The Misfits by James Howe

What does a twelve-year-old tie salesman, a tall, outspoken girl, a gay middle schooler, and a kid considered a hooligan have in common? These seventh graders have been best friends for years- and among them have been called over seventy-five different names. When Addie decides that she is no longer going to say the Pledge of Alligence in school, the foursome suddenly find themselves making a stand for "libery and justice for all." Their journey has them running against the more popular students in the upcoming student council election. Addie's lofty ideals and speeches end up offending fellow classmates, teachers, and the principal. It is Bobby's "No-Name Party" and platform, however, attracts people's attention.

This book was really difficult for me to get into. But once the "No-Name Party" was created, however, I found myself sucked back in time to my middle school days. I knew exactly what Bobby meant when he came up with the slogan "sticks and stones may break our bones, but names will break our spirit". The "No Name Calling Day" idea, which was was created in this book- and was the inspiration for No-Name Calling Week- is a wonderful idea. As for the book itself, I felt the characters were not the most realistic seventh graders- to me the talked and acted more like high school students. I found myself wanting more depth to the characters, especially wishing that some of the narration came from other characters.