Adam Canfield is one overscheduled middle schooler. As a result, he is constantly on the move, usually arriving late to his myriad extracurricular activities. These include working as a journalist for the school newspaper, The Slash . The action of this novel is as fast-paced as Adam’s life as he and his co-editor, Jennifer, work at uncovering stories that reveal the true nature of some of the people in power. There is their principal, who seems to be misappropriating funds at the same time she puts more and more pressure on teachers and students for better test results, and certain members of the city government, who are promoting unfair zoning laws. Because Adam takes his job and himself very seriously, he is irritated when Phoebe, a younger student, begins getting a lot of attention for her reporting. Sometimes it all feels like too much. This over-the-top novel is extremely funny and suspenseful, but at its core are some provocative questions as it explores the misuse of power, ethics in journalism, and the role of standardized testing in American education. (Ages 9–12)

"Between laughs, readers will be prompted to think — about what constitutes truth, how the media massages it, and the importance of ethics, fairness, and getting the facts right." — Publishers Weekly (starred review)

Adam Canfield has to be the most overprogrammed middle-school student in America. So when super-organized Jennifer coaxes him to be coeditor of their school newspaper, THE SLASH, he wonders if he’s made a big mistake. But when a third-grader’s article leads to a big scoop, Adam and his fellow junior journalists rise to the challenge of receiving their principal’s wrath to uncover some scandalous secrets. From a Pulitzer Prize-winning author and New York Times columnist comes a funny, inspiring debut that sneaks in some lessons on personal integrity — and captures the rush that’s connected to the breaking of a really great story.