I am thinking that if I was on an award committee this year that included fantasy books I would be inclined to give this a second read. There was something haunting about it (excuse the pun). I think it reminds me a bit of Spinelli's Hokey Pokey but I think I liked this better.
Every year the 8th graders have what is called Dead Wednesday. On that day they are given a card with the name and information of a teenager who died the previous year - in a car accident usually that was influenced by alcohol, carelessness, etc. After receiving the cards the students receive black shirts and are basically considered "dead" for the rest of the day. The intent - to make them think about their choices and consequences. In reality, most students use it as an excuse to pretty much do whatever they want because all the adults are supposed to ignore them because they're "dead".
But Robbie (nickname Worm) actually meets the girl he's assigned to - Becca - and she changes his life.
This took me a little bit to get acclimated to but then the pacing, mystery, and a clever ending really made the book something special.
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