The year is 1974 and Armstrong and Charlie are both 11, both good arm wrestlers and both dreading sixth grade at Wonderland Avenue School. But it's their differences that they notice first. Armstrong is in one of the first cohorts of black kids being bused to formerly all-white schools in Los Angeles. "[T]he Supreme Court has said it's time for black and white to blend," Armstrong's dad tells him. Armstrong is not so sure: "I don't see why. It's not like we're going to rub off on them." Smart, mouthy and hot-tempered, Armstrong enters Wonderland with a chip on his shoulder. Charlie, who is white and whose brother recently died, is obsessed with death statistics and rigid about following rules. He's promptly dubbed Rules Boy by Armstrong, thus setting the stage for a long, antagonistic school year. But the fights gradually morph into pranks, then transform again into competitiveness, grudging acceptance and, finally, friendship.
Steven B. Frank's debut middle grade novel, inspired by his own sixth grade year at Wonderland, is one part comedy, one part poignant drama and one part food for thought. The boys' alternating voices provide a context to their lives that isn't always apparent in first--or subsequent--meetings. Occasional interjections in the form of hilariously deadpan playground incident reports by Yard Supervisor Edwina Gaines give a wider picture of events. With an undercurrent of the tension and racism accompanying the era, Armstrong and Charlie also captures the awkward coming-of-age of two boys who learn that sometimes one must leave something behind in order to move forward. --Emilie Coulter, freelance writer and editor