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Chapter Summaries & Analyses
Introduction-Chapter 2
Chapters 3-4
Chapters 5-6
Chapters 7-8
Chapters 9-10
Character Analysis
Symbols & Motifs
Important Quotes
Essay Topics
Discussion Questions
Sam “Snik” Dawkins
Sam goes by his nickname Snik at school, which is a shortened version of Snikwad (Dawkins spelled backward). Snik is new to the Grand Canyon school. His family moved from Oregon because his father is in the Air Force and moves around a lot. Snik is cocky and outspoken. He prides himself on being a quick and accurate judge of character, pigeonholing his peers into groups of “clueless dweebs, pre-jock idiots, loses, brown-noses, and bullies” (8). Snik hates homework, and rather than take it seriously, he writes sassy, sarcastic answers that hint at his latent intelligence. Snik sees himself as cool and mocks Brenton for not even trying to become cool by never “having cool stuff or hanging around with cool people” (10). Snik sees Brenton as a challenge; Brenton’s intellect feeds into Snik’s insecurities about his own inferior intelligence.
Snik is fiercely pro-military, mostly because he admires his father, but also because Snik needs to believe in what his father does. Snik transforms from a one-dimensional class clown, determined to shirk his homework, into a responsible, caring, and supportive friend to peers he would have ordinarily shunned, having judged them as “stuck-up” (Judy), “a loser” (Kelsey), and a “mutant dork from another planet” (15) (Brenton). When Snik’s father is killed in the Middle East, Snik turns to the D Squad for emotional support. Snik’s interest in chess fosters a deep connection between Snik and his father and allows Snik to realize that he is smarter than he believed.
Kelsey Donnelly
Kelsey lost her father in a snowmobile accident when she was six; she was there when he died. She keeps this a secret from her peers, preferring to keep her emotions to herself until Snik loses his father and her memories are too strong to suppress. Kelsey expresses her individuality by coloring her hair and getting piercings (with her mother’s approval). Kelsey, who lives with her mother, is aware that some kids in her class call her trailer trash, but she is not too bothered. Having been through the trauma with her father, she is good at keeping things in perspective . Kelsey doesn’t care about schoolwork and is happy with mediocre grades. She goes with the flow and usually takes a backseat in discussions about Belch. As friendships begin to develop amongst the D Squad, Kelsey becomes more assertive. When Heather, a friend from her original social group, gives Kelsey an ultimatum—stop hanging out with Judy or lose her friendship—Kelsey stands up for herself and says, “I didn’t want to be friends with anyone who insisted on telling me who I was allowed to hang out with” (85). When Belch becomes more of a problem than an asset, Kelsey is the one who calls a meeting.
Kelsey’s empathy is shown by her observation and support of Judy and Brenton’s budding romance and her quick forgiveness of Brenton after he leaks information about Belch to the paper. Kelsey understands what Snik is going through when his father dies, and they bond over their shared loss. Kelsey’s insecurities still linger by the end of the book. She (incorrectly) assumes that she won’t hear from Judy over the summer, and she’s surprised when Snik asks her out on a date: “Can you believe that? Sam Dawkins actually asked me out!” (141).
Judy Douglas
Judy is an anxious, academically advanced fifth grader, with dreams of becoming a lawyer. She is in the gifted and talented program at the Grand Canyon school and is a straight-A student, second only in her class to Brenton. Judy’s family is Black, and her mother points out that there are only a few African American families in the area. Judy is aware of her talents, and she comes across to her peers as “snotty” and “stuck-up.” When Judy first meets Miss Rasmussen, a new teacher, she worries that Miss Rasmussen “might not be experienced enough” (7). Judy is law abiding, but socially aware enough that she doesn’t tell the teacher when she overhears Brenton say he has a homework machine: “I knew everybody already thought I was a big Goody Two-shoes and I didn’t want them calling me a tattletale too” (26). Judy is in awe of Brenton’s intellect and finds him attractive but does not initially consider him a friend. Judy’s parents are supportive but have very high expectations, which fuel Judy’s anxiety and paranoia about cheating. When Judy gets a C, she is too nervous to show her parents, so she hides the test. As the story progresses, Judy’s narrow-minded superiority is tempered as she learns to appreciates Kelsey and Snik for who they are. Judy also starts to listen to her heart and asks Brenton out—without worrying about what other people might say.
Brenton Damagatchi
Brenton’s mother says that Brenton was “different, from the moment he was born” (13). Brenton is an academic genius and child prodigy who plays chess (against himself), taught himself to play the piano, and wrote a concerto when he was six years old. He does not belong to friend group at school and is teased by his peers who call him “‘dork’ or ‘nerd’ or ‘geek’” (73). Brenton doesn’t get upset and simply muses, “I have never understood why average and under-average students feel a necessity to poke fun at those of us who work hard and do well in school. If anything, it should be the other way round” (23). Because Brenton’s father works with computers, he gets powerful (free) computer equipment. Brenton is an accomplished software designer and developed Belch to free up his time to follow other academic pursuits. He has an interest in psychology, in particular, especially in what makes people follow fads. He combines his two interests (computers and psychology) when he anonymously starts a successful social media campaign telling kids to wear red socks to school for one day.
Brenton is awkward and uninterested in being social. He says that he has no need or time for friends. However, Brenton likes to please his mother, and he appreciates that his mother likes seeing his “friends” come over after school. Despite Brenton’s insistence that he doesn’t care about his classmates, he fosters Snik’s interest in chess and sacrifices Belch because of his concern that using Belch is holding Snik and Kelsey back academically.
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Brenton can connect with his peers when given the chance. He approaches the subject of war with Snik with tact and caution; he helps Snik appreciate that people can be pro-military but antiwar. When Brenton becomes “cool by association” (73), he tries to be nonchalant, but when Snik jokes with him about it (calling Brenton “dork” 27 times to skew Brenton’s “What People Call Me Other Than Brenton” graph [73]), Brenton jokes right back with him. When Judy asks Brenton out, he accepts—after wondering “What would that entail?” (138). During Brenton’s fifth-grade journey, he becomes more comfortable with having close friends. In the end, Brenton chooses his D Squad friends over an offer to work as an influencer for Milner.
Miss Rasmussen
Miss Rasmussen is Grand Canyon school’s new fifth-grade teacher. She has just graduated from teacher training in Ohio, and this is her first teaching job. Miss Rasmussen is a nature lover, and she is thrilled to have landed a job at a school near the Grand Canyon. She is a kind, caring teacher who believes that kids do better working together in small groups. She likes to keep homework light and fun and tries to find projects that stimulate a wide range of abilities—such as designing and making catapults. Miss Rasmussen does not mind her students dying their hair and believes in kids’ need to “express their individuality. Pink hair, blue hair, it doesn’t matter to me” (49). She is a fun teacher and gets a standing ovation from her students when she turns her clothes inside out on “inside out day.” Miss Rasmussen notices the D Squad coming together more than she would expect for such a diverse group, but rather than suspect mischief, she is naively happy that they are becoming friends. Taking the advice of older colleagues, she shows her willingness to learn and grow as a teacher and appreciates that she has “a lot to learn about teaching, and I can’t be so trusting with students in the future” (137).
Ronnie Teotwawki
Fifth grader Ronnie is a loner who keeps an eye on other students. He suspects that the D Squad “losers” are up to something and is determined to find out what. Ronnie does not like Snik (whom he calls Snikwad), and he calls Brenton a “dweeb.” Ronnie does not seem to have any of his own friends, and he goes as far as breaking into Brenton’s house to find out how the D Squad is cheating. Ronnie’s attempts to befriend Brenton fail, and he is angry when Brenton calls his bluff. Ronnie is a flat character; he is not much other than an annoying, persistent tattletale. He is relieved when the D Squad gets into trouble because it diverts attention from his attempted break-in.
Police Chief Rebecca Fish
Rebecca Fish opens the novel with an introduction about the strange things that happen at the Grand Canyon. As the police chief, she has seen a lot of strange stuff, so she doesn’t take the reports of a homework machine seriously. She is gruff and initially dismissive of the reports. When pieces of computer are found littering the bottom of the Grand Canyon, Rebecca takes it seriously. She cares about the rule of law and the canyon. Despite her rough demeanor, Rebecca is kind and observant; she can tell that the D Squad is truly sorry, so she “went easy on them” (137), making them hike down to clean up their mess on a hot day and record the events that occurred for her records.
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