12-31-09 Crusader by Edward Bloor – Fiction

3 – This is a bit of a slow mover where you are waiting for the jacket description to start.  Wellll…..it doesn’t really.  The jacket description is a little misleading because the catalyst for the story isn’t the “Crusader” virtual reality game; that just arrives at the beginning of the story.  The book is a pretty heavy young reader/teen book full of racism that follows through with how misconceptions and stereotypes can bring out the worst in people and ruin lives.  It also shows how people can improve once they see through all the bull.  Watching Roberta’s (the main character) progression from a fairly naive teen to a shrewd young woman is subtle and fascinating.  This isn’t the best book dealing with racism but it does inspire hope about the next generation.