Winger

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Ryan Dean attends a private school where, because of his rugby team, his is known as Winger. Because of an incident involving a cellphone the previous school year Winger is placed in a dorm where all of the delinquent students are placed. To fit in Winger participates in some questionable activities, such as drinking and gambling. However, he also wants to behave so that he can return to his previous dorm with his friends and nicer room. Winger participates in the activities with his dorm-mates, regardless of the consequences. Because of this he ends up making great friends with the people he is with in the dorm. Through this he discovers more about himself than he knew as well as the importance of true friendship. In the end, the dorm he is staying in is closed down after a student is murdered for being gay. Winger has to come to terms with the loss of a good friend and the fact that he will no longer have his new close friends in his dorm any longer. One good thing that comes at the end of the story is that Winger gets the girl.

Teachers may find this book valuable for their classes when discussing differences, that it is okay to be different, and that people should not be treated badly because of their differences. This book could be used also for a character trait lesson. The character traits of Winger and the other boys can be compared and contrasted to discuss the different ways that different traits effect the story and plot.

Citation 

Smith, A. (2013). Winger. New York, NY: Simon and Schuster.