Stead, Rebecca.

LIAR AND SPY

New York : Wendy Lamb Books, 2012

IL 5-8, RL 3.8

ISBN 0385737432

Georges (the s is silent) is a seventh grader who has just moved from a beloved Brooklyn home into an apartment building, because his father has lost his job.  His mother is a nurse who often works double shifts in order to support the loss of this income. Although Georges is able to attend his same school, his best friend has joined forces with the group of the class bully, Dallas Llewellyn, who makes Georges’ daily school life miserable in a continually annoying way.  E.g. calling him “Gorgeous.” It is helpful to know at this point that Georges is named after Georges Seurat, the pointillism painter who is known for A Sunday on La Grande Jatte, his mother’s favorite painting. From his childhood Georges has often referred to him as “Sir Ott.”

Just to add another layer to this complex novel, Georges makes the acquaintance of the children of a bit of an eccentric family, Candy and Safer, who are home schooled. Here is where the spyglass plot comes into play.

From Bob English Who Loves To Draw, Candy (who, you guessed it, loves candy), Safer (who is the inside person, in more ways than one, of the spy team), and a mother/son Scrabble™ communication, we are led through the maze of Liar & Spy. The lens of truth of this novel and these characters will not reveal itself until the end.  Who is the liar, who is the spy? 

Read Liar & Spy  and puzzle this out for yourself.   (Booktalk written by Kathleen Fencil, GSF Committee  Bedford Middle School)

                        Apartment houses -- Fiction.

                        Family life -- New York (State) -- New York -- Fiction.

                        Middle schools -- Fiction.

                        Schools -- Fiction.

                        Brooklyn (New York, N.Y.) -- Fiction.

                        Spy stories.