No Talking

Mock Newbery Winner 2007
Young Readers Choice Award -Junior Nominee 2010

Citation:

No Talking by Andrew Clements.  Illustrations by Mark Elliott.  (Simon & Schuster Books, 2007).  146p. Contemporary Realism Junior Book.

Summary:

Dave and Lynsey lead the fifth grade boys and girls in a competition to see which group can win a no talking contest. 

Critique:

a.         A challenge of boys against girls fuels the story as a battle of the adolescent sexes unfold as the reader turns the pages.

b.         The timeless tale of male versus female is told in a new updated younger version that proves that an old concept can be given new life.  The story is well written to pull the reader into the story by hoping that their choice will win, but rooting for Dave the narrator. 

c.         “And there’s a way to prove that girls talk way more than boys.  Unless you’re afraid of some competition” (p. 21) is how the challenge begins.  “She had made the contest an exact tie” (p. 145) allows the battle to rage on for future generations.

Curriculum Connection:  

No Talking will delight any adolescent reader that remains apprehensive about the opposite sex.  The competition in the story could easily be used as an introduction to the importance of body language.  The idea of Dave and Lynsey keeping a record of words could also assist in the math lesson of tally marks.