Ms. Dickinson's Purple and Gold Pick of the Week: Five Flavors of Dumb by Antony John

If Piper could just learn to keep her big mouth shut, she would not be in this mess. But since she couldn't, Piper is now the manager of the school's suddenly popular local rock band, bizarrely named 'Dumb,' and she's got to get them a paying gig within a month to make the arrangement official and get her share of the profits. However, there are a few problems. Firstly, Piper is deaf. Secondly, and more importantly, even Piper can tell that Dumb does not sound good. But somehow Piper and the other mixed up flavors of people that form Dumb are going to have to learn to make beautiful music together.

Now, there's always a chance that novel with a quirky or catchy premise (such as "deaf girl becomes band manager") will never be more than just that: a good tagline.  However, in the case of Five Flavors of Dumb, the novel not only lives up to its potential; the story actually surpasses it with unexpected depth. Five Flavors of Dumb is a delightful coming of age novel about friendship and family that happens to feature a protagonist who is deaf. Piper is funny, frustrated, sarcastic, angry, and kind. Her deafness is integral to the story in that it shapes Piper's life and motivations; the novel provides a look at the complex social world that Piper and her family live in as part of the deaf community. However, the novel never makes her deafness a gimmick and Piper's conflicts with her family and her shifting perceptions of and relationships with the other members of Dumb are pretty universally relatable.

The novel also includes a plethora of references to famous rock musicians and rock music history.  The practical problems of forming and keeping a band together as well as promoting and succeeding as a successful business venture in the music world are also explored.  The characters are quirky and likable; the combinations of unexpected friendships and a touch of romance hit all the right notes.  Five Flavor of Dumb is a feel-good novel that will put a smile on your face while also shedding light on the complexity within the deaf community and providing a crash course in rock'n'roll history.