Ever since he was born, Kenny Wright has loved comics. He even made his own super hero, Stainlezz Steel. Kenny and his grandma have now moved to a rough part of Washington, D.C. Kenny is a geek that likes to play chess. His grandma, or G-ma, is a lover of books. Ray-Ray is a kid that steals kids’ lunches, and acts obnoxious. His brother, Nicky, is very famous. This book mainly takes place at Kenny’s school, Union Middle School. On Kenny’s first day at Union Middle school, he is forced to walk with his grandma. He thinks that walking to school with his grandma is very embarrassing. Kenny now thinks that his day couldn’t get any worse. But he was wrong. Later on, he gets in trouble with a bully named Ray-Ray and the principal forces Kenny to teach Ray-Ray how to play chess as a punishment. Later on, Kenny starts to become friends with Ray-Ray. He learned that being friends with kids like Ray-Ray could turn his life upside-down. Kenny takes many dares that could shatter his friendship with Ray-Ray.
I have read many books that is about a kid’s middle school life. But, I have never read anything like this book. This book got me very excited when one of the characters did something. I wanted to know what happened next. Also, I really liked how the character changed throughout the book. In the beginning, he is just a geek that gets bullied often. By the end of this book, he didn’t get bullied and he is now a tougher kid.
One memorable thing about this book is the series of events Kenny and Ray-Ray went through. They went through hard times and happy times. But, in the end, they went through these events together. When one of the characters gets lost, the other helps the guy get back on track.
Reviewed by Eugene, Grade 6, Twin Hickory Area Library
HCPL TeenScene's Read + Review 