Quill & Quire
Set in a fictional prairie town (in what could be Canada or the U.S.), Alberta author David A. Poulsen’s
Numbers finds Andy “Alamo” Crockett trying to figure out whether his Grade 10 Social Studies teacher, Mr Retzlaff (“Mr R”), is good or evil. Alamo has been told by his drunkard uncle that Mr. R is a Holocaust denier, but Alamo doesn’t even know what the Holocaust was. And Mr R is just so cool: he hangs with Alamo’s clique of outsider friends at the school dance; he always remembers everyone’s name; he engages his students, challenging them to never accept the status quo. Anti-Semitism is the central issue here, but Poulsen elevates
Numbers above the status of “issue book” through his funny and sympathetic depiction of contemporary teenage life. There is no shying away from realities. Alamo swears, he drinks booze at parties (other kids smoke pot), he has sex – but all this is just treated as part of the normal fabric of his life. He has a solid home life and hardworking parents (though that uncle is a bit of a blight). He is torn between two girls – one manipulative, one good. He gets decent grades and is a capable athlete on the wrestling team. Most importantly, he is probably more intelligent than he gives himself credit for. This is significant, because where the book really shines is in Poulsen’s depiction of Alamo’s slow realization that he can, and should, think for himself. What gives the book its engrossing, ironic tension is that this spark is provided by the manipulative Mr. R, who is all the while feeding him pernicious anti-Semitic ideas. By the end, Alamo’s entire world turns on a single decision: to participate or not in an abominable act.
Numbers is a deeply moving, nuanced, and fascinating depiction of how confusion and vulnerability can sometimes cause damages that can never be fully repaired.
Product Description
Fifteen-year-old Andy Crockett wouldn?t call himself the luckiest kid on earth. At home, his brother got all the looks and the smarts. And at school, he doesn?t exactly fit: not with the Goths, not with the athletes, and certainly not with the brains. Not even, really, with The Six?a group of misfits who hang out with each other only because they can?t stand hanging out with anyone else.
At the start of the school year, though, Andy starts to think that his luck has changed. Although Parkerville High isn?t the coolest school on earth, there?s one very cool thing about it: Mr. Retzlaff. And Andy?s got him for Grade 10 Social.
Grade 10 Social is awesome from Day One. It?s the class that covers World War II, and Hitler, and the Holocaust. It?s the class in which Mr. R. stresses that pictures can be deceiving, and encourages his students not to believe everything they hear. It?s the class that Andy wants to ace?if only to make Mr. R. proud. Before long, though, Andy starts to realize that Mr. R?s version of history doesn?t quite match everyone else?s, and that acing this particular class may cost more than he?s willing to pay.
With Numbers, award-winning author David A. Poulsen offers a piercing look at the costs of turning your back on what is popular and learning to think for yourself.
