ATTACK OF THE BLACK RECTANGLES
Grades 5 and Up
A.S. King
Scholastic, 2022
ISBN: 978-1-33868-052-2
272 pp.
Summary
When Mac and friends discover that their classroom reading copies of Jane Yolen’s The Devil’s Arithmetic have phrases blacked out, they protest – and find themselves up against teacher Laura Sett, who believes that “I am here to protect all of us from the ugly world.” As the kids battle censorship, they also find themselves confronting questions about the nature of truth and the importance of standing up for oneself.
Curriculum Connections
Math
Mac and his friend Denis have invented the game of BOT DUCK MAN, a take on Rock Paper Scissors. Check out the history of Rock Paper Scissors-type games and research the mathematical strategy for winning.
See these helpful hints.
Rock Paper Scissors Association
Social Studies
While book censorship in many states is now an issue in the news, attempts to ban books are far from new. Research the history of book censorship and book burning – and check out the American Library Association’s list of banned and challenged books.
Mac’s small town has passed rules and regulations to create an ideal community: they’ve banned junk food and Halloween, enforced curfews, and decreed that all houses be painted white. Research the history of utopian communities – and try to design one of your own. Now might be a good time to read Lois Lowry’s The Giver.
Mac objects to the ways Columbus’s arrival in America and the story of Thanksgiving are taught. Do you think he’s right? Can you come up with other examples in which history might be more truthfully represented?
Language Arts/Creative Writing
Letters make a difference. Write a letter to your local newspaper about an issue that concerns you. You might also write a letter to your local representative or Congressperson. See How to Write a Letter to Your Member of Congress.
Mac’s haiku reads:
Important is the truth
Even if it hurts sometimes
It is still the truth
Try composing a haiku of your own about one of the themes in the book: truth and lies, the nature of reality, censorship, and so on.
Psychology/Philosophy
Mac’s dad claims that he’s an alien with no feelings and tells Mac that he’s building a spaceship in the garage. While it’s hard to diagnose Mac’s difficult dad, check out confabulation, a mental disorder in which people invent false memories.
What’s real? Aaron, for example, is convinced that the Earth is flat. How is reality defined – and how do the different characters in the book see it?
Discussion Questions
Should some books be banned? Why or why not?
Do you feel that sometimes adults don’t tell you the truth? Are there times when kids shouldn’t be told the truth?
On page 101, Mrs. Sett tells the kids: “You’ll learn, as you grow up, that adults in your life seem to be doing things you think are wrong, but we’re really helping you.” Can you think of examples of this? Do you think she’s right?
How would you define grace?
Are there times when you shouldn’t follow the rules? When and why?
One of the protest signs in the book reads “If you’re comfortable learning history, it’s the wrong history.” Do you think this is true? Can you think of some examples?
What does Mac mean on page 232 when he says “Some battles we lose. Some battles we win. And some battles aren’t ours to fight.”?
What about Mac’s relationship with his dad? Does he believe him?
Author Online
Award-winning author A.S. King lives in Pennsylvania. She is a faculty member at the Vermont College of Fine Arts and spends much of her time traveling the country to speak about young people’s mental health issues.
Companion Books
Americus
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When a parent has From the Mixed-Up Files of Mrs. Basil E. Frankweiler removed from the school library, Amy Anne creates a secret locker library and fights back against censorship.
The Day they Came to Arrest the Book
Nat Hentoff (Laurel Leaf, 1983)
Barney Roth, editor of the school newspaper, takes action when a group of parents and students tries to ban The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn.
The Wonderful O
James Thurber (Penguin Classics, 2017)
In James Thurber's wonderful and witty classic, pirates take over the island of Ooroo and ban all words containing the letter O. A must-read.
Answers in the Pages
David Levithan (Knopf, 2022)
When Donovan's mother discovers that a book he's been reading - The Adventurers - features gay characters, she's determined to ban it from the school. But Donovan doesn't agree.
Memoirs of a Bookbat
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When Harper's parents become "migrants for God," she finds that she must hide her beloved books - and eventually has to make a difficult choice.
The List
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The polar icecaps have melted and the city of Ark is the last safe place on Earth - where leader John Noa, convinced that language was to blame for humanity's problems, has decreed that everyone must speak from a List of just 500 words. But young Letta, an apprentice Wordsmith, doesn't agree.