Save Me a Seat

Used to being the top student, fifth grader Ravi ("fresh off the boat" from Bangalore) is furious when he's sent to the resource room with Joe (whose auditory processing disorder makes school challenging). Determined to prove his superiority, Ravi befriends bully Dillon, while Joe hopes to get through the day without humiliation at Dillon's hands. Short chapters alternate between Joe's and Ravi's distinctive, engaging voices. Glos.

On the first day of fifth grade at Albert Einstein Elementary, Ravi (pronounced rah-VEE, not RAH-vee) Suryanarayanan and Joe Sylvester (saddled with the nickname Puddy Tat) seem to have nothing in common. New-kid Ravi is "fresh off the boat" thanks to his father's transfer to New Jersey from Bangalore. Joe, whose auditory processing disorder makes school a challenge, has been sitting right behind bully Dillon Samreen since kindergarten. Ravi is used to being the top student at home, and he's furious when the teacher, who has trouble understanding his accent, sends him off with Joe to the resource room. Determined to show everyone his innate superiority, Ravi vows to befriend Dillon (also of Indian descent, but whom Ravi derisively calls an ABCD-American-Born Confused Desi), while Joe's goal is to make it through the day without humiliation, especially at the hands of Dillon. Told in short, pithy chapters that alternate between Joe's and Ravi's perspectives, the story covers the first week of school, with each day defined by the school lunch menu. The voices are distinctive and engaging, and Weeks and Varadarajan celebrate the small victories that make elementary school bearable. Though Dillon is an unambiguous villain, the book does an excellent job of depicting the many inadvertent antagonists who complicate the boys' lives. Two glossaries, one for Ravi's Tamil words and one for Joe's Americanisms, appear at the end, along with a pair of recipes. sarah rettger