Rooster
Trembath, D.
2005
Victoria, BC: Orca Books
Age Range: 14+
Genre: Hi/Lo, Realistic Fiction, Canadian Author
Rating: 3/5


As a last ditch effort to help Rooster Cobb get out of high school (even though he doesn't particularly seem to deserve it), the administration at Winston High creates a community cooperation project with the local home for adults with disabilities. Although Rooster is vehemently opposed, his task is to help the bowling team, the Strikers, become part of the Special Olympics Bowling League. Along the way he realizes that that his relationship with the Strikers is important, as is his future.

A book trying too hard to be something it is not, Rooster takes too much time getting into the story, not enough effort developing the central characters and offers much too much back-story on minor characters. By the time I actually cared enough about Rooster to bother musing about his future, I was on the second last chapter of the novel. Attempting a kind of emotional depth that just didn't work, Trembath took too long to get to the point, and spent way too little time while he was there.

As my first foray into the hi/lo genre, I am semi-disappointed. It wasn't a terrible book, but it wasn't good either. I can definitely see how, designed for the older male reader without much affection for reading, it could work. I have to read more of the hi/lo book in order to truly determine the level to which Rooster is successful; more to come!