The Frindle Files

Published by: Random House Books for Young Readers; August 27, 2024

Pages: 224

Lexile: 790

Ages: middle grades

ISBN: 978-0399557637

Website: andrewclements.com  

Josh is a computer whiz, but he ends up in Mr. N’s (Allen Nicholas) language arts class where his computer skills are not allowed.  Mr. N’s room is a tech-free zone.  No computers, laptops, iPads, phones, or even a Smart Board.  Mr. N uses as his textbook paperback copies of The Elements of Style by Strunk and White. All assignments are to be handwritten in either blue or black ink.   

Josh learns a secret about Mr. N and works with another friend to solve the mystery of Mr. N.  He keeps a file on his desktop and he files away all the information that he learns. Josh learns that Mr. N is actually Nicholas Allen, the person who made up the word “frindle”.   

Josh encourages all the students to download the free copy of The Elements of Style that he found online instead of the ebook in the school library.  The plagiarized book has errors on nearly every page.  The students work together with Mr. N to campaign to get the book off the internet. 

About the Author: Andrew Clements began his writing career with Frindle published in 1996. Frindle was wildly popular.  Clements began writing full-time and has been an award-winning author many times over.  He was born in Camden, NJ in 1940, and passed away in 2019, after an illness.  You can find more information about him on the website. The Frindle Files was his last book. He came full circle with Nicholas Allen as a student, then Allen Nicholas as a teacher.   

Suggestions:

1. Stick with his ‘school stories’ as some of his writing may not be appropriate for SDA schools.
2. You will appreciate The Frindle Files more if you have read Frindle first.  However, the two books are stand alone.  The Frindle Files is a follow-up, not a sequel. 

Reviewed by Audrey Campbell, MED

Reading Specialist and Library Media Center Director

Valley Adventist Schools, Rogers Campus

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