Free Lunch

Written by Rex Ogle

Narrated by Ramon de Ocampo

A distinctive new voice: Rex Ogle's story of starting middle school on the free lunch program is timely, heartbreaking, and true. Free Lunch is the story of Rex Ogle's first semester in sixth grade. Rex and his baby brother often went hungry, wore secondhand clothes, and were short of school supplies, and Rex was on his school's free lunch program. Grounded in the immediacy of physical hunger and the humiliation of having to announce it every day in the school lunch line, Rex's is a compelling story of a more profound hunger?that of a child for his parents' love and care. Compulsively readable, beautifully crafted, and authentically told with the voice and point of view of a 6th-grade kid, Free Lunch is a remarkable debut by a gifted storyteller.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Recorded Books, Inc.
• Release date: Sep 10, 2019
• ISBN: 9781980053705

Rex Ogle

Rex Ogle has had lots of jobs. Some involved waiting tables, moving boxes, or cleaning toilets. Other jobs involved creating stories for Star Wars, LEGO, Power Rangers, Minions, DC Comics, and Marvel Comics. Now Rex is a full-time writer and the authorbehind Free Lunch, winner of the YALSA Award for Excellence in Nonfiction. And he’s written the first book in The Supernatural Society series. Why? Because, while it was fun to clean toilets, it is much more fun to write about monsters.

Reviews for Free Lunch

[skstiles612 · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

Free Lunch – Rex OgleGenre: Middle Grade, MemoirSource: I purchased a copyMiddle school is tough. Most sixth graders feel like a fish out of water on the first day. There are class changes, often it is a new school and then, there is lunch. For Rex Ogle his first year in sixth grade is made tougher by the fact his mom has signed him up for free lunch at his school. He must tell the lunch lady each time he gets lunch that he is on the free program. This is such an embarrassment for him, especially since he has to shout it since the lunch lady can’t hear him. Rex has told his story so honestly it is raw. You feel for him when they are evicted and must live in government housing. It wasn’t bad enough everyone he was once friends with knows he gets free lunch. Their new housing sits close enough to the school that everyone will soon know how poor he is. As a teacher I found myself very irritated at the teacher who decided Rex would be a trouble maker simply on first impressions. I am not naïve enough to think that all teachers are compassionate. I have worked with many teachers that made me wonder why they became a teacher. It wasn’t because they truly loved children. Their behavior told a different story. This story resonates with all kids at all levels. I understood how Rex felt. We went through a financial crisis when I was a teen. I chose not to eat lunch and tell others I just wasn’t hungry. It was less embarrassing. Poverty hits children of all colors and all ages. Thankfully today, students scan their ID card for lunch. No one needs to know if they get free lunch or not. This book has a long waiting list in my class. I recommend it to all teens.

[acargile-1 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

We've had this book in the library for a couple of years, and I noticed the third part is coming out. When I saw that the third book book takes place in Abilene, TX, I had to read this book because I grew up there. This book is a memoir--looking back at his childhood, so it's a true story about the author's 6th grade year.Rex states that he lives in Birmingham, TX. I can't find this supposed city on a map, so I guess he is keeping the town vague so that he can't offend people there. He has few possessions--he is capital P-O-O-R. He hates it. He believes that money can buy love and money makes life much easier. You can eat and no one looks at you funny for your second-hand ill-fitting clothing. In this memoir, Rex tells about one year. His mother and her boyfriend, Sam, fail to find a job, so they owe money to just about every business or utility. This inability to have food and money makes his mother and Sam violent. If domestic violence will upset you, I would plan to skip over a few pages. There's nothing graphic or detailed, but it's still disturbing when anyone gets beat up. He loves his Abuela, but she is three hours away in Abilene. She offers kindness and love that he cherishes.Rex also has problems at school. He's embarrassed to be on the free lunch list and finds one of his teachers hateful toward him. His friends aren't particularly friendly, making fun of him in the guise of joking. He often contains his anger because he doesn't want to be someone who resorts to violence. He is a good student, however. It's hard to put the book down. There's something always going on in his life, so it's definitely a page-turner. Those of you who love realistic fiction, will devour this book, especially because it's true.

[pagesandpieces · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

I really enjoyed this one. This was an amazing middle school non-fiction book that is full of truth about poverty, mental health, neglect, and domestic violence. But it is also full of strength, hope, and optimism and resilience. Wow! Rex’s story is incredibly realistic and familiar to anyone who has had to use WIC, food stamps, or scrounge around for change to buy milk or gas. I found myself crying at times when reading this, and I can’t wait to find the sequel. I’m so proud of the author for overcoming everything he had to deal with and ending up a true success.

[jennybeast · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

I honor Rex Ogle for sharing this difficult story, and for surviving his childhood. It's not an uncommon story, but he shares it very well, and I particularly appreciated his struggles with emotion, with recognizing and dealing with his rage. It's a challenging book -- not only is the subject matter hard -- abuse, poverty, hunger, humiliation -- but Rex is a very likable person, so it is incredibly hard to see his suffering. I kept wanting his Abuela or his bio-Father to step in and change things. I kept wanting there to be a real safety net that helps him and Ford, but that is not how we live in this country. I think he did an amazing job portraying the point of view of his sixth grade self -- the internalizing of trauma, the ups and downs of being a kid and without power, his hyper awareness of prejudice and isolation, his struggles with whether or not to conform to jerk behavior in order to please his friends.

Things that I am having a hard time with:
A lot of the reviews comment on his mother's mental illness -- is she mentally ill? I think it is ambiguous, and I appreciate that. It allows for the spectrum of undiagnosed behaviors and doesn't attempt to define mental illness. He does call out her stress, rage at poverty, her abusive behavior and the frequent abuse dealt out to her, her acute humiliation at accepting "charity" and her delight in forcing corporations to give her free things. There is a short mention of his sister dying that I think implies an entire world of more complicated situations. I appreciate that he doesn't ever excuse her behavior, but he does attempt to understand what triggers her. His empathy is vast and moving.

I think it's fascinating that I have yet to see a review that characterizes his step-father's abuse as mental illness, despite the fact that is it equally unpredictable, violent, and triggered by many of the same things that cause his mother to "go crazy".

I understand the comments that that the ending is a little too mature, a little too neat -- but who am I to tell someone what did or did not happen in their lives? And I think the impulse to show hope is not a bad thing, especially when it is combined with a road map for enduring until adulthood. That first venture into Middle school is a time in which people grapple with their own moralities, and Rex is certainly an intelligent and thoughtful kid -- he's on a fast track to maturity, whether he likes it or not. It also feels like the family's moment of stability is destined to be short-lived, but that he is determined to enjoy while he can, and that makes sense to me. Things are rarely so black and white that there are no good moments to remember. Let him have those good times as well as the boatload of bad.

I like that this is short (appealing to kids), fearless, deeply honest. I think the messages are great, and that there is a lot to unpack and talk about here, both on a social justice level and as a way for readers to feel connection. I hope to see more work from this author soon.

[robinsonstef · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

On the border of a 4.5 and a 5 for me. I thought this was an extremely powerful story and one that needs to be told. I also think there are a lot of kids who will relate to Rex and what he is going through and it can open the eyes of other readers. I didn't realize for a long way into the book that this was about the author's first half of 6th grade. He does tell it like it is and shares the thoughts that ran through his head during some dark times in his life. My heart was breaking during most of the book.
The end seemed hopeful- but I also think a note about getting help for physical and emotional abuse would be helpful. Rex changed his attitude and was able to better communicate with his mom and stepdad- but their physical and emotional abuse was not Rex's fault. Very well written. I can imagine this was a hard book for the author to write and relive and I do feel it will help a lot of kids in the same situation.

[annawaffles · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

This book broke my heart. Free Lunch should be required reading for everyone who works with kids.

[sgrame_1 · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

Rex Ogle starts 6th grade on a hopeful note because he can forget about his home life while at school. Its a disappointing start of the year, though, because everyday when he gets to lunch, the lunch lady forgets his name and those nearby hear he is on the free lunch program. He loses his old friends when they take up football and sit with the team and he can't, and one of his teachers always gives him a hard time because he is Hispanic and poor. Rex does his best to take care of his toddler brother, make supper and keep things together at home as his mom and her boyfriend and Rex live in a circle of abuse and poverty. Rex is embarrassed that someone will find out the truth of his home life, as he wishes he just had a normal life like everyone else, one in which he is never hungry. A thought provoking read, that could be somewhat upsetting to some sensitive individuals. Based on the author's life. gr. 4-7

[ewyatt_16 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

An emotionally draining read at times, but a perspective that I haven't seen much of with a student living in poverty and its ramifications in his home and school life. It's a fairly quick read and more than a little heart wrenching. There's a lot of physical abuse from the mom and between mom & boyfriend. But somehow the story left me with a sense of hope, and Rex is this resilient, morally centered kid in the midst of this really tough situation. The center of his struggle during 6th grade is having to announce the he is on the free lunch program each day in the cafeteria. His friends change, he has a lot of responsibility with his baby brother, and he is trying to not fall into the patterns of behaviors he sees in the people around him. He leaves a friend group and finds another.

[salsabrarian · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

The author’s memoir describes growing up poor in an abusive family and how his circumstances embarrassed him and made him feel like the only one. He felt his poverty keenly and it defined how he managed in the world. #ownvoices about poverty. Intensely felt narrative, the embarrassment, anger, fury and hate. Relatable for kids in the same situation and as a compassionate window for others. Vivid emotional scenes. Accessible to reluctant readers. Money and food are his obsessions