The Last Holiday Concert

"The Hook"

" WHO?' he boomed 'WHO DID THIS?' Eyes flashing, he snatched up the rubber bands. Pinching them between his thumb and his forefinger, he shook them out in front of his face.
'Who? Tell me right now!'
A man who gets hopping mad, who gets so angry that he sputters and spits and stomps around, all red in the face with his eyes bugging out and his teeth showing-in a comedy movie or a TV show, that can be very funny. In real life, it's not.
Realizing that the shots must have come right, Mr. Meinert spun to face the boys. 'NOW' he bellowed. 'Tell me now! Who did this?' Mr. Meinert looked quickly from face to face, and when he locked eyes with Hart, he knew."
( Page 22)

" On Friday Mr. Meinert called the chorus to order as usual. He took attendance as usual. Then he said, 'Hart, it's all yours.'
Right away Tim Miller chirped, 'Yippee-free period!'
Before a lot more cheering could break out, Hart stood up and said, 'Hold it, everybody. Listen a minute...listen.'
It got completely quiet. The sudden silence surprised Hart almost as much as it surprised Mr. Meinert.
 Hart froze for a second or two and his face started to get red. But he gulped and said,'I...I know that me... you know, me getting elected and everything? I know it was sort of a joke-and it's pretty funny.'
Tim Miller wagged his head and went, 'Har, har, har! Haw, haw,haw!' exaggerating a big laugh. The rest of the kids laughed too, but when Hart raised his hand,  everyone got quiet. (page 71)

Recommendation

Have you ever been in charge of a chorus concert? Well,12 year old Hart knows how stressful it really is. First it's getting in trouble. Second it's controlling over 100 people for a chorus concert. Third, well  you're going to have to find that out. He's getting a little bossy. His friends want to do what they think is a Chorus concert, but their way is a little off key. He is in jeopardy of losing all of his friends and his popularity. Will Hart survive the seventh grade having known that everyone hates him? Or will he let the Middle School control the concert. Will Mr. Meinert lose his job because of budget cuts? Or will the holiday concert save it?

Book By: Andrew Clements
Blog By: Sheridan M. and Joey P.
Genre: Realistic Fiction