Showing results by author "Todd Strasser" in All Categories

The powerful forces of group pressure that pervaded many historic movements such as Nazism are recreated in the classroom when history teacher Ben Ross introduces a "new" system to his students. And before long "The Wave", with its rules of "strength through discipline, community, and action," sweeps from the classroom through the entire school. And as most of the students join the movement, Laurie Saunders and David Collins recognize the frightening momentum of "The Wave" and realize they must stop it before it's too late.

It’s the summer of 1962, and Scott and his friends spend their days playing baseball and thinking about girls. But the threat of nuclear war looms over everything they do, and they are haunted by the idea that they could all be dead tomorrow. Even though the possibility of war is all anyone talks about, Scott’s dad is the only one in the neighborhood who actually prepares for the worst, building a bomb shelter to protect his family and stocking it with enough supplies to keep them alive for two critical weeks. The neighbors scoff, but then, in the middle of the night in late October, the unthinkable happens.

A heartbreaking novel that offers no easy answers, Give a Boy a Gun addresses the growing problem of school violence. Although it is a work of fiction, it could tragically be the leading nightly news story in any community. After a high school shooting at her alma mater, a college journalism student returns home to interview students, teachers, parents, and friends of the suspects. Intermingled with her interviews are journal entries written by the two troubled boys responsible for the shooting.

With his girlfriend, Robin, away in Canada, 18-year-old Lucas Baker's only plans for the summer are to mellow out with his friends, smoke weed, drop a tab or two, and head out in his microbus for a three-day happening called the Woodstock Music and Art Fair. But life veers dramatically off track when he suddenly finds himself in danger of being drafted and sent to fight in Vietnam.

Inspirée de faits réels, la démonstration qu'un simple jeu peut finir en dictature. Pour faire comprendre les mécanismes du nazisme à ses élèves, Ben Ross, professeur d'histoire, crée un mouvement expérimental au slogan fort : "La Force par la Discipline, la Force par la Communauté, la Force par l'Action." En l'espace de quelques jours, l'atmosphère du paisible lycée californien se transforme en microcosme totalitaire : avec une docilité effrayante, les élèves abandonnent leur libre arbitre pour répondre aux ordres de leur nouveau leader.

The day after anonymous blogger Str-S-d wishes the popular girl would die, Lucy vanishes. The students of Soundview High are scared and worried. Especially frightened and wracked with guilt is Madison Archer, Lucy's friend and the last person to see her the night she disappeared. As days pass with no sign of the missing girl, even the attention of Tyler, an attractive new student, is not enough to distract Madison from her growing sense of foreboding.

There's a new afterschool club at Ironville Middle School. Ms. Peterson is starting a video game club where the students will playing The Good War, a new game based on World War II. They are divided into two teams: Axis and Allies, and they will be simulating a war they know nothing about yet. Only one team will win. But what starts out as friendly competition takes an unexpected turn for the worse when an one player takes the game too far.

Callie is at an October keg party in the woods, when she notices that her friend Katherine has gone missing. The kids spread out to look for her and Callie finds her, lying on a path, with a big, bloody fake knife in her. She reaches for the knife and raises it, only to discover, to her horror, that it is real. At that moment, another of the search party stumbles on them, and takes a photo of Callie holding the bloody knife. Now she is the suspect in a grisly murder. How can she prove her innocence - and find the true murderer?

Shelby's life in Soundview has always been comfortable. Her dad provides a luxurious lifestyle for his family through his photography business. He makes a ton of money taking headshots of pretty young teens who are desperate to become models. And her Mom is laidback, so it's all good. However, as reports of girls disappearing from nearby towns start to appear on the news, Shelby's seemingly perfect life begins to fall apart.

The charm of the crazy Clampett clan lives on! After striking oil on his land in the Ozarks, Jed Clampett decides the sophisticated life in Beverly Hills is just what he and his kin—Jethro Bodine, Elly May, and Granny—deserve. Humorous antics ensue when they proceed to shake up privileged society with their hayseed ways. This novelization of the film features all of the favorite characters from the original series—including uptight banker Mr. Drysdale and his prim assistant Miss Jane Hathaway.

Do you believe in Santa Claus? You will after you've experienced this magical Christmas classic that pits cynics against Santa-believers. Miracle on 34th Street begins when a last-minute replacement in the annual Thanksgiving Day Parade claims to be the genuine Santa. Is he the real thing or just a charlatan in a red fuzzy coat? In a classic courtroom climax, the department store's Kris Kringle must convince everyone, including a skeptical little girl named Susan Walker, that Santa Claus really does exist.

A turma do último ano do Colégio Gordon deveria estar estudando a Segunda Guerra Mundial, mas os alunos parecem um tanto quanto céticos em relação ao nazismo. Afinal, parece impossível para eles que a juventude alemã tenha apoiado um regime com ideias tão deturpadas, que causou a morte de tantas pessoas. Mas Ben Ross, o professor de história da escola, parece ter a ideia perfeita para engajar a classe. Ele começa um movimento estudantil focado no discurso de “disciplina” e “comunidade”, bastante semelhante às premissas que inspiraram a juventude de Hitler.