A review by rebeccatc
No Talking by Andrew Clements

5.0

I read this in order to lead my daughter's Battle of the Books team and it was excellent. When the notoriously "unshushable" 5th grade boys go up against the girls in a "no talking" challenge, they learn a lot about communication. I thought the way they managed while limiting themselves to three words at a time (only when asked a question by a teacher) was very clever. I loved the way the teachers adapted their methods, especially the story-writing exercise and the debate. The students learned the value of silence and being able to hear their own thoughts, and the antagonism between the boys and the girls was lessened. When the principal unwisely decided to forbid the challenge, the way the students came together was a satisfying display of civil disobedience -- remember, "you have the right to remain silent!!"

Note: also worked for the Pop Sugar Reading Challenge prompt "book you can read in one sitting."