Ringside, 1925: <small>Views from the Scopes Trial<br> by JEN BRYANT</small>

bookcover of RINGSIDE 1925 by Jen Bryant

**STARRED REVIEW** PublishersWeekly

"Ringside - 1925: Views From The Scopes Trial" by Jen Bryant is one of the most unique and original novels for young people I have had the pleasure of reading for quite some time. The author, Ms. Bryant, has used the same methods that Edgar Lee Masters used at the turn of the last century in completing his work, "Spoon River Anthology". Where Masters told the story of a town through a series of poems taken from the epitaphs of various members of the village, Bryant in this case, has told the story of the famous Scopes Monkey Trial, Dayton, Tennessee, 1925, through the voices of various citizens of Dayton, reporters, and most importantly, the young people who were members of J.T. Scopes’ Biology Class.

The entire novel is done in free verse! The author goes from character to character and back again, telling the story of the trial and the impressions and impact it had upon those who were there, those who witnessed the actual events as they unfolded. Each character has his or her unique voice. In using her free verse method, I am glad to say that the author has not bogged us down with a lot of vague and obscure metaphors. The target group for this work is young people, age twelve and up, and I have found that few things turn them off from any sort of poetry quicker than difficult metaphors. Their intellectual data base simply is not large enough at this stage in their lives for them to appreciate it. The author has also skillfully avoided another pitfall that will absolutely kill a book for today’s kids…that is the use of regional, racial and chronological dialects. Yes, the author touches on these lightly, but does it in a manner that is quite readable and understandable. Bottom line is that this lady KNOWS how to write for young people! I always note that most teens, when they first open a book, look at the number of pages, the size of type and do a quick evaluation in their minds as to how long it will take them to read it. No problems here; this is a very “user friendly” book. It is fast reading, understandable, and the kids will get a sense of quick accomplishment as they read.

Jen Bryant has been able to perfectly capture the essence of the times, both the place and the people. I must admit that when I first became aware of this work I gritted my teeth and was prepared to plow through yet another rant describing the poor ignorant, bigoted and narrow “hillbillies” of rural America during those times. Being from and living in the Ozark Mountains of Missouri, I am quite sensitive to this. I was pleasantly surprised. Ms. Bryant was able to capture the nature of the people perfectly, while leaving them the dignity they deserved (even the few characters that did not deserve it). This book is full of humor and I found myself laughing several times. The main thrust though, is to get kids to think independently, to have thoughts of their own, to form their own opinions, to keep open minds as they go through life. The author has accomplished this, in my opinion.

Being quite familiar with this particular trial and the circumstances surrounding it, I can say that the author’s research is wonderfully accurate. Even though the majority of the characters portrayed here are fictional, she has her facts nailed. I am also a word freak. I am absolutely fascinated with word patterns, word play and the ideas conveyed by them. This was an absolute delight in that area. I love free verse, and the author is, well… fantastic, for lack of a better description. I could not have asked for more.

Teachers: Give this one a read. The possibilities are almost endless in using this work in your class room. English, Sociology, Science, Dramatics, History…there is no end. I would suspect that if you gave a brief back ground lecture, ran a copy of "Inherit the Wind" and handed the kids a copy of this book, you could get three weeks of discussion out of it, and be able to grade a bunch of papers, while the kids took over. Now not ever child is the same, obviously, but I cannot imagine many of the kids I know, not being stimulated by this book to do further reading on the subject, talk about it, and indeed, to think about it.

Don Blankenship
The Ozarks

Ringside, 1925

Word Count: 25,638
Page Count: 228
Accelerated Reading level: 6.6 / points: 4.0
AR quiz: 120732