Bifocal
Written by: Eric Walters and Deborah Ellis
Fitzhenry & Whiteside $12.95
Recommended for ages 12 and up

From the award-winning Canadian authors, Ellis and Walters, comes this engaging story of a high school incident told from the perspective of two very different students. Jay is a football star, who knows no one except those in his tight circle of friends. Haroon is an intelligent member of the school’s Reach for the Top team and frequent visitor to Brown Town.

A Muslim student is arrested on suspicion of terrorism. He, too, is a member of the Reach for the Top team. Haroon is an acquaintance of his however Jay has never heard of him. This makes for an interesting take on the arrest. Haroon cannot believe that his teammate could be capable of such an act. Jay is influenced by the media and so believes that the arrest is accurate. There are other secondary characters that play important roles in the story. Haroon’s sister, typically an independent young woman, makes a bold decision to begin wearing traditional dress including a burka and an abaya. This disappoints her progressive parents and of course her brother. Jay’s sidekick, Kevin is the captain of the football team and feels he is invincible. He leads his buddies on a Halloween adventure that goes a little too far. But will the team be excused for their actions simply because of their status within the school community?

The chapters alternate between each boy’s point of view on the situation and interestingly enough are written by the two different authors. This story, intended for middle and high school students, is intense and serious. It addresses racism head-on. It will encourage readers to question the media. It will make them think differently about their classmates. And isn’t that what a good book should do?

Deborah Ellis is the author of The Breadwinner trilogy among other quality books. Eric Walters is a former teacher who has written numerous books for young adults, my favourite being, We All Fall Down.