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THEORIES OF RELATIVITY by Barbara Haworth-Attard

THEORIES OF RELATIVITY

by Barbara Haworth-Attard

Pub Date: Sept. 1st, 2005
ISBN: 0-8050-7790-1
Publisher: Henry Holt

Dylan has developed plenty of theories about his life on the streets: Every fourth person will give him money; no one gives him something for nothing; all relatives suck. Not that he’s on the street by choice; his mom booted him out and he’s never seen his father. Hanging out at the library and grabbing the first book within reach to make it look like he’s there to read, Dylan becomes acquainted with Albert Einstein, who also had a number of theories. In the coming weeks, Dylan reads up on Einstein and, in a scene that would seem incongruous but that works perfectly to change pace and tone, he encounters Einstein in the library’s washroom. Perched on the edge of a sink, Einstein challenges Dylan’s theories and nudges Dylan toward a new theory of himself. Even if it was a pill-induced hallucinatory encounter, Dylan comes away with a resolve to make a small step for himself and is more open to the help some are ready to give. A beautifully written work on a gritty subject. (author’s note) (Fiction. YA)