Standing Up to Mr. O - Softcover

Claudia Mills, veteran writer of children's books and associate professor of philosophy, examines an important issue in an engaging story populated with complex and winning characters. The author of Dinah Forever and Losers, Inc., she lives in Boulder, Colorado.

Gr. 4^-7. Like Mills' Dinah for President (1992), this is a school coming-of-age story for those who love a stimulating argument. The issue this time is animal rights, specifically, the dissection of animals in seventh-grade biology class. Maggie McIntosh is against it; she refuses to cut up worms, fish, and frogs ("It was wrong to kill something on purpose, just to cut it up to see what its insides looked like"), even if it means getting an F in biology instead of her usual A. Her smug, clever lab partner, Matt, argues forcefully against her; her best friend agrees with her but is too scared to take a stand. Hardest of all for Maggie is going against her beloved biology teacher, Mr. O., who has always been special to her, almost a father figure for her absent dad. Mr. O. is furious at her opposition, and he lets her down. Then there's the brooding, attractive outsider, Jake, who supports her, but does he care about the issue, or does he just want trouble? What makes the book so compelling is that Mills really opens up the arguments; she is fair to all sides, and no one really wins. The issues matter, but there is no self-righteousness. Maggie is as rueful as she is passionate, and there are some very funny lines ("What do frogs eat?" her mother asks when Maggie brings home a pet frog. "Are they allowed to eat real bugs, or do we have to find bugs made out of soybeans?"). Maggie turns 13 and learns no easy answers. People disappoint you, even your best friend lets you down, even your beloved mentor, and you go on. Hazel Rochman