Surviving the Applewhites by Stephanie S. Tolan

Surviving the Applewhites is about a boy named Jake who has a rough life. His parents are in jail for growing marijuana in their home and he is a bit of a “bad kid”. He is 13 and has gotten kicked out of all his previous schools, as well as passed around to many foster homes and parents. When we meet him he is living with his grandfather and had gotten kicked out of another school. The Applewhites are his last option before he has to go to a school for juvenile delinquents.

The Applewhites are a family of very quirky and unique characters. They are almost all very artistically minded and full of people who work as directors, dancers, woodworkers, authors, etc. This family all lives on the same property in various houses & started their own “school” called the “Creative Academy” for the kids in the family. They decide to offer Jake a room in their home and a spot in this school in hopes of helping him.

When Jake starts at the school, you see him begin to transform from this cold & hard kid to a kind and creative one. The Applewhites dog, Winston and the youngest Applewhite, Destiny latch on to Jake immediately and look up to him. Jake grows into the role model that Destiny wanted (and seemingly needed) as his character grows.

Eventually Jake finds a passion for acting & singing and plays a role in Randolph Applewhite’s production of the Sound of Music. The second half of the book is all about the production and how the entire family comes together to make it happen after various curve balls and problems that arise. While the family is seemingly full of very selfish and self-centered people, they all come together to help one another in the end and help Jake find his passions.

Reading Level: Ages 9-13
Read Aloud Age: 9+

This book is cute and would be fun to read for a child of this age to see not to “judge a book by its cover” when it comes to other kids they may be around. It could help expand their worldview to understand that other people’s stories look different than their own and to maybe be willing to reach out to those who seem to be hard. This could also help kids be willing to pursue things they love even if they are not “cool” to their surrounding communities. There are a lot of goofy and interesting characters in this book that are easy to laugh at and enjoy.

However, this is a book I would say to “read with caution”. The story line is a really good one, but Jake (especially at the beginning) is a rough character with some traits and habits that you might not want your child to read & potentially emulate. There are places where Jake makes reference to a girl’s body by saying she has, “not much shape yet. Still as much like a boy or a girl” that could bring up questions and conversations some families might not be ready for quite yet.

Language:
There are many places where there is a suggestion of cursing without actually saying any curse words in this book. For example, pg. 14 “Then he said a few of his favorite words, just loud enough to be sure they were heard”. It is also suggested that the family bird curses frequently & nobody in the family says anything to correct these behaviors, they ignore them instead.

Questionable Behaviors:
Jake (13 years old) smokes cigarettes
Referencing murder of the family goat (meant to be a joke in context)
When we see the inner thoughts of many of the characters it is often at the cost of other characters. The family tends to degrade or gossip about one another & have a very self-centered culture amongst the adults and the children. Meaning everyone thinks they are more significant than the others and their work is far more important than caring for their own brothers/sisters, children/parents, etc.
There is a moment toward the end of the book where the family sits down for a meal together and holds hands (as if to pray) and instead Zedediah gives more of a speech and thanks ‘to all the powers that be”

Sexual Content:
Jake has a crush on one of the Applewhites
Comments on the body of young girls (see comments above) such as “This one was easy to recognize as a girl”

Other things to know:
When they are casting the production of the Sound of Music one of the lead roles is black, and Randolph gets applauded for having a “color-blind” cast. This is mentioned a few times as Randolph being a visionary and progressive.

This review is written by Good Book Mom contributor, Sierra. To learn more about Sierra, click HERE.

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