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Title: Hey, Dummy
Author:
Kin Platt
Age level: Middle School, grades 7-9
Recommended by: Gail Lindenberg, Nogales High School, California Summary:
The short novel includes passages before each chapter in stream-of-consciousness style, following the thoughts of a mentally retarded boy. Each chapter is the same story line told through regular prose in the narration of a young man who is an outsider himself. He becomes caught up in the problems and sorrows of the boy all the others call "dummy" and ends up battling for both of their lives. The book is a wonderful lesson in the power of the individual and the importance of independent thinking designed for an age group that needs nurturing in that universal lesson.
Teaching suggestions:
An exercise in stream-of-consciousness writing would be a natural follow-up activity. Have students tell an anecdote in prose style and then have someone write their anecdote in a stream-of-consciousness narrative.
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