The School for Whatnots

by Margaret Peterson Haddix, Lillie Ricciardi (Read by)

Overview

Notes From Your Bookseller

Margaret Peterson Haddix’s latest sci-fi infused thriller is as thought-provoking as it is page-turning. Exploring themes of friendship, identity and privilege, The School for Whatnots is a twisty mystery sure to please young readers.

From master of suspense author Margaret Peterson Haddix comes another page-turning stand-alone adventure perfect for fans of Cog and Bad Magic.

No matter what anyone tells you, I’m real.

That’s what the note says that Max finds under his keyboard.

He knows that his best friend, Josie, wrote it. He’d know her handwriting anywhere. But why she wrote it—and what it means—remains a mystery.

Ever since they met in kindergarten, Max and Josie have been inseparable. Until the summer after fifth grade, when Josie disappears, leaving only a note, and whispering something about “whatnot rules.”

But why would Max ever think that Josie wasn’t real? And what are whatnots?

As Max sets to uncover what happened to Josie—and what she is or isn’t—little does he know that she’s fighting to find him again, too. But there are forces trying to keep Max and Josie from ever seeing each other again. Because Josie wasn’t supposed to be real.

This middle grade thriller from Margaret Peterson Haddix delves into the power of privilege, the importance of true friendship, and the question of humanity and identity. Because when anyone could be a whatnot, what makes a person a real friend—or real at all?

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9798200854233
Publisher:	HarperCollins Publishers
Publication date:	03/01/2022
Product dimensions:	5.30(w) x 7.50(h) x 0.00(d)
Age Range:	8 - 12 Years

About the Author

Margaret Peterson Haddix is the New York Times bestselling author of more than forty books for children and young adults, including the Shadow Children series, the Missing series, and the Children of Exile series. Her books have been honored with numerous awards and they’ve been translated into more than twenty languages.

Editorial Reviews

01/31/2022

Born into different circumstances on the same night, two middle schoolers encounter their respective upbringings’ mysteries in Haddix’s (the Greystone Secrets series) class-conscious thriller. Though Maximilian J. Sterling’s billionaire parents celebrate his birth with a lavish fireworks display, they soon fear that Max “will never know the difference between the beauty of his own soul and the appeal of all his money,” and determine to raise him alongside androids provided by the Whatnot Corporation. After Josie’s mother dies at an overwhelmed charity hospital just after childbirth, meanwhile, the girl’s bereft father takes a deal offered by a veiled woman: in exchange for greater educational opportunities than he can afford, Josie will live alone at a whatnot school, “pretending to be a robot pretending to be a child.” Eleven years later, having been fast friends with Max since kindergarten, Josie makes a comment about “whatnot rules” and leaves a handwritten note for Max: “No matter what anyone tells you, I’m real.” Though the book’s look at structural socioeconomic privilege largely skips over considerations of intersectional bias, and frequent narrative asides interrupt the action’s flow, strong interpersonal relationships and twisty plotting will draw readers into this quick-moving buddy novel that focuses on connection and generations’ opportunities to unlearn their programming. The protagonists read as white; secondary cast members read as Black. Ages 8–12. Agent: Tracey Adams, Adams Literary. (Mar.)

Publishers Weekly

"Josie and Max find out the truth behind the Whatnot Corporation, leading them to unravel a mystery that has them confronting the true meaning of friendship and reconciling the inequalities the company has prospered from and contributed to. The omniscient narrator and strong pacing will keep readers engaged and racing to the end. Meanwhile, the well-rounded characters will elicit empathy and inspire discussion of systemic socio-economic inequalities. An intriguing novel that highlights social class disparities and the importance of friendship." — Kirkus Reviews (starred review)

"An innovative story of friendship with touches of science fiction, fantasy, and mystery, along with a heavy, dark dose of capitalism. The thought-provoking plot exposes the glaring disparities between the haves and the have-nots. VERDICT A solid purchase with appeal for older readers; recommended for any library, but especially those where sci-fi and mysteries circulate well." — School Library Journal

"Haddix offers a scarily realistic alternate reality, with the seemingly infinite lengths the rich will go to ensure a perfect world for themselves at the expenses of others and the things parents will do to protect their children. A secretive narrator keeps a sense of intrigue, heightening the tension. The book raises questions that will have the proverbial cogs turning long after the book ends." — Bulletin of the Center for Children’s Books

"Less a story about androids than one about children, friendship, and economic inequality, the narrative poses and solves a series of puzzles that leads to a Westing Game–style confrontation with Gonzagaga herself . . . Feel-good wish-fulfillment fantasy." — Horn Book Magazine

From the Publisher

"Haddix offers a scarily realistic alternate reality, with the seemingly infinite lengths the rich will go to ensure a perfect world for themselves at the expenses of others and the things parents will do to protect their children. A secretive narrator keeps a sense of intrigue, heightening the tension. The book raises questions that will have the proverbial cogs turning long after the book ends."

Bulletin of the Center for Children’s Books

"Less a story about androids than one about children, friendship, and economic inequality, the narrative poses and solves a series of puzzles that leads to a Westing Game–style confrontation with Gonzagaga herself . . . Feel-good wish-fulfillment fantasy."

Horn Book Magazine

02/01/2022

Gr 5 Up—An innovative story of friendship with touches of science fiction, fantasy, and mystery, along with a heavy, dark dose of capitalism. How do the wealthy keep their children protected and stop them from acting spoiled? They send them to a school full of whatnots, android robots pretending to be human. While attending one of these schools, Max becomes best friends with Josie. Years later, he finds out Josie has a secret—she is the only whatnot at the school who is human. Her father made a huge sacrifice in the hopes of providing her with a better life. When Josie is transferred out of the program, the two companions are abruptly separated. Both children are determined to find each other, and in the process uncover dark secrets about the whatnot system and its powerful creators. The thought-provoking plot exposes the glaring disparities between the haves and the have-nots. Unfortunately, the almost-too-neat conclusion does not offer any true solutions. Systemic poverty continues to exist side by side with families wealthy enough to render change, but who choose short-term options over anything lasting. VERDICT A solid purchase with appeal for older readers; recommended for any library, but especially those where sci-fi and mysteries circulate well.—Claire Covington

School Library Journal

★ 2021-12-15
Two 11-year-old children fight to preserve their friendship against the wishes of an unethical company.

Maximilian J. Sterling was born into wealth with billionaire parents who wanted to protect him from greedy people and show him he had value outside of his riches. Josie experienced loss the moment she entered the world: Her mother died in childbirth, leaving her to be raised in poverty by her grieving father, whose only wish is that she have more opportunities than he did. Each parent makes a deal with a petite woman dressed all in black from the Whatnot Corporation—the company responsible for creating well-behaved android children that allow rich kids to thrive in controlled environments. Max attends a school where he is surrounded by whatnots—and Josie, who is pretending to be a whatnot so that she may receive a better education than her father could afford. Life goes according to plan until Josie and Max find out the truth behind the Whatnot Corporation, leading them to unravel a mystery that has them confronting the true meaning of friendship and reconciling the inequalities the company has prospered from and contributed to. The omniscient narrator and strong pacing will keep readers engaged and racing to the end. Meanwhile, the well-rounded characters will elicit empathy and inspire discussion of systemic socio-economic inequalities. Max and Josie are White; there is some racial diversity among side characters.

An intriguing novel that highlights social class disparities and the importance of friendship. (Mystery. 8-12)

Kirkus Reviews