Surviving the Applewhites - Assignment #4

Surviving the Applewhites by Stephanie S. Tolan is a 2003 Newberry Honor Book. The main character is Jake Semple. Jake is a 13 year old adolescent who smokes, cusses, has many piercings, hair dyed red and gelled into spikes all about his head, and terrorizes people and schools. After recently burning down his last school, the state decided that he had two options left since no other foster parents would take him: He could live with the Applewhites who are notorious for their home school and creative ways of learning or he could go to juvenile hall.

Jake ends up with the Applewhites. Jake acts like a stereotypical juvenile delinquent because he hasn’t had any encouragement, adult role models, or stability in his life. His parents were thrown in jail for growing marijuana in the basement and then selling it to a cop who was off duty. They would be in jail for at least a year.

Jake needed help. He needed to be saved so he doesn’t end up like his parents. But, most of all he needed to find confidence and a new label for himself; one that did not scream juvenile delinquent. I have not had anything that has ever happened like this in my own personal life, but I have had many peers in school that looked and acted a lot like Jake does in this book. They also had very similar home lives. And, now as a teacher, I also see students with Jake’s personality and home life in my classroom. It makes me very sad.

This book really reminds me a lot of The Outsiders by S.E. Hinton. The Outsiders is about a group of adolescents who do not have a lot, do not have the ideal homes and family lives, they are outcasts, and they also can be considered “rough around the edges” like Jake. I think that a lot of students can definitely identify with Surviving the Applewhites much like they do with The Outsiders.

On a more global scale, I think that problems that the young adolescents deal with in this book are very real. Like I mentioned before, I see a lot of “Jakes” every year in my classroom. Sometimes I wonder how they even manage to show up to school, and then realize that school may be the most comfortable and safe place to be. I believe that there are kids just like Jake elsewhere in the world, and more than we have ever seen before. This book can give a lot of hope and inspiration to young adolescents who know kids like Jake, who are like Jake, and teachers who teach Jake.

Teachers can really appreciate this book for some of its language. One of the best quotes from the book is: “Education is an adventurous quest for the meaning of life, involving an ability to think things through.” This was written on a banner that hung across one wall in the Applewhite’s schoolroom. I just think that this is so true. Sure, we teach students reading, writing, and arithmetic, but we also help shape who these kids are and help them learn who they think they are, and show them how to think and learn for themselves.

I also found a lot of great vocabulary words that I think were well suited for the book, and ones that adolescents would definitely have to look up! Here are just a few: careened, recluse, restive, roust, grueling, ambiance, incorrigible, respite, ford, milling, and travesty. All of these are great words for kids to get comfortable with.

Along with some fabulous vocabulary, there was great figurative language used. Here are few examples: “It’s like expecting to find a diamond and stumbling into an entire mine,” and “How sharper than a serpent’s tooth is an ungrateful child.” These are also perfect for adolescents to explore, understand, and see a clearer picture in their mind about what the author or a character is really trying to say.

All in all, this was actually a truly good book. I will honestly admit that if I were an adolescent I would have never have chosen it due to the cover. The cover looks like it is geared for elementary. However, the contents of the book scream adolescent literature. And in all reality, kids tend to judge a book by its cover. Luckily, though, I have now read this book so I can definitely recommend Surviving the Applewhites and maybe even give a lesson about not always judging a book by its cover!

Again…great book for adolescents! I give it 5 stars out of 5! 