Grand and Humble

* Bibliographic information
Hartinger, B. Grand and Humble. HarperCollins, 2006. ISBN: 9780060567279

- Winner of the Scandiuzzi Children’s Book Award
- A TeenReads.com "Best of 2006"- A Genrefluent "Best of 2006"


* Plot Summary
Alternating chapters with Harlan and Mandy follow two boys who are complete opposites of each other. Harlan is the school president and captain of the swim team, he has important parents and lives a life of privilege with parties and beautiful girlfriends. Mandy is invisible at school; he enjoys making movies and designing websites while his dad works hard to support them. Then they both start to share a common dread. Manny is having horrible nightmares that appear to be his past. Harlan is panicking with jarring visions of the future. Both of them know there is a secret linked with the intersection of Grand and Humble. Before the end of the book readers will be shocked by a surprise they could not have seen coming. The ending will leave readers thinking about things they overlooked throughout the book.


* Critical Evaluation
Hartinger has created a wonderful “what if?” scenario with this ending. Harlan and Mandy have so little in common and then readers find out they have something very basic and important in common. Many readers will go back through and look for clues; much like the film the Sixth Sense with its surprise twist at the end. Teens will enjoy this realistic take on differences between individuals; the contrasting characters mirror teens in every high school. The added mystery makes the story more exciting and will guarantee readers’ attention even after they have finished the book. The suspense being built throughout the book is a character in itself as Harlan and Mandy try to dissect their visions and nightmares in an attempt to find some meaning.


* Reader’s Annotation
Harlan and Mandy could not be any more different, but they do share a secret that connects them in a mysterious way.


* Information about the author
Hartinger is an author and a playwright. Before he was able to get his books published he wrote playwrights that were picked up. He says he is living the dream and loves to read, go to the movies and plays and he enjoys playing computer games. Him and his partner, Michael also love to travel; they live in Tacoma, Washington.


* Genre
Teen Fiction; Behavioral, Mental and Family Issues


* Curriculum Ties, if any
N/A


* Booktalking Ideas
1) The book talks about all the ways that Mandy and Harlan are different, in what ways are they the same?
2) How does the character of Harlan change in the book? What does his mother have to do with this change?
3) Do you believe that our experiences make us who we are today or do you think we are born a certain way?


* Reading Level/Interest Age
Grade 7 and Up / 14-18 year olds


* Challenge Issues and Defense
N/A


* Why did you include this book in your titles you selected?
I included this book at first because as I started to read it I found it both exciting and suspenseful and then when I go to the end I still liked it but was a bit confused. After searching for some insight I found out the true meaning of the ending and I thought it was brilliant. I mentioned this above, but it reminds me of the Sixth Sense and how if you go back through that movie you can see clues that lead viewers to the ending. This book does much the same thing but it is less noticeable; at least to me. I thought even without the ending I enjoyed the contrasting characters; but then to find out they were one in the same made it a much more original story.