Schooled Review

 

Capricorn (Cap for short) had lived every day of his life on Garland Farm growing fruits and vegetables. He was homeschooled by Rain, the only person he knew in the world. Life was simple for Cap. But when Rain falls out of a tree while picking plums and is hospital-ridden, he has to attend the local middle school and live with his new guidance counselor and her irritable daughter. While Cap knew a lot about Zen Buddhism, no amount formal education could ready him for the trials and tribulations of public middle school.

 

Cap doesn't exactly fit in at Claverage Middle School (dubbed C Average by the kids). He has long, ungroomed hair, wears hemp clothes, and practices Tai Chi out on the lawn. His weirdness basically makes him biggest nerd in school. This is great news for Zach Powers, big man on campus.  He can't wait to instate the age-old tradition in C-Average School:  The biggest nerd is nominated for class president--and wins.  So when Cap becomes president, he is more puzzled than ever.  But as Cap begins to take on his duties, the joke starts to turn on Zach. 

 

Will Cap turn out to be the greatest President in the history of C-Average School?  Or the biggest punchline? 

 

 

 

User Submitted Schooled Reviews

September 16, 2008
Entertaining
What a fun read. The main character is very unique and the plot allows for great discussion as to how we treat those who are different from us. Entertaining!

September 15, 2008
Kind of like "Stargirl"...
Just throwing this out there, but this book reminds me of "Stargirl" by Jerry Spinelli. If you like this book, you should definitely read Stargirl.

Anyway, this book is amazing. It tells the story of Capricorn (aka Cap) Anderson, who spent his whole life with his hippie grandma, Rain, in their hippie settlement that was founded in 1967. Cap's parents died of malaria while working in Africa, which is why Cap has to live with his grandmother.

The settlement had fourteen families in 1967, but by the time Cap was born, it was just him and his grandmother.

Cap had never known one other person besides Rain. Rain unfortunately falls out of a tree and breaks her hip, forcing her to have surgery and a long, painful recovering process.

Cap can't live at the settlement all by himself, so he is forced to go out into the real world, where he has never been before. He's never seen a television; never even tasted a pizza. He was home-schooled by Rain his whole life, and after her accident, he is plopped right in the middle of Claverage (C Average) Middle School.

This humorous tale tells the story of Cap and the kids at C Average Middle School and how they accept this strange boy. I would recommend it to anybody.

August 27, 2008
Recommened by a Homeschooler
I read this book after reading about it on a Homeschool blog: http://blogaramabingbong.com/?p=4. I found it funny, and entertaining an easy read. Not sure if a guy raised on a fading hippy commune could be as gullible as Capricorn Anderson is made out to be, but I just love the idea of it and how his tie-dyed ways crept into the hearts of the kids at C Average Middle School.

July 28, 2008
Enjoyable
My middle school son is always looking for an excuse to NOT read. This book was one that he picked up without an argument. It was enjoyable, easy to read, short chapters, fun characters. It was definitely a hit with my, not so easy to please, son.

July 21, 2008
Fish Out Of Water Goes Swimming With The Sharks
One of the last remnant offspring of a hippie homeschool commune finds himself in the hands of social services when his grandmother must be hospitalized. This fish out of water is plunged into swimming with the sharks at the local public middle school. While Capricorn Anderson represents more aptly the exaggerated stereotypical new ager, we still get a knowing glimpse at the social classes and clashes rampant in our "educational" institutions through his coming of age experiences. Will he become a hero or remain a zero?

Mainstream Home Educators Beware: Lots of Zen-like thought and techniques are dappled throughout with inferred validation. While it is outwardly criticized by Capricorn's new "friends," it is inwardly admired. I didn't find it concerning, because a healthly dose of humor is directed to Capricorn's untraditional upbringing, as well as to the amount of academics occurring at schools. The author stroked a wide brush of sarcastic exaggeration across all of the characters.

Extra points for the creative technique of alternating the first person voice from character to character in the chapters.





June 17, 2008
Schooled is a good yet unsatisfying book
I, myself, liked the book, but it wasn't actually satisfying for my hunger to read something really dangerous and adventurous. It was all pretty realistic except for the stuff about the sixties. That was just plain stupid. Anyway a boy named Cap is a hippie-styled person - clothes, hair and all. His grandma Rain falls out of a plum tree or something and hurts herself. Then Cap has to transfer to a public school "C-Average" middle school. He has to adapt while people pick on him. That's basically what the story is about. It's an ok book. If you want a fast paced action book series, go for the Pendragon series. Happy reading!

May 24, 2008
A wonderful teenage novel!!
Once I started reading "Schooled" I seriously couldn't put it down, because it was such a sweet, and entertaining story. The main character, Cap, has to get used to living with a family he doesn't know, and has to go to a REAL school, because his grandma got injured when she fell out of a tree. This story involves many strong friendships, and Cap is pretty clueless in school, because he was homeschooled, and doesnt know how to socialize. Throughout the story he is described as a goofy, but extremely kind hippy boy, who can always make someone smile. I thought the book was phenomenal, and had a really good plot!!

April 3, 2008
A delightful story about learning to adapt and thrive in radically changing circumstances
Performed by various narrators, Schooled is an unabridged audiobook adaptation of a story about life in middle school, as written by Gordon Korman (perhaps best known for "No More Dead Dogs", a novel about the excessively overused trope of killing off a beloved pet in children's literature). Ideal for readers age 11 to 111, Schooled follows young Capricon "Cap" Anderson, who has spent his entire life with his grandmother on a farm commune - until his grandmother is hospitalized and he must attend Claverage Middle School while living with his guidance counselor. The transition is rocky at best, and when the Claverage students follow their tradition of nominating the biggest nerd for class president, Cap is the number one choice! Yet Cap's positive outlook and enthusiasm just might turn him into the best president ever. A delightful story about learning to adapt and thrive in radically changing circumstances, highly recommended. 4 CDs, 5 hours.

November 30, 2007
a really good book for middle schoolers
As the mother in another review pointed out, this is not necessarily a book to buy for home-schoolers who are searching for a role model. But young children who attend school will greatly appreciate the book's humor and fast pace. I really like the fact that parts of this book are told from the bullies' perspective and other parts are told from the victim's perspective. This book manages to make a strong anti-bullying message without being preachy.

November 25, 2007
Schooled
I was under the impression that this book was about the sixties, when I read the other reviews posted here. Some people included quotes from the quintessential figures that were so effective and prominent in the 1960s, i.e. the Beatles. But, when I read "Schooled" by Gordon Korman (I got it for my thirteenth birthday) it wasn't really like that. It was about how the sixties affect us today, and how they defined a great deal of American society today, such as cynicism towards the government.
"Schooled" has an interesting and impossibly entertaining premise. Capricorn (Cap) Anderson is a homeschooled hippie kid living in a deadbeat 1960s eco-commune, Garland Farm, with his grandmother Rain. His grandmother has raised him and taught him all that she believes to be important, and tells him to be wary of the world that they are nearly disconnected from, save for trips into town for supplies. Rain keeps him close so the outside world will not taint him.
So, as you can imagine, when Rain falls from a tree (she was picking plums) and breaks her hip and has to undergo six weeks of physical therapy, Cap is utterly and completely lost, innocent and unknowing of the normal middleschool hierarchy that exists in Claverage Middle School (dubbed C Average by students). He stays with a social worker, Mrs. Donnelly, who actually herself lived on Garland Farm at one time, running barefoot in peasant dresses and doing farm chores. Mrs. Donnelly takes Cap to live with her and her daughter, Sophie, at her home.
It goes from there with Cap being terrorized by popular students, but, despite their obviously harmful intentions and downright meanness towards Cap, he never tries to get back at them, never gets angry or frustrated, only confused ("Why can't we all just get along?"), which becomes a endearing and pitiable quality to Cap.
A hillarious aspect of the book is Cap fascination with Sophie Donnelly's favorite show, "Trigonometry and Tears", a tragic teen drama, and becomes involved with the fictional characters lives. Sophie could not care less for Cap: he scares away mostly everyone and disrupts her perfect, if not mundane, typical high school life. AND he won't keep his split ends on his side of the couch.
"Schooled" is told in Cap's voice, and multiple students of C Average voices, as well as Mrs. Donnelly and Sophie Donnelly. The storytelling in fluid and compelling; it is very hard to put down. The story ends in a way that I had not expected and happily as well; which satisfied me.
I had never read any of Gordon Korman's books until now, and I look forward to some more excellent and creative works that reflect how people effect each other. This book will appeal to both boys and girls, I think.
Great book!


For more Schooled reviews click here.