Accidental Tribes

LoveReading4Kids Says

Available from Amazon

Like a modern take on The Breakfast Club, a group of students are brought together for an experiment and everything changes. Gathered in Room 359 of the underfunded Times Square Mariah Wilson Public School, eight students in detention are put into one last thirty day experiment in order to prove that they can change.

Characters from different parts of school life: the boys who hacked the grading system, or made a viral game, to the girls who posted scathing reviews of her classmates online and influenced school policy without permission. Over their time in ‘Solitaria’ the students bond in an unexpected way.

Accidental Tribes reminded me of The Breakfast Club, where a group of students are put together in an isolated room and during that unsupervised time together form unexpected bonds. This story has been updated for modern technology and has been set in an interesting new school with a more sinister than life school director and a curious experiment premise.

However, the plot then shifts in a different direction. Left with a vague threat, the students come together to design something they think will get them out of trouble, even though the new faculty weren’t aware of the group in Room 359. Another reason this reminds me of The Breakfast Club, the why and what’s of the story aren’t necessarily fleshed out as the focus is placed on the friendships made along the way.

It’s a curious, reflective book about second chances and unlikely friendships that asks some questions about the future, with sections at the end of the reader to do their own reflection.

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