A review by crafalsk264
Attack of the Black Rectangles by Amy Sarig King

challenging emotional informative inspiring reflective slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? No

5.0

Mac, Denis, and Marci are best friends and they live in a small Pennsylvania town that is said to be the best town. Within its town limits, there is no junk food allowed, no pizza delivery, no trick or treating at Halloween, and houses can only be painted white. Much of this can be traced to an active letter-to-the-editor writer by the name of Ms. Laura Samuel Sett. She is also a 6th grade teacher and Mac, Denis, and Marci are assigned to her room. Things get off to a rocky start on Day One. Ms. Sett lies to her students twice. First she tells the students there would be very little homework then makes a heavy homework assignment on the first day; their desks are in rows like in high school rather than pods like in elementary school but on Day Two they arrive to find desks in pods.  Their reading is done in book groups in their pod groups. Their first assignment is “The Devil’s Arithmetic” by Jane Yolen. But Mac realizes that this book has black rectangles covering words blocked out. Then he realizes that the same marks are in Denis and Marci and everyone else’s books. Mac’s grandfather buys him a full copy of the book. But Mac can’t get over the book with plain regular words just taken away. When he questions Ms. Sett and the principal they listen to him but give no good reason for the censorship and just send him back to class. Mac, Denis, and Marci decide to take their protest to the School Board. From there, our trio gets more and more adept at planning their campaign to end the censorship.

This book is a wonderful examination of the harm even the most well intentioned intrusion of one person making a decision for another can be. The author’s note says that this book was based on a true story. Amy Sarig King’s local elementary marked up copies of this same book in the same way and when she complained she received a similar response to her protest.

It just so happens that I am reading this on the last day of Banned Books Week. It is very similar to a book I recently read (“Answers in the Pages”). I like both of them but this one is a head above. The plot is perfectly paced. The book is beautifully written, the main characters are likable and well-developed and one of my very few five-star reads. At the end of the book Mac composes a haiku.

“Important is Truth,

Even if it hurts sometimes,

It is still the Truth.”

And now, I have put “The Devil’s Arithmetic” on my TBR.