My Time as Caz Hazard

by Tanya Lloyd Kyi

Overview

Caz thinks she has a pretty good reason when she punches her boyfriend in the face, but she gets expelled anyway. Moving to a new school, she is told she is dyslexic and sent to special education classes. Caz tries to fit in and get by while suffering the taunts and abuse that others throw at the students in her class. Her friendship with Amanda leads her into new territory—shoplifting and skipping school. Coupled with her parents' impending separation, her life is spiraling out of control.

Also available in Spanish.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781554696765
Publisher:	Orca Book Publishers
Publication date:	09/01/2004
Series:	Orca Soundings Series
Sold by:	Barnes & Noble
Format:	eBook
Pages:	128
File size:	2 MB
Age Range:	12 - 17 Years

About the Author

Tanya Lloyd Kyi is the award-winning author of more than thirty books for children and young adults. She often writes about science, history, and activism. Tanya's recent titles include Our Green City, What Will I Discover? and Bompa's Insect Expedition, co-written with David Suzuki. She lives in Vancouver, British Columbia.

Read an Excerpt

Dodie Dunstan died last night," she said.
Strangely, my first thought was that Dodie had a last name. Other than Doorknob, that is. Was that how you talked about a dead person? You used her full name?
Ms. Samuels' voice caught, but she continued. "The police don't suspect foul play."
"That means what?" I asked, confused.
"She offed herself. Suicide," Jaz said, turning his intense stare in my direction for the first time all morning. He pursed his lips, considering. "She seems like the pill type to me. She wouldn't want to see blood.

Editorial Reviews

Gr 8 Up-Punching out her so-called boyfriend for sleeping with another girl seemed like a good idea at the time, but Caz Hallard finds herself in a special-education class in a new school after being suspended from her old one. Tests indicate that she is dyslexic, which her super-perfect mother refuses to accept. Caz's disgrace exacerbates her parents' already rocky relationship, and she finds herself seesawing between them and frustrated by both. As her parents' marriage falls apart, Caz is drawn more and more to Amanda, a world-weary rebel. Trying to find a balance in a world gone awry, she tries to protect her brilliant younger brother from becoming their parents' pawn. She loses touch with Mel, a stabilizing influence in her chaotic life. Caz knows she cannot bring herself to tell her old friend of her new exploits with Amanda: shoplifting and teasing Dodie Dunstan, a particularly vulnerable classmate. After Dodie commits suicide, Caz finds herself shocked to her senses, but it isn't easy to face up to the wrongs she's committed. Kyi paints a situation common to our culture: adolescents struggling to find their identity with imperfect adult examples. Readers will easily identify with the opposing forces Caz faces as she tries to make sense of her life. A compelling contemporary story for low-skill/reluctant readers.-Roxanne Myers Spencer, Western Kentucky University, Bowling Green Copyright 2005 Reed Business Information.

School Library Journal

"Will definitely ring bells with the hi-lo crowd...[Kyi's] books seem to hit their mark and are popular."

WASHYARG

"Offer[s] some very realistic situations teens deal with every day and could be used to jump-start more than a few critical discussions. Highly recommended."

CM Magazine

"Slim and easy to read, yet still convincing and deep, and offering a note of hopefulness...Highly recommended."

Hi-Rise

"This short novel features plenty of action and lively dialogue."

Canadian Book Review Annual