The View from Saturday

Infobox Book
name = The View from Saturday
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author = E. L. Konigsburg
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country = United States
language = English
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genre = Children's novel
publisher = Atlantic Books
release_date = 1996
media_type = Print (Hardback & Paperback)
pages = 163 pp (first edition, hardback)
isbn = ISBN 068980883X (first edition, hardback)
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"The View from Saturday" is a children's novel written by E. L. Konigsburg. It won the Newbery Medal in 1997.

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Plot Summary

In this novel, four sixth grade children, Noah Gershom, Nadia Diamondstein, Ethan Potter, and Julian Singh form a group they call "The Souls". The academic bowl is coming up, and their paraplegic teacher, Mrs. Olinski, chooses them to represent their school, Epiphany. The Epiphany team beats even the seventh and eight graders in the Academic Bowl and becomes the state champion. The novel alternates chapters with four being in the first person limited and the others being third person omniscient. The first person chapters are told by each member of "The Souls", about an event which connects with a question they were asked in the Academic Bowl. The first of the first person chapters is told by Noah Gershom, telling about him being the best man at his grandparent's friend's wedding and his experience in writing calligraphy. Nadia Diamondstein tells of a time she becomes active with the conservation of turtles. Julian Singh is the strangest person on the school bus, who starts everything by inviting people to tea parties. Ethan Potter tells of meeting Julian and going to a tea party that Julian invited Nadia, Noah and Ethan and about becoming friends with them. Julian's story is about how he was truthful when Nadia's dog tried out for Annie the Musical. Noah later discovers that the bride at the neighbor's wedding was actually Ethan's grandmother, and the groom was Nadia's grandfather. Julian meets them later. "'

Main Characters

*Noah Gershom - Noah Gershom is a twelve-year-old boy who goes to Epiphany Middle School. Noah has brown hair, and glasses. This sixth grade boy likes to be persuasive, and at times can be a nitpicker. Mrs. Olinski chose Noah to be the first student for her Academic team as he is smart, observant, always has a good answer for everything, he is good with words, a good leader, not afraid to take charge, and most of the time he speaks in using facts. Noah also knows how to write calligraphy. His dad is a dentist, and Nadia’s mom works for him. Noah Gershom learns that he isn’t always the hero and it is a team effort that wins Academic Bowls.
*Nadia Diamondstein - Nadia has curly red hair with freckles to match. She loves her dog, Ginger, and when her dog had puppies she gave one to Julian. Unfortunately, her father and mother got divorced at the same time as her grandpa got married to Margaret Draper, a sea turtle fanatic. Margaret Draper, her new step-grandma has a grandson named Ethan Potter. Her father and grandpa seem to be giving Ethan all the attention and Nadia is jealous of this.
*Ethan Potter - Ethan Potter is a tall, blond boy that is twelve years old and lives in Epiphany, NY. He doesn’t talk that much and doesn’t always share what he thinks. He likes to be alone. He also discovers that he likes halos. Ethan does not like to be compared to his “perfect” older brother Lucas. Ethan is glad to finally have a new teacher who has never heard of Lucas, so now he can build his own personality with his new teacher instead of being known as “Lucas’ younger brother”. His ambition is working in backstage. He was one of the founders of “The Souls”. Thanks to The Souls, Ethan learns to open up more and start conversing.
*Julian Singh - Coming from Great Britain to Epiphany, New York, prim, proper and polite Julian doesn’t make friends quickly in the 6th grade. Yet he is determined to do so. Julian has only one parent, his father. His mother died while the family lived and worked on a cruise ship. While he lived on the cruise ship Julian Singh met a magician named Gopal, who taught him all about magic. When he first meets Ethan, Julian is targeted by the bullies. He learns that even though people may be mean, revenge isn’t the answer.
*Mrs. Eva Marie Olinski - Eva Marie Olinski is a 6th grade teacher at Epiphany Middle School. She is also the head of The Souls, her Academic Bowl team. Having a crippled body doesn’t stop her from being an extremely confident person who brims with personality. The Souls respect Mrs. Olinski for who she is even if her appearance isn’t what they expected. Ever since her accident, Mrs. Olinski hasn’t been treated kindly, which makes her afraid of going back to being a 6th grade teacher. The students help her rediscover what she thought was missing.

External links

* [http://www.kidsreads.com/authors/au-konigsburg-e-l.asp E.L. Konigsburg Biography]