Brent Bishop longs to have the popular Brianna strolling around school on his arm. But when she rejects him at a classmate's party, Brent's hopes f...
read full description
reviews
Jan 22, 2009
estefania.
rated it: 
This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers.
To view it, click here
0 comments
like
(1 person liked it)
Nov 15, 2010
Dalton
rated it: 
the book whirligig... excellent book. shows the struggles and triumphs a young man faces on his road to redemption. the main charachter in a drunken rage kills lea zamora in an accident on the freeway heading to his home in one of the suburbs of chicago. to redeem himself and as a form of restitution he sets out on a journey to plant four whirligigs at the corners of the united states. (washington, california, florida, and maine)his journey allows him time to himself to think of the horror he ha
More...
2 comments
like
(1 person liked it)
Mar 21, 2008
Ginger
rated it:
This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers.
To view it, click here
0 comments
like
(2 people liked it)
Mar 02, 2009
Karyn
rated it: 
I think this book would have been better if I had not listened to it. I think I missed some important parts. Also some of the people really annoyed me, and I think it was because of their voices. It was good, though... meaningful and pretty well written. I had expectations that things were going to come together differently at the end, so I was a bit thrown off when it was over.
4 comments
like
(1 person liked it)
Mar 24, 2008
Jacqueline
rated it:
This book is a great example of how our actions effect other people, especially those we never meet.
It starts with Brent killing Lea, the first in a series of actions that effect others. As Brent travels and builds the whirligigs in Lea's memory he grows and changes. Part of the reason the book is such a great read is that every other chapter is not about Brent but about the effect his work has on others when they see his whirligigs. These people range in ages and locations, but a More...
It starts with Brent killing Lea, the first in a series of actions that effect others. As Brent travels and builds the whirligigs in Lea's memory he grows and changes. Part of the reason the book is such a great read is that every other chapter is not about Brent but about the effect his work has on others when they see his whirligigs. These people range in ages and locations, but a More...
0 comments
like
(2 people liked it)
Jan 02, 2009
Priscilla
rated it:
This story is avout a teenager named Brent, who goes to this party and tries to make a move on a girl he likes. But she rejects him infront of a whole group of people! He gets so angry, he begins to drink and drive. He wants to do suicide but ends up killing a girl named Lea. He feels so guilty since during the trial, he recives probation, insted of prison. He wants a punishment, he feels like he owes Lea's mother and Lea. One day, Lea's mother asks if she could talk to Brent. He agrees. She as
More...
Dec 05, 2011
Sarah
rated it:
This book was unlike anything I expected it to be. The title seemed promising, but the cover put me off... the way the book was printed reminded me of the books my mom checked out for me from the library when I was more interested in reading about dinosaurs. But this goes to show you can't judge a book by the cover. I was surprised at how quickly the book delved into the life of Brent, the new kid in town who tries to join the cool crowd by attending a party he wasn't invited to. Things don't go
More...
Dec 03, 2011
Ofa
rated it:
A young man who makes a selfish and thoughtless attempt at killing himself by letting go of the wheel when he is a bit drunk - instead he kills another girl - and as a way of seeking forgiveness, he sets off on a quest designed by the dead girl's mother to put whirligigs in the four corners of America. Themes include - the price of forgiveness, fate, (naturalistic feel about this book...), regret, notions of remembering
Interesting multicultural themes came up - like immigration, and educat More...
Interesting multicultural themes came up - like immigration, and educat More...
Nov 03, 2011
Whirligig
World Wide Whirligigs
Brent Bishop is new in town, and he doesn’t have very many friends. He dreams about having the beautiful, popular Brianna as his girlfriend, so when Brianna tells Brent to leave her alone at a party in front of all his classmates, Brent is heartbroken. Little did he know his whole life will soon get turned upside down.
After Brianna tells Brent to leave her alone, Brent is grief-stricken. The text states, “Brent stood, brain and limbs paralyzed, a More...
World Wide Whirligigs
Brent Bishop is new in town, and he doesn’t have very many friends. He dreams about having the beautiful, popular Brianna as his girlfriend, so when Brianna tells Brent to leave her alone at a party in front of all his classmates, Brent is heartbroken. Little did he know his whole life will soon get turned upside down.
After Brianna tells Brent to leave her alone, Brent is grief-stricken. The text states, “Brent stood, brain and limbs paralyzed, a More...
Jun 12, 2011
Renae
rated it:
This book, was in fact, a Whirligig itself. It bounced around and required a lot of focus to be able to follow not only the main story but the other sub stories interwoven within the book. I felt that Fleischman left details out here and there and jumped around to random stories of people who experienced each whirligig built by Brent. This made it very hard to follow and left me not wanting to read on.
I found it hard to believe that 16 year old Brent was able to create each whirli More...
I found it hard to believe that 16 year old Brent was able to create each whirli More...
Jun 05, 2011
Patrick
rated it:
The life hasn't been in destroyed green
Just blowing of cars and skyscrapers to heaven
Remain only monuments
Dirt in water and ashes in the air.
Whirligig of the World by Return to Innocence
This is a tragic story about a young man trying to make amends for a death he caused and the path he takes while trying to do so. Brent is a 17 year old young man who attends a party, drinks a little too much, gets embarrassed by the girl he is crushing on and gets in his car. What f More...
Just blowing of cars and skyscrapers to heaven
Remain only monuments
Dirt in water and ashes in the air.
Whirligig of the World by Return to Innocence
This is a tragic story about a young man trying to make amends for a death he caused and the path he takes while trying to do so. Brent is a 17 year old young man who attends a party, drinks a little too much, gets embarrassed by the girl he is crushing on and gets in his car. What f More...
Jun 05, 2011
Michael
rated it: 
The reason I decided to read "Whirligig" by Paul Fleischman is I was assigned to do a book report in my language arts so I decided to read a book I haven't yet read.
Whirligig is about a boy named Brent Bishop, he yearns to be with the popular crowd and with his crush Brianna as his girlfriend. When his friend Jonathan invites him to a party it is the perfect chance for Brianna to become his girlfriend. The party does not turn out as expected, when Brent tries to strike a conv More...
Whirligig is about a boy named Brent Bishop, he yearns to be with the popular crowd and with his crush Brianna as his girlfriend. When his friend Jonathan invites him to a party it is the perfect chance for Brianna to become his girlfriend. The party does not turn out as expected, when Brent tries to strike a conv More...
Dec 09, 2010
Grayson
rated it:
This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers.
To view it, click here
Dec 09, 2010
Rachel
rated it:
This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers.
To view it, click here
Dec 09, 2010
Jessica
rated it:
420
Topics: drunk driving, death, forgiveness, rebirth
Brent is a 16 year old with anger management problems. When he tries to kill himself while driving drunk he unintentionally kills an outstanding 18 year old girl. As part of Brent’s quest for atonement, and at the request of the dead girl’s mother, he sets out to make 4 whirligigs of the dead girl and place them in the four corners of the country. Along the way Brent meets people who act as positive role models to help him le More...
Topics: drunk driving, death, forgiveness, rebirth
Brent is a 16 year old with anger management problems. When he tries to kill himself while driving drunk he unintentionally kills an outstanding 18 year old girl. As part of Brent’s quest for atonement, and at the request of the dead girl’s mother, he sets out to make 4 whirligigs of the dead girl and place them in the four corners of the country. Along the way Brent meets people who act as positive role models to help him le More...
Dec 09, 2010
Lisa
rated it: 
Themes: guilt, second chances, creativity, growing up, interconnectivity
Whirligig made me want to discover my own inner artist and to take a few months to travel and camp all across the United States. This beautiful story was an excellent way to end my semester with young adult literature, as it ends with a unique hope and appreciation for life that I’ve felt from few other books. Brent Bishop is a seventeen-year-old teenage boy who just wants to fit in with the popular kids in his new More...
Whirligig made me want to discover my own inner artist and to take a few months to travel and camp all across the United States. This beautiful story was an excellent way to end my semester with young adult literature, as it ends with a unique hope and appreciation for life that I’ve felt from few other books. Brent Bishop is a seventeen-year-old teenage boy who just wants to fit in with the popular kids in his new More...
Dec 08, 2010
Joel
rated it:
Whirligig by Paul Fleischman Fiction, whirligigs, solo adventures, self-
discovery, forgiveness and hope
This novel is a hope-filling story about a 16 year-old teen named Brian who instead of killing himself on the freeway kills a 17 year-old girl with dreams to make the world a better place. The victim's mother decides to meet with Brian in a restitution meeting and asks that he go to the four More...
discovery, forgiveness and hope
This novel is a hope-filling story about a 16 year-old teen named Brian who instead of killing himself on the freeway kills a 17 year-old girl with dreams to make the world a better place. The victim's mother decides to meet with Brian in a restitution meeting and asks that he go to the four More...
Dec 08, 2010
Megan
rated it:
This book is absolutely amazing. When I first started reading, I thought to myself, oh great, ANOTHER book dealing with popularity issues among teens, because that is what the first chapter is all about. And it is quite overly dramatic. I was annoyed and didn't want to go any further than that first chapter, but I am so glad I did. This novel is an amazing journey, one that I felt I took with Brent as he traveled around the States. Brent feels his life is over when he can't get in with the popul
More...
Dec 09, 2010
Danielle
rated it:
Genre: Fiction/Death/Healing/Self-Discovery
Brent isn't the most popular kid in school--in fact, he doesn't have a ton of friends and he's publicly humiliated by the girl he likes in front of everyone at a party. Tired of feeling down on himself all the time, he gets behind the wheel drunk and considers suicide, but ends up accidentally hitting another car and killing the driver. Devastated with himself Brent seeks to find restitution and accepts Lea's mother's request for him to build More...
Brent isn't the most popular kid in school--in fact, he doesn't have a ton of friends and he's publicly humiliated by the girl he likes in front of everyone at a party. Tired of feeling down on himself all the time, he gets behind the wheel drunk and considers suicide, but ends up accidentally hitting another car and killing the driver. Devastated with himself Brent seeks to find restitution and accepts Lea's mother's request for him to build More...
Dec 07, 2010
Becky
rated it:
This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers.
To view it, click here
Dec 07, 2010
Mandy
rated it:
Teen drama/post modern/ redemption, forgiveness
Brent Bishop is 16 and he's on a mission to create four whirligigs and place one in each corner of the United States. The mission isn't really self directed however, it begins as part of a request from the mother of the girl he accidentally killed while driving drunk and attempting to take his own life. The art pieces are to be dedicated in the girls memory and being joy to those around it. Brent begins this task feeling like a murderer an More...
Brent Bishop is 16 and he's on a mission to create four whirligigs and place one in each corner of the United States. The mission isn't really self directed however, it begins as part of a request from the mother of the girl he accidentally killed while driving drunk and attempting to take his own life. The art pieces are to be dedicated in the girls memory and being joy to those around it. Brent begins this task feeling like a murderer an More...
Dec 05, 2010
Kiera
rated it:
This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers.
To view it, click here
Nov 30, 2010
Krista
rated it:
Sixteen-year-old Brent Bishop gets drunk and decides to kill himself in a car crash. He emerges unscathed, but the girl in the other car dies. Her mother requests that he build and leave a whirligig in California, Washington, Maine and Florida, since her daughter especially loved them. Anxious to atone, and to get away from his former life, Brent agrees. He begins to heal as he learns independence, confidence, and about the basic goodness of humanity. In a series of side-stories, each whirligig
More...
Jun 14, 2010
Rachel
rated it:
This is a sad book about a boy who needs a tragedy to spur him on to self-awareness and self-discovery. After completely embarrassing himself and ruining his reputation at a party, drunken Brent decides that the only option left is suicide. However, he is not the one who ends up dead in the resulting car accident. He is barely injured while Lea, a kind and lovable honor student, is dead.
Brent tries to atone for his mistake by fulfilling the request of Lea's mother--that he travel th More...
Brent tries to atone for his mistake by fulfilling the request of Lea's mother--that he travel th More...
Jun 14, 2010
Sarah
rated it:
This novel is post-modern with a fragmented narrative, and so I would suggest giving it to older adolescents with developed analytical skills.
Just like a whirligig is a conglomerate of random materials forming a sculpture like a weathervane, my reaction to the novel was a mix of feelings. Part of me did not appreciate the spoilers on the cover’s write-up because it was too explicit of a roadmap for the novel. I felt like it told me how to interpret the novel when really I just want More...
Just like a whirligig is a conglomerate of random materials forming a sculpture like a weathervane, my reaction to the novel was a mix of feelings. Part of me did not appreciate the spoilers on the cover’s write-up because it was too explicit of a roadmap for the novel. I felt like it told me how to interpret the novel when really I just want More...
Jun 14, 2010
Lindsay
rated it:
This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers.
To view it, click here
Jun 14, 2010
Whitney
rated it:
This tells the story of a confused boy named Brent who tries to kill himself one day but ends up killing a girl named Lea in a car accident. Instead of pressing charges or sending him to jail Lea's mother asks him to build four whirligig's and put them in the four corners of the United States. Brent sets out on this task not knowing how these four whirligig's will change the lives of four different people. I liked the book, i found it interesting and entertaining, although I did not like the end
More...
Jun 14, 2010
Alex
rated it:
Brent Bishop has moved around a lot in his life, and now he finds himself as the new kid at a private school in Chicago. He longs to fit in, but finds himself extremely embarassed at a party one night. Involved in his own troubles, he seeks to end his own life while driving home. He manages to escape with a few scratches, but kills another teen named Lea in the crash. Lea's mother has one request for retribution, that Brent put up four whirligig's in the four corners of the United States in orde
More...
Jun 11, 2010
Justin
rated it:
Whirligig is a fictitious tale of a young boy named Brent Bishop. Brent is new to Chicago, and so when he is invited by his friend to a party that a popular kid at school is throwing, he is excited to go and meet people. Events turn badly, however, as Brent leaves the party in a drunken rage and in an attempt to take his own life, he crashes into a girl and takes her. To recompense his actions, the girls mother wants Brent to travel to Washington, California, Florida and Maine, the four corners
More...
Jun 07, 2010
Talese
rated it:
Brent Bishop is a teenager who is used to being the “new kid”. He has had to move several times because of his dad’s job. Now he is in Chicago facing the same struggle he always has-fitting in. Brent thinks that he is on the verge of making friends and being popular when he is invited to a party with all of the coolest kids at school. He carefully gets ready, hoping the beautiful Brianna will be at the party. She is there and once she is alone Brent decides to make his move because the alcohol h
More...
