Summary
Thirteen-year-old Jake is kicked out of every public school inCharacters
Jake Semple is unsure about his feelings because his parents are in prison, and he has been expelled from several schools. If Jake does not adjust to life with the Applewhites, he will be placed in a juvenile detention facility. Edith Wharton "E.D." Applewhite is named afterThemes and motifs
Stephanie S. Tolan weaves different themes and motifs throughout ''Surviving the Applewhites''. Flowers are one example: * "Cordelia had just gone through a flower-arranging phase, and of course her arrangements had been beautiful. She was a true Applewhite, after all, which meant that whatever creative activity she put her mind to, she did really well. But she'd gotten bored with flower arranging, and now the bouquets were blackening all over the house. By the time anybody did anything with them, there'd be nothing left but dry, empty stems, and slimy water. By then even Cordelia probably wouldn't remember how they'd gotten there. There was a disturbing lack of focus and follow-up in her family" (15). This passage is fruitful because, first, flowers demonstrate Cordelia's artistic freedoms and interests. Art and self-expression are important to the Applewhite family. Additionally, flowers show one of the Applewhites' downfalls: "a disturbing lack of focus and follow-up." Later in the novel, the reader learns this tendency is particularly troublesome to E.D., an essential idea that is foreshadowed by this description of flowers. * When Jake first sees Cordelia, she is wearing a floral dress before the goat chases her and rips it: "He thought she might be the most gorgeous girl he'd ever seen... The breathtaking girl in the leotard was picking her way back along the driveway, carrying what was left of the flowered material as if she had a dead baby in her arms" (9). In the novel, flowers symbolize hopefulness and calm, so it is important to note that Jake is drawn to a character wearing a floral print. * When Jake arrives at his room, he is stunned by its appearance. The reader learns, "It wasn't just very, very small. It was also lavender. Walls, ceiling, even the oval braided rug were all faintly nauseating shade of lavender. The single window was framed with lavender-and-white striped curtains, and the bed was covered in the same material. There was a strong smell in the room that reminded him suddenly of a great-great-aunt who'd come to visit his mother once. Jake rubbed his nose to keep himself from sneezing. Lucille sniffed appreciatively and pointed to a bowl of what looked like crushed, dead, gray weeds on top of the dresser, which was the only thing other than the twin bed that would fit the room. 'Dried lavender. Isn't the aroma wonderful? Calming. Centering. Just like the color" (26). Jake is repulsed by the lavender color and finds the room overwhelming while Lucille is soothed by the color and smell. This scene encourages readers to note how each character is influenced by flowers throughout the text. * On Page 28, Sybil Jameson sits at the kitchen's table "behind another vase of dying flowers... wearing a tattered robe and jotting notes on a yellow pad with a thoroughly chewed pencil." In this passage, the flowers on the table are dead, and Sybil is described looking very dismal and unimpressive. So, the flowers further inform the appearance of Sybil's character. * Lucille tells E.D. to show Jake her curriculum book to help him figure what he is interested in studying. Then Lucille says, "I’m going to get rid of these poor bouquets. They’re pulling down the energy of the whole room’” (37). Lucille wants E.D. to help Jake find his educational passion, so he can begin enjoying his time at The Creative Academy. Lucille then removes the dying bouquets from the room, which mirrors the concept that Jake will improve his energy by removing the negativity he feels and discovering his interests. * On page 41, Jake strikes the grass where flowers are growing: “Jake didn’t say anything. He just struck at the tall grass as if the net were a scythe – one way, then the other – scattering seed heads and blossoms of Queen Anne’s lace.” Flowers are integral to ideas about hopefulness and self-expression throughout the novel. This scene is pivotal because it demonstrates Jake's struggle to find comfort within the Applewhite family.Critical reception
On School Library Journal, Faith Brautigam said, "This has terrific book talk and read-aloud potential, and will help fill the need for humorous contemporary fiction." Ilene Cooper said, "She takes a rather predictable plot (the tough kid is tamed by exposure to a good family), and twists it into a screwball comedy that pushes the story to a whole new place on a booklist."Awards
''Surviving the Applewhites'' was named a Newbery Honor book in 2003 and ALA Booklist Editors’ choice and Book Links Lasting Connection.References
Tolan, Stephanie S. ''Surviving the Applewhites''. HarperCollinsPublishers Inc: New York, 2002 B002MWIEGGBibliography
*Published by Collins-Worth Publishers Inc., 483 2nd Street, Philadelphia, PA 19102. *Published by HarperCollins Publishers Inc., 1350 Avenue of Europe, Baltimore, MD 17019 {{S-end 2002 American novels American children's novels Newbery Honor-winning works HarperCollins books 2002 children's books