Book Review: 'Spare Parts' by Joshua Davis

✰✰✰✰½ Four teenagers, who live with the constant threat of deportation, two dedicated teachers, and one simple, underwater robot come together in this inspiring story of street smarts, ingenuity, courage, teamwork, and unlikely friendship. These kids didn’t have a choice in coming to America; their parents brought them in the hopes of living a better life. As they grew up, these kids identify as American and remember very little about their lives in Mexico, and yet America isn’t eager to claim them.

Faced with stereotypes and misperceptions about immigrants, these four teens beat the odds and outperformed some of the most privileged students in the country to win a prestigious robotics competition. More importantly, these teens garnered respect from their peers and brought national attention to the plight of many children who were brought to this country illegally by their parents. This is their story, one of hope and struggle.

The Bottom Line: This inspiring tale makes discussing tough topics like immigration approachable. Written in short chapters, this is a quick read. The author makes the topics of technology and robotics easily understandable. Highly recommended reading for students in and teachers of high school and college. Also of interest to those in politics, science, and technology.

Book Club Notes: This book turned out to be a surprise hit with our group. It was written in approachable language, and chapters were small. The book created an open dialogue for a respectful discussion about some hot topics like immigration. We noted that there are many layers to the immigration dilemma. For example, should children who are brought to the U.S. illegally be treated the same as the adults who made the decision for them? Although we did not have any solutions to current immigration issues, we are more aware of the situation and able to converse about it. Although this book was published ten years ago, it remains current today.

Many in our group were naturally drawn to the story of Oscar Vazquez. Thank you, Oscar, for your service to America.

The movie was enjoyable for entertainment purposes. While the movie did a good job of maintaining the themes of the book, it did take certain creative liberties. We discussed the differences in the movie ending versus the book. Overall, on a scale of 1 - 5, with 5 being the highest, the book rated 4.6 and the movie 4.5! Highly recommended for everyone.

Discussion questions are readily available online at Reading Group Guides, Teach with Movies, and the Kansas State University faculty guide. 

Details: Spare Parts: Four Undocumented Teenagers, One Ugly Robot, and the Battle for the American Dream by Joshua Davis. Paperback published by Farrar, Straus and Giroux in 2014. 224 p. ISBN: 978-0-374-53498-1