The Garden Path

Synopsis

The Garden Path provides a fascinating look into the school reform movement that swept New Orleans in the wake of Hurricane Katrina. In this well paced example of creative nonfiction, Andre Perry offers the perspective of a highly educated, powerful man and a spirited teenaged boy.  Dr. Boyd is the CEO of the University of New Orleans Charter Network and Loren Wise is a ninth-grader who becomes class president and so much more. The book raises important questions about the effects of standardized testing as well as the motives of various stakeholders in the school reform debate, and the creative format allows Perry to represent the pros and cons of several positions.  The book also dramatizes a school election, and the many factors that affect the candidates’ campaigns, thereby creating telling parallels with real-world politics.