialogue that throw off its back-and-forth conversational tone. Still, the strength of the story and the narration are sure to draw in listeners.—Shari Fesko, Southfield Public Library, MI