Driver's Ed

Driver’s Ed is a suspenseful young adult novel that explores the consequences of careless choices. The story follows a group of teens who, while out late at night, steal a stop sign as a prank. When an accident occurs at the same intersection, leading to a woman’s death, guilt, fear, and responsibility weigh heavily on them. Caroline B. Cooney balances the excitement of teenage freedom with the sobering reality of how one impulsive act can change lives forever. The novel combines drama, moral dilemmas, and suspense, making it both thought-provoking and engaging for young readers.

This story follows a terrible decision made by two teens in a driver’s education class. Remy and Morgan embark on a daring mission to steal road signs, but sad consequences follow as a young mother is killed at the intersection where a stop sign was stolen. Remy and Morgan are faced with tremendous guilt and sorrow, and both finally decide to own up to their regretted actions. I think this book teaches lessons about responsibility and courage, and teens will enjoy the fast-paced action and suspense.

Three teenagers' lives are changed forever when they thoughtlessly steal a stop sign from a dangerous intersection and a young mother is killed in an automobile accident there.

Driver’s Ed has won notable awards that include: (a) ALA Best Books for Young Adults; (b) ALA YALSA Reluctant Reader Committee Quick Picks for Young Adults; and (c) Booklist Editor's Choice. Cooney “is a master of mixing spellbinding suspense with thought-provoking insight into teenagers' lives” (www.teenreads.com). Driver’s Ed is romance, suspense, and realistic fiction all rolled into one story. It teaches a big lesson in life—how to take responsibility for what you have done. In the case of Remy and Morgan, stealing the stop sign was a split-second thrill. However, that thrill quickly fades when they learn that someone has been killed. Their secret leads to unbearable guilt and remorse. In due time they confess only to show more realize they have also shamed their families. A second lesson of Driver’s Ed is taking responsibility for what you have not done. Mr. Fielding, the driver’s education teacher knew that the class was talking about stealing signs, yet he did nothing until it was too late. Mr. Fielding knew he was not a good teacher. Driver’s education is all about life and death which is exactly what Mr. Fielding did not teach his students. Driver’s Ed is a book that all young adults should read well before they reach the age of sixteen. Cooney gives librarians an interesting image (p. 4). Mrs. Bee the school librarian feels that just because the driver’s ed classroom is adjacent to the library it is not her responsibility to supervise the kids left in the classroom. Mrs. Bee simply wears her sunglasses and supervises nothing. An excellent book for the reluctant reader. Fasten your seat belt for Driver’s Ed—it’s a ride you won’t forget. show less

Megan Reed
EDCI 4120
7/12/08
Cooney, C (1994). Driver's Ed. New York: Bantam Doubleday Dell.
Grade Levels: 8-12
Category: Realistic Fiction
Read-Alouds: pp. 1-19(Introduction of Characters); pp. 55-71(Morgan and Remy steel the stop sign and find out a mother of a two year old died at that intersection because there wasn’t a stop sign); pp 163-187(Remy and Morgan tell their parents about taking the stop sign and then they tell Mr. Thompson about it)
Summary: Remy and Morgan are about to get their drivers licenses. They are taking Drivers Education in school. In class one day a student says that everyone should take a street sign before they get their license and the teacher ignores the comment. Morgan and Remy like each other and one night show more they go out with one of their friends that can already drive. They take a couple of harmless signs like Morgan road and Thickly Settled. Then they get the idea to take a stop sign. They take one and the next day they hear on the news that a woman of a two year old died at the intersection they took the sign from. They struggle with whether or not to tell anyone. They ultimately end up telling their parents and the husband of the woman who died.
Themes: Religion is a huge theme in this book. The main scenes in this book are either in church, school or the kid’s homes. Both Remy and Morgan go to church together and this adds another stress to them when they start to wonder if God can forgive them. Another big theme is honesty. They decide that it is best to tell Mr. Thompson that they were responsible for his wife’s death. It was very hard for them because they saw on TV how angry he was and how he wanted them to pay for what they did. A big theme in this book is the political aspect. Morgan’s dad plans to run for Governor. He worries that this will tarnish his dad’s reputation and he wont be able to get the seat.
Discussion Questions: What made Morgan and Remy finally decide to tell their parents? How did guilt play a part in this book? If nobody died from them steeling the stop sign would they have stolen more signs?
Reader Response: This book was pretty good. It really makes you think about things that you think are fun and harmless can have huge consequences. I remember in high school some of my friends stole some signs. I don’t know if they ever took any stop signs but it would be strange to think that they could have killed someone by just going out and having some fun. show less

Themes of safety, integrity, and guilt. American Library Association Best Book for Young Adults, American Library Association Quick Pick for Young Adults, Booklist Editors’ Choice. The author is able to send important messages to teen readers through the dialog spoken by characters. Rather than the author narrating the lessons in a “preachy” way, she allows her characters to do so, which is much more effective. Examples include the police (ch 4), the teacher (ch 12), and the victim’s spouse (ch 13).

A MUST read for every new teenage driver. Excellent subject, dealt with in a very real-world manner.