5.0

This writing is so real.
Multiple times, I felt like I needed to double check that this was really fiction - it felt so much like a transcript of an interview with a real person. I have to give credit to the quality of the writing for that.

I've saved reading Code Talker for years. It's been quite a few years since I booktalked a book that came out more than 10 years ago. But I always try to include an ownvoices book by a Native American, and this was Code Talkers year.

I loved that he went into detail about being raised Navajo, basic training, how they figured out the codes. There were multiple anecdotes I was tempted to use for my booktalk (ended up focusing on the swimming test).

Great cover (which I don't think looks dated at all) - the middle schoolers asked for this frequently.