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A wonderful, character driven novel with plenty of heart. It leaves you almost breathless and grateful for the reading experience it provides. Doug Swieteck is an unlikely hero, one who you will root for to succeed despite improbable odds. As for teen and tween readers, I don't know if it will find its niche, but savvy readers will enjoy it with a bit of a sell job. Overcoming adversity and making the best of a craptastic situation should resonate with teen, any, readers. My favorite lines:
"'It ...more
"'It ...more
Doug is a snarky kid who must deal with an abusive father and adjusting to a new town. He befriends a local librarian who happens to give him some art lessons based on John Audubon's birds. Slowly, he makes a new friend at school and some families throughout town become friendly. Overall a well written book but the ending was tied up too nicely. Too many characters had a change of heart and Doug and his friend Lil were actors in a broadway play.
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What a terrific book. The story of Doug, the youngest of 3 sons in a poor Vietnam era family, was lively and touching.I even came to appreciate Audobon's bird pictures when Doug learned to copy the drawings thanks to a sympathetic librarian. It did bother me that a child he was baby sitting in, I believe, 1969 could use an inhaler. I don't think they were available until a few years later.
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READ THIS. Seriously, it's wonderful. Although a companion novel to The Wednesday Wars, Okay for Now stands beautifully on its own. Okay for Now is one of the rare books that I laugh at loud on one page and tear up on the next. It makes you think, and that's always a good thing.
This is the strongest middle grade fiction published so far this year, and I feel it's possible it will be the strongest for the entire 2011. I fully expect to hear Schmidt's name in January! :) ...more
This is the strongest middle grade fiction published so far this year, and I feel it's possible it will be the strongest for the entire 2011. I fully expect to hear Schmidt's name in January! :) ...more
I loved this more than The Wednesday Wars. It's a wonderful story of transformation and determination.
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Gary Schmidt why do you play with my emotions like this?!?!
This book was excellent, amazing, brilliant, etc. I really can't come up with enough descriptors.
Although Okay for Now is the follow up to his Newbery Honor winner The Wednesday Wars this book is much darker in tone. My heart broke over and over again for Doug, but time and again he manages to overcome the obstacles in his path and make the reader root for him through every single page.
If you enjoyed the Wednesday Wars then you absolute ...more
This book was excellent, amazing, brilliant, etc. I really can't come up with enough descriptors.
Although Okay for Now is the follow up to his Newbery Honor winner The Wednesday Wars this book is much darker in tone. My heart broke over and over again for Doug, but time and again he manages to overcome the obstacles in his path and make the reader root for him through every single page.
If you enjoyed the Wednesday Wars then you absolute ...more
I really loved this book. Read Wednesday Wars then read this. This book spins off from Wednesday Wars by following the story of one of its minor characters. It is hard to say which book I liked best. Best bet is to run out and read them both.
Doug has a rough life. One most people aren't able to rise above. I love the honesty of the book. I also love that after reading you will feel that even when you are in rough circumstances, you can still choose to be your best self. ...more
Schmidt has written another wonderful book...you will fall in love with Doug Swieteck. I lost count of how many varied issues and topics (illiteracy, Vietnam, Audubon prints) Schmidt weaves into the story, but they all deepen and enrich the book. As usual Schmidt's characters are diverse and complex, but no one more so than Doug. You root for him from the beginning of the book and are so glad to learn that he truly will be okay. I think this is Newbery worthy.
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This companion to The Wednesday Wars features a middle school boy in the late 60's with an abusive father and a brother with a bad reputation. The personal narrative is full of sarcastic boy wit, and although Doug's family life isn't perfect it is authentic and the story feels hopeful. 4th and 5th grade and up, boys especially
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Mar 25, 2011
Emily
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Aug 03, 2011
Elisabeth
marked it as to-read
Dec 14, 2011
Sarah
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Dec 27, 2011
April Moody
marked it as to-read
