Product Description

Capricorn Anderson had never watched a television show before. He'd never tasted a pizza. He had never even heard of a wedgie. And he had never, in his wildest dreams, thought of living anywhere but Garland Farm commune with his hippie caretaker, Rain.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #353333 in Books
• Published on: 2007-09-01
• Released on: 2007-07-31
• Original language: English
• Number of items: 1
• Binding: Hardcover
• 224 pages

Features

• ISBN13: 9780786856923
• Condition: NEW
• Notes: Brand New from Publisher. No Remainder Mark.
• Click here to view our Condition Guide and Shipping Prices

From Booklist
*Starred Review* Homeschooled on an isolated "alternate farm commune" that has dwindled since the 1960s to 2 members, 13-year-old Cap has always lived with his grandmother, Rain. When she is hospitalized, Cap is taken in by a social worker and sent—like a lamb to slaughter—to middle school. Smart and capable, innocent and inexperienced (he learned to drive on the farm, but he has never watched television), long-haired Cap soon becomes the butt of pranks. He reacts in unexpected ways and, in the end, elevates those around him to higher ground. From chapter to chapter, the first-person narrative shifts among certain characters: Cap, a social worker (who takes him into her home), her daughter (who resents his presence there), an A-list bully, a Z-list victim, a popular girl, the school principal, and a football player (who unintentionally decks Cap twice in one day). Korman capably manages the shifting points of view of characters who begin by scorning or resenting Cap and end up on his side. From the eye-catching jacket art to the scene in which Cap says good-bye to his 1,100 fellow students, individually and by name, this rewarding novel features an engaging main character and some memorable moments of comedy, tenderness, and reflection. Pair this with Jerry Spinelli's 2000 Stargirl (the sequel is reviewed in this issue) for a discussion of the stifling effects of conformity within school culture or just read it for the fun of it. Phelan, Carolyn

Customer Reviews

Well worth reading! A middle school teacher's pick for summer reading.
I came across "Schooled" at a local bookstore and picked it up. Two minutes into the novel I was hooked. With a tall glass of iced coffee, I sat down and read the entire book. The plot is simple--a 14 year old boy, Capricorn, is raised on a commune by his grandmother, a hippie he calls Rain. He is home schooled by Rain as the two of them are the only ones left on this commune/farm. Cap has little contact with the outside world, has never watched TV, handled money, or had a friend his age. When Rain falls while picking a plum, she is hospitalized. When he is temporarily placed in the home of a social worker with a teenage daughter--who hates him--and attends a local middle school, look out! Innocent and gullible child walks into the jungle of a middle school campus, creating many interesting events

The story is humorous, touching, and at times aggravating. Capricorn becomes the butt of all jokes, the campus geek. How he handles his exposure to the corrupt world is a wonderful story. Somehow he manages to change those around him yet retain his own values.
While the ending was a bit contrived, it didn't take away from the plot. I highly recommend this one to all--but especially to middle school boys who are made to feel insecure if they don't conform to the expectations of the middle school culture.

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!

Easy and fun reading
Schooled is a fun and enlightening view of middle school and all of its challenges and how one idealistic uninformed kid can change bad attitudes. I was intrigued by this book as a commentary on homeschooling. I'm still not sure if the author has given homeschooling a good or bad image in this book. He shows the extremes of both bad school behavior and extreme homeschooling. The way the author writes the book is very refreshing using different voices in each chapter. The way the book ends is a bit contrived and could have been a little less extreme. Regardless, my homeschooled kids enjoyed the book and it gave them more of a sense that they are glad they don't have to put up with the attitudes of middle schoolers depicted in this book.