The Misfits addresses the very real issue of bullying that many schools are facing today. The reader follows a gang of friends as they band together to stop all of the name calling in their school. This group of misfits, which calls themselves the Gang of Five, deals with bullies, racism, homophobia, a power hunger teacher, as well as their own personal struggles. As a reader, I enjoyed the book for the message but it was far from a literary work of art! The language was simple, with the exception of a vocabulary word thrown in here and there, and I felt many of the characters were drawn from stereotypes. It is my fear that students that find themselves relating to these particular characters may be offended by the way the character is being portrayed. I most likely would not use this book as a required read due to my disgust with the stereotypical characters. However, the characters and their struggles are easy to relate to which may be helpful for students to read about. I would keep this book available as a choice novel or use as an example of how to deal with certain issues, including bullying.
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