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SYNOPSIS FOR TANGERINE

Tangerine by Edward Bloor, tells of the quest of 12 year-old Paul Fisher, to find the truth about his past, the true identity of his perfect brother and the lies that lay beneath the perfect image of his new town.

Paul and his family just moved from Houston, Texas, to Lake Windsor Downs, just outside of Tangerine County, Florida. Throughout the book, Paul encounters memories that may reveal the secrets of his family and of his current visual impairment.

Erik, Paul�s brother, is the center of attention in Paul�s family. With Erik�s ability to play football and Paul�s ability to play soccer, they seem to be the "big fish in the little pond." Mr. Fisher devotes all of his time to the "Erik Fisher Football Dream."

Although the town looks beautiful on the outside, there are constant lightning storms that start muck fires that never stop burning. Lightning strikes the same practice field at the same time every day and all of the football players are in danger, one player is even killed, so why is nothing being done about it?

Paul�s dream is to play soccer. On his first day of school, his mother fills out an IEP (Individual Education Plan) form for vision-impaired Paul.. During one of Paul�s outstanding practices, Coach Walski kicks him off of the team because the cost of insurance for a visually impaired student is too high. Paul thinks that he will never be able to play soccer again.

Shortly after this incident, a sinkhole opens up. Part of the field gets destroyed and so do most of the portables in Paul�s school. Paul finds out that there is an opportunity for him to attend Tangerine Middle School. He begs his parents to let him go because he has another chance to play soccer. There he finds a new group of friends, a new atmosphere, and a new way of life.

Tangerine Middle is a tougher school and so is the soccer team. Here, �the minority is the majority� and Paul finds out how different the schools really are. Instead of the hidden secrets at Lake Windsor Middle, Tangerine is more honest. The students and teachers do not hide anything.

Paul joins the soccer team and later earns the respect of his fellow teammates. He becomes a "brother" to the members of the team. He even helps his friends save a grove of rough lemon trees from freezing one night. It is important because the rough lemon was growing a new tangerine called the Golden Dream. The Golden Dream becomes a metaphor for Paul�s new beginning.

During the book, Paul has been having flashbacks that bring back terrible memories. As more and more things go wrong in Lake Windsor Downs; lightening strikes, termite infestations and robberies, Paul sees ever more clearly the truth about Erik. After the tragic death of his new friend Luis at the hands of Erik, Paul finally has the strength to tell his mom all his horrible memories, and for the first time his family believes him. Soon everybody starts to believe him, and Paul discovers the truth about himself. That he is somebody special.

Biographical Information
Date of birth-October 12, 1950.
Place of birth- Trenton, NJ.
Childhood-son of Edward William Bloor and Mary Cowley Bloor.
Married-Pamela Dixion (a teacher), 1984.
Family- Amanda Kristin, and Spencer Dixion.

Education- Fordham University, B.A., 1973

Writing Information
Books published- Tangerine, Harcourt, 1997.
Audience- young adults
Awards-Books in the Middle, Outstanding Titles of 1997, Voice of Youth Advocates, Horn Book honor list, 1997, pick of the list, American Booksellers Association, 1997, 100 titles for Reading and Sharing, New York Public Library, 1997, Top Ten best books for Young Adults and Best Books for Young citations, American Library Association, both 1998, and Edgar Allen Poe Award nominee for Best Young Adult Novel, 1998, all for Tangerine.