BenBee and the Teacher Griefer: The Kids Under the Stairs by K.A. Holt
Chronicle Books. Pub date: September 22, 2020.
From the publisher:
The Kids Under the Stairs: BenBee and the Teacher Griefer is a funny, clever novel-in-verse series about Ben Bellows—who failed the Language Arts section of the Florida State test—and three classmates who get stuck in a summer school class.
But these kids aren't dumb—they're divergent thinkers, as Ms. J tells them: they simply approach things in a different way than traditional school demands.
• Each chapter is told through the perspective of one of the four students, who each write in a different style (art, verse, stream of consciousness).
• Celebrates different types of intelligence
• A heartwarming, laugh-out-loud novel-in-verse
Soon, the kids win over Ms. J with their passion for Sandbox, a Minecraft-type game. The kids make a deal with Ms. J: every minute they spend reading aloud equals one minute they get to play Sandbox in class. But when the administration finds about this unorthodox method of teaching, Ben B. and his buds have to band together to save their teacher's job—and their own academic future.
The first in a series of complementary storylines, this is an honest, heartfelt book about friendship, videogames, and learning to love yourself.
I will be honest, the cover and the title did not entice me, but the story sure did. Maybe the cover appeals more to the gamer demographic. I’m not sure. But it pulled me in and is such a fresh story. Told in 4 points of view and three different type/font/drawings. Four kids have to take summer class to pass a Florida state exam called the FART. (I know, hysterical!) The kids each have some learning issue and they convince the teacher to try playing their video game and, in return, they will read out loud in class.
I liked every part of this story, was never drawn out and couldn’t wait to see what happened next. They all learn something about each other and themselves and I learned something too. If this is the beginning of a series, I look forward to reading future stories.
