Title: Five Flavors of Dumb
Author: Antony John [website] [facebook]
Genre: Contemporary
Publisher: Dial Books
Format: Paperback
Source: Publisher (via ALA)
Parental Advisory: language, drugs, alcohol, criminal activity
Teachable Moments: leadership, dealing with prejudice, living with disability, interpersonal relationships, communication, work ethic, leadership, avoiding judgment, teamwork, sibling rivalry

“In phrases long and short, scrawled and carved, Kurt Cobain’s apostles had composed eulogies to their fallen leader.  And how ever much I wanted to dismiss the words as simple graffiti, I couldn’t ignore the sentiment or the distances covered on the way to this place, the final destination on the Kurt Cobain pilgrimage.  I could have been cynical, of course, but that would have been dishonest.  Because the painful truth was that each and every person who had sat on that seat before me had experienced music in a purer, more visceral way than I could even begin to imagine.  And I’d be lying if I said that I wasn’t profoundly jealous of every single one of them.”

Summary (from publisher):
The Challenge: Piper has one month to get a paying gig for Dumb — the hottest new rock band in school.

The Deal:  If she does it, she’ll become manager of the band and get her share of the profits, which she desperately needs since her parents raided her college fund.

The Catch:  Managing one ego maniacal pretty boy, one talentless piece of eye candy, one crush, one silent rocker, and one angry girl who is ready to beat her up.  And doing it all when she’s deaf.

With growing self-confidence, an unexpected romance, and a new understanding of her family’s decision to buy a cochlear implant for her deaf baby sister, Piper just may discover her own inner rock star.

Opinion:
Five Flavors of Dumb is a fantastic book centered around a girl struggling to fit in.  Feeling a bit the outcast both at school and at home Piper wants nothing more than to graduate and go away to her dream college.  She’s even got some money tucked away to do it.  That is until her parents have other ideas.

That is where the major angst of the story begins!  Piper’s parents are all about fixing one deaf daughter at the expense of the other; at least it seems that way anyway.  Though I questioned Piper’s parents motivation through the story it wasn’t until the end (when real significant progress is made in their relationship) that I saw things as they truly were.

A realistic portrayal of family dynamics John ran the gambit of emotion.  There was unquestionable love and happiness but more times than not there was frustration and discord.  Filled with sibling rivalry Piper holds a bit of a grudge towards her baby sister after their parents used her college money to get said sister cochlear implants . Even so, Piper was still surprisingly excited for the fact that the girl had something she herself was wishing for.  There’s jealousy too!  Piper’s brother Finn has full hearing and that naturally led to a bit of resentment. Piper because he had the ability to be normal in a way she didn’t and Finn because he was expected to adapt parts of his life to Piper’s disability.  I did enjoy seeing how their typical relationship (one where there were arguments and spitefulness) progressed into one that was more trusting and supportive over time.

Piper’s parents, they were a different story.  I found myself wanting to scream at them a good portion of the time.  Their treatment of Piper was abominably selfish and the preferential treatment for her siblings was heart-breaking.  Though I felt somewhat sympathetic towards her mother I couldn’t gear up to feel much of anything positive for her father.  Despite having their reasons the way they behaved really stuck with me.  It certainly went a long way in helping me understand Piper and her motivations (which I think was John’s goal) but still….yea, wanted to scream at them. A lot.

But, know that this is not the only angst of the story.  It’s just the catalyst to more.  As a result of Piper’s parents taking her college money she has to take on a job.  This isn’t a bad thing though because Piper enjoys the job and is very good at it.  Despite being deaf she’s managing a rock band comprised of several students from her high school.  These students weren’t initially able to embrace this idea but over time found that Piper was exactly what they needed to help launch their careers.  It is within this job and this group of new found acquaintances that Piper flourishes.  She learns to be more assertive while still being compassionate and understanding. She overcomes her own judgmental tendencies towards people as she breaks down the barriers others have towards her.

Forced to work for everything she wants Piper is a strong and ethical person.  Rarely taking the easy way out she finds the best solution to the problems she’s faced with.   This is what I love about her most.  Sure, I could give the usual “overcoming adversity” diatribe here but I don’t need to because Piper wasn’t willing to let her deafness define her.  She wasn’t a victim to that circumstance.  Unapologetic and accepting of her limitations she still showed frustration towards it and rebelled against everyone who attempted to judge her for it.

In that way, I found what I liked best about this book  –  how it approached Piper’s disability.  This wasn’t necessarily a book all about being deaf; it was about a girl who was struggling with the life choices made by those around her and oh, yea, she also happens to be deaf.  Further, I appreciated that there was a related moral to the story but that it wasn’t cliched or preachy.  There was definitely a focus on Piper’s deafness, it played a significant role in the family dynamics portion of the story, but it wasn’t THE point of the story.

The greatest weakness of the book (and by weak I mean I personally didn’t prefer it) was the budding romantic relationship between Piper and Ed.  I didn’t honestly think that it was necessary to the story being told.  Piper and Ed were cute enough but I didn’t catch that spark that I like to see between a boy and girl falling for each other.  They seemed to me to be really great friends and the story would have worked with the relationship only going to that level.

Filled with a strong supporting cast of characters, Five Flavors of Dumb is an award winning piece of fiction that should find its way onto your must read pile.  The path walked with Piper as she comes to recognize some big truths is one well worth traveling with her.