Choosing Sides (The Kids from Kennedy Middle School)

Here we have Book Two in an '80s-'90s middle grade series I read back in my childhood, The Kids from Kennedy Middle School.

I remembered some key stuff from Book Four I wanted to revisit, but now as I'm on my way there, I'm remembering more about the previous books as I read them. Amazing how memory can kick in with stories sometimes, even after decades!

While I might have enjoyed Book One a bit more overall, this second novel was a little funnier to me, with Jonathan's and his buddies' thoughts on puberty and whatnot, and some of the general fixes they get themselves into. Truth be told, I even laughed (sorry!) at one of Jonathan's down moments, at halftime during his basketball team's first game: Before the half was over… They were show more winning, but four to two wasn't a very impressive score.

The basketball theme was also particularly neat-o for my nostalgia, what with the book's mentions of Michael Jordan and Larry Bird—both who were in the midst of their NBA careers at the time.

And one key aspect that this novel shares with the book before it is that the story doesn't spoon-feed easy answers to the reader for all the serious questions/dilemmas that come up. Jonathan's story leaves room for readers to do their own pondering about facing tough decisions, and I rather liked the bittersweet ending.

Looking forward to revisiting Book Three next.

Note:
• a few adolescent, non-detailed references to sex, and a to-do with some boys wanting to look through a "dirty magazine"
• perhaps a moment when one kid makes a non-detailed obscene gesture at another kid, but I honestly couldn't tell by the wording, which made me laugh at myself show less