WebQuest

NOTHING BUT THE TRUTH by Avi

Avi, born December 23, 1937 in New York was five minutes earlier then his twin sister, Emily. Early in their childhood Emily nicknamed her brother Avi, to this day he doesn’t know what the nickname stands for, but it is the only name he goes by. Growing up in Brooklyn Avi’s father was a doctor and his mother a social worker, they supported reading in Avi’s life and made reading an essential part of the daily rituals and library visits a weekly trip. Avi struggled in school because of a learning disorder called dysgraphia, which affects a person's ability to write correctly. Some of the common symptoms that are attributed to dysgraphia is writing letters backwards, incorrect spelling, unusual sized and spacing of letters, and the mispronunciation of words. This was especially difficult because Avi’s twin sister and older brother were accomplished students; (his older brother was admitted to college at 15) and Avi was failing out of his high school classes. Avi eventually changed schools and attended a high school that was tailored to helped students with writing problems. The school helped to correct Avi’s problem, but he decided to really focus on the problem when he was seventeen. To combat his problems he wrote very often, and was writing plays. Avi later became a librarian and worked for twenty-five years at the New York public library and the Trenton State College in New Jersey. When Avi’s oldest son was born, Avi changed his focus from plays to writing young adult literature. He was published for the first time in 1970, since then he has more then thirty books published. When it comes to his readers Avi is quoted, “I want my readers to feel, to think, sometimes to laugh, but most of all I want them to enjoy a good read.” Avi currently lives in Denver, Colorado.

WebQuest Steps:

Summary of Nothing But the Truth

Classrom and Extended Activities

Other Works by Avi

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Quiz questions

Rubric and Grading Scale