A review by katherineg
Ninjas, Piranhas, and Galileo, by Greg Leitich Smith
3.0
Greg Leitich Smith’s Ninjas, Piranhas, and Galileo is the story of three best friends: Elias, Honoria, and Shohei. The three friends attend a science magnet school in Chicago called the Peshtigo School. Elias comes from a family of musicians and scientists and wants to do well in the school science fair. He decides to replicate the experiment of one of his brothers, involving playing music to plants to stimulate their growth. Elias also has a crush on Honoria, but Honoria has a crush on Shohei. Honoria serves as a defense attorney for the school’s disciplinary court and is trying to train piranhas to prefer bananas for her science experiment. Shohei is Japanese American and has been adopted into an Irish American family. Shohei’s parents seem to be obsessed with the idea of Shohei learning more about his Japanese heritage. Shohei is oblivious to Honoria’s crush and seems to be more of a slacker than the other kids. He helps Elias with his project, but bribes his little brother Tim to do the work for him.
Problems develop regarding Elias’s science project. Elias does not get the same results that his brother did, and after Shohei’s half of the project is destroyed, he fakes answers that contradict Elias’s. After a humiliating scolding from his science teacher, Elias ends up with a horrible grade and is furious with Shohei. He breaks into the school and switches the CD that constantly plays to the plants in the atrium in hopes of proving that music has no effect on plants. He is caught and Honoria must defend him in the trial. The mismatched crushes also lead to troubles, with an angry Honoria realizing that the secret admirer emails she has been receiving are not from Shohei, but instead were written by Shohei for Elias. In the end, all is straightened out. Shohei gets his parents to lay off the forced appreciation for Japanese culture. Elias clears his name by agreeing to replicate the experiment again under the supervision of his teacher. And Elias and Honoria may be on their way to being more than “just friends.”
The story is told from three different viewpoints: that of Honoria, Shohei, and Elias. By presenting the plot from the perspective of all the main characters, Leitich Smith allows the reader to become more immersed in the characters and to better distinguish among them. Humor and exaggeration are used to entertain and pull the story along. For example, Shohei’s parents’ actions regarding the instillation of Japanese culture into their son are comical in their extremity. Although the kids’ school experience is different from those in public schools, kids will relate to the struggles they face: a difficult teacher with a personal grudge against a student, the desire to perform well in front of one’s peers, and the angst and uncertainty of a first crush.
Some aspects of the story seem a bit over the top and unrealistic. For example, it is doubtful that a grouchy old teacher like Mr. Eden would tolerate being blackmailed by his students. In the end, however, it is all in good fun. Junior high kids will likely really enjoy this book, especially those who are interested in the sciences or designated as “gifted and talented.”
Problems develop regarding Elias’s science project. Elias does not get the same results that his brother did, and after Shohei’s half of the project is destroyed, he fakes answers that contradict Elias’s. After a humiliating scolding from his science teacher, Elias ends up with a horrible grade and is furious with Shohei. He breaks into the school and switches the CD that constantly plays to the plants in the atrium in hopes of proving that music has no effect on plants. He is caught and Honoria must defend him in the trial. The mismatched crushes also lead to troubles, with an angry Honoria realizing that the secret admirer emails she has been receiving are not from Shohei, but instead were written by Shohei for Elias. In the end, all is straightened out. Shohei gets his parents to lay off the forced appreciation for Japanese culture. Elias clears his name by agreeing to replicate the experiment again under the supervision of his teacher. And Elias and Honoria may be on their way to being more than “just friends.”
The story is told from three different viewpoints: that of Honoria, Shohei, and Elias. By presenting the plot from the perspective of all the main characters, Leitich Smith allows the reader to become more immersed in the characters and to better distinguish among them. Humor and exaggeration are used to entertain and pull the story along. For example, Shohei’s parents’ actions regarding the instillation of Japanese culture into their son are comical in their extremity. Although the kids’ school experience is different from those in public schools, kids will relate to the struggles they face: a difficult teacher with a personal grudge against a student, the desire to perform well in front of one’s peers, and the angst and uncertainty of a first crush.
Some aspects of the story seem a bit over the top and unrealistic. For example, it is doubtful that a grouchy old teacher like Mr. Eden would tolerate being blackmailed by his students. In the end, however, it is all in good fun. Junior high kids will likely really enjoy this book, especially those who are interested in the sciences or designated as “gifted and talented.”